This is the Mercedes GLC and it’s a rival for the BMW X3 and the Audi Q5 and you can pretty much think of it as a C-class on stilts. Clearly an inferior product. Thankfully, this isn’t. It’s a really, really upmarket vehicle and it’s absolutely gorgeous inside. In fact, if you spend a lot of time in this car, you can get so used to the luxury that you’re going to find it difficult to go into your home and equipment is pretty good. So the GLC is a little bit more expensive than its rivals, but you do get quite a lot of kit as standard, such as man made leather. And if I didn’t tell you that it was manmade, you probably would never know. You also get electrically operated seats and the heated as well, which is nice. However, if you want sat nav, you do have to pay extra for it on the base model. And there’s two types, right? There’s a Garmin satnav, which is not really very big coming out of a mercedes. And then there’s the more expensive Mercedes command system, which from brutally honest, it’s not as good as those offered by Audi or BMW.
Now if you click on the card in the top right hand corner of the screen, you can see our in-depth review of the infotainment system and have another look around this car’s glorious cabin. And you probably notice then that the well, the cubby space is actually really good, but that’s not why you’d buy a JL So you buy it for its image. And really this is a car that totally stands out from whichever angle you’re looking at it from the front, the sides, the back. Oh, especially the back. It just it just screams quality. Also a standard. All models get an electrically powered tailgate, which seems to take an absolute age. To open. But once open, the boot is really, really practical and it’s got a couple of really cool features that I like. So the first one is the fact that, look, you’ve got a lockable false floor so you can hide away your valuables. Another neat thing is that the parcel shelf is easy to remove and when not in use, you can fit it under there. It’s great that this car has no load lift. The only problem is, is that the load height is quite high. So it’s going to be a bit of an effort for your old dog to leap into the back. You won’t find this and effort, though, falling down the rear seats. Just a flick of a button. It’s just so simple, Mercedes, making your life easier. There we go. And then you’ve got a nice big, flat, low bay. It’s a very practical car, actually, and that extends to the back seats. So if you just hop in, I’ll put these chairs back and you will see that I have loads and loads of headroom.
People over six foot will be absolutely happy back here. And if there’s only two of you, you can fold this down to roll on it, lift it up, you’ve got some extra storage. But if there’s not and you need to carry three. It’s perfectly doable in here. Yes, there’s a bit of a hump in the floor, but those footballs are really large. And because there’s so much headroom, look, the middle seat is actually surprisingly comfortable. And if you want to see just what it’s like with three people in the back, click in the top right hand corner of the screen on the card for our in-depth practicality video, and you’ll be able to see just how easy it is to fit a baby sit in here and how much stuff we could actually fit in the GLC boot. Mercedes has filled the GLC with technology and here’s a run through of five call features. The GLC is the only car in its class available with air suspension, but it is expensive.
The crosswind assist prevents sudden gusts from blowing you off course. The blind spot monitoring with active steer prevented drifting into other cars. It’s already saved me once. The location of the gear selector on the steering column is really handy. The Off-Road pack includes five modes including Incline, Slippery and rocking assist. However, the GLC isn’t perfect. Here’s five things which aren’t so cool about this SUV. The black piano Plastic may look great when new, but it scratches easily. You end up dirtying the backs of your trousers on the rubbing boards when you go to get out the design of the touchpad and the swivel wheel a little bit awkward and they kind of give you RSI the automatic gearbox, sometimes jerks slightly when changing down at low speeds a bit like that at the moment. The car is currently only available with a 2.1 litre diesel engine. In the UK, though it does have two power outputs. If you want petrol power you can get a six under three litre in the sporty AMG GLC 43. And that brings us on how the GLC feels when you hit the road. The JLC is based on the C class. And as you’d expect, it’s it’s pretty good to drive. I would say it’s not perfect though.
For instance, while the suspension on the whole is very, very comfortable. Occasionally you do get this this slight rocking sensation when you go over certain bumps. Another thing is that the controls, the the steering and the brakes, they’re just a little bit numb. And that means that you’re not really encouraged to push it to the corners like you would a BMW X3. To be fair, though, it still handles well enough and I think that this GLC is well, it’s laid back approach really suits SUVs. Now the GLC, it might be a big car, but it’s actually pretty easy to drive in town because obviously you sit up high, it’s easy to judge where the corners of the car are. If you want to actually have a look at the visibility yourself, click in the top right hand corner of the screen on the car to watch our 360 degree video. And you’ll notice that the only real blind spot is the fat rear pillar. One area where this JLC really stands out is soundproofing because it’s noticeably quieter than its rivals. In fact, the ambience is only dented slightly when you put your foot down and the grumbly 2.1 litre diesel roars into life. But then when you back off again, it seems subsides and well, anyway. Mercedes says this engine will do 16 7.5 seconds and return 56 miles per gallon. And in the real world I’m actually averaging 48 miles per gallon. So then overall, what do you think of the Mercedes GLC? Well, the infotainment system is a little bit confusing and that 2.1 litre diesel a touch noisy, but this car is super stylish and it’s really relaxing to travel in.
