No works programme
The 190E 2.3-16 had a brief works rally career in the mid-1980s, famously finishing eighth at the 1984 Monte Carlo Rally, but by the time the C-Class arrived Mercedes had moved its motorsport focus to circuit racing and Formula 1 engine supply. There was no factory W202 rally effort.
Privateer stages
Privateers still took the platform onto the stages. In the mid-1990s a handful of C220 and C230 Kompressor cars were built to Group N or Group A specification for national championships, notably in Belgium, Germany and South Africa. The most competitive was a C280 run in the 1995 German Rally Championship by Dealer Team Stuttgart, which scored several top-ten finishes on tarmac. The W202's rally presence is slight, but it shows the strength and tunability of the platform.