Glc

[crockers]

Has anyone driven one?? If so what do you think of it??

 

[Dryce]

Has anyone driven one?? If so what do you think of it??

Was in a dealer at the weekend and they didn't have one.

Sales exec I was speaking to had been out in Europe driving them and was very enthusiastic (cynically I would say .... well they would be!) about how it drives.

It screams 'X3' to my eye. But looks a bit classier.

Comes with rear privacy glass as standard even in the SE version - so pretty chavtastic from the get-go.

That aside the equipment list looks pretty good - apart from lack of satnav in the SE version.

 

[grober]

Its a jacked up C class with permanent 4 wd with no petrol or hybrid engines available in the near future. I imagine increased suspension travel, plus bigger wheels/ tyres will give it better ride quality for the urban jungle than its saloon/ estate progenitor, especially if ordered with the variable air suspension option. That built in 4WD option will be handy for getting Justin and Melanie to playgroup in the darker reaches of Knightsbridge in the depths of winter. All in all an excellent new edition to the panoply of 4WD vehicles carefully targeted at what might be characterised as the second car/ urban environment market. One thing to look at is all-round visibility. One advantage of most 4WD vehicles is "theoretically" greater visibility conferred by increased driver height . If this is negated by poor sight lines due to a poor seating position or body styling characteristics then I would be wary even with a plethora of electronic parking aids on board. First thing that put me off the GLA was the combination of a seating position combined with a low roof and high dashboard/body waistlines meaning visibility was always going to be a problem.

 

[TheFoX]

Or just go for a GL/ML if you want four wheel drive. For those that don't know, the GLA, GLC and GLE are A, C and E class related, hence the final letter.

I also tried the GLA, but found it way too cramped. The GLC is supposed to return 60mpg in the 250 guise.

To be honest, I would prefer to get a B220 4Matic, as it has the height, the carrying capacity, and four wheel drive for those really bad days. After that, an ML or a GL.

 

[Dryce]

Or just go for a GL/ML if you want four wheel drive. For those that don't know, the GLA, GLC and GLE are A, C and E class related, hence the final letter.

The ML and GL feel quite frumpy and old fashioned inside compared with the modern range.

I'm not a fan of the three vent dash in the GLC and smaller models. And the stick on tablet looks .... well like a stick on tablet.

ML is being superceded by the GLE so there may be deals as the year progresses and they finalise the consolidation of the range designations.

One thing I find quite a bit sad is the eradication of 6 cylinder diesels from the range. Everything of any note seems to be a '220' or '250'.

Maybe not as sad as BMW's sDrive25 X5 which just feels like such a shameful concept.

 

[SimonRJ]

Crockers, I'm hoping it's as good as they say as I've ordered one blind!
My next door neighbour is a sales exec at my local dealership and has been out to Portugal to try out various new models (dream job!) and his feedback is really positive.
I was nervous about giving up my V6 2014 ML but he reckons I'll not be disappointed - the only real thing I'll miss is the grunt of the V6 - that said, I've ordered the 250d AMG so it'll have plenty of power.
Mine should be here at the end of October but there should be a demo available to see in the metal in the next couple of weeks.
Good luck with your research - I'll be keeping a watchful eye on your thread!
Regards

 

[TheFoX]

One thing I find quite a bit sad is the eradication of 6 cylinder diesels from the range. Everything of any note seems to be a '220' or '250'.

It's the same with the C class. We used to have a C350CDI, yet they withdrew the 3.0 litre diesel engine from that line up even before the new shape appeared. I know several people who are upset that there isn't a 3.0 litre diesel for that class.

One of the reasons I switched from the C class to the CLS is that the CLS has the 3.0 litre diesel, which is as smooth as silk compared with the 2.1 litre lump. When making my choice, it was between an E350CDI coupe or the CLS. The right one came up at the right time for the right price.

There is something similar in Mercedes dropping their top end diesels for certain classes, to what Ford did some years back when they started dropping the more powerful engines from their line ups. We used to have 3.0 litre Capris, 2.8 & 2.9 litre XR4i's and 4x4's, and even the 2.0 litre RS Turbos and Cosworths. What do Ford have these days? They have a few FUN machines, but nothing compared to the XR & RS days of old. The magic just isn't there any more.

I'd hate to see a situation where the big 3.0 litre diesel disappears completely. We are already seeing the standard CLS diesel appearing as a CLS220 (what happened to the CLS250?). Are they going to reduce the power of the range in to two standards? Gutless diesels for the economic motorist, and over the top 6.2 litre petrols for the speed connoisseur, with nothing in between?

I hope that this trend of downsizing their engines stops soon, before the entire Merc range ends up this way, otherwise I will be keeping my CLS for many years to come.

 

[Red C220]

The idea is the introduction of the AMG Sport range will fill this gap in the near future.

Most models will then have a 450 AMG Sport 3.0 v6 twin turbo petrol variant.

The first hand reports I've had of the C450 AMG Sport 4Matic is real world driving it's as quick as a C63 due to the 4wd system and the way it puts down the power.

There will be a GLC450 AMG Sport in the not too distant future.

This engine effectively makes the 3.0 diesel redundant.

 

[JBD]

The idea is the introduction of the AMG Sport range will fill this gap in the near future.

Most models will then have a 450 AMG Sport 3.0 v6 twin turbo petrol variant.

The first hand reports I've had of the C450 AMG Sport 4Matic is real world driving it's as quick as a C63 due to the 4wd system and the way it puts down the power.

There will be a GLC450 AMG Sport in the not too distant future.

This engine effectively makes the 3.0 diesel redundant.

As above, I managed to get the C450 round Estoril quicker than the C63, just because I could get the power down. We couldn't turn the ESP off and it just kept cutting in on the C63. C450 arrives in coupe, estate and saloon from June.

 

[Dryce]

One of the reasons I switched from the C class to the CLS is that the CLS has the 3.0 litre diesel, which is as smooth as silk compared with the 2.1 litre lump.

This is my view - it's really more about refinement than performance.

My feeling is - looking at prices - that the trick that MB and BMW have managed to do is gradually bump the 2 litre'ish diesels up the range without having to drop prices and getting the customers to accept this as the new normal.

 

[Rory]

I hope that this trend of downsizing their engines stops soon,

Unlikely - it's driven by emissions. Manufacturers are going to be fined for exceeding average emissions targets.

 

[Dryce]

Unlikely - it's driven by emissions. Manufacturers are going to be fined for exceeding average emissions targets.

I don't think this is the whole story.

BMW sell 3.0 litre cars that manage the emissions stuff very well.

I think the market has got perhaps more focused on body kit and options than engine size once the PS and 0-60 numbers at the back of the brochure started looking very reasonable for a 2 litre'ish turbo-diesel.

If you are used to a diesel Golf or Insignia then a E220 or 520d will feel pretty refined.

 

[grober]

A quick perusal of the German and French MB sites reveals they have a choice of a GLC 250 4MATIC 211ps PETROL engined model which is actually slightly cheaper [ in the France or Germany line ups ] than the 2 diesel models offered in the UK.

 

[Dryce]

A quick perusal of the German and French MB sites reveals they have a choice of a GLC 250 4MATIC 211ps PETROL engined model which is actually slightly cheaper [ in the France or Germany line ups ] than the 2 diesel models offered in the UK.

The MB UK pricing will be set out so that once supply and demand are settled after the launch then they can get on with the normal business business by offering a PCP with a dealer contribution.

For that they tend to need diesels.

 

[JBD]

A quick perusal of the German and French MB sites reveals they have a choice of a GLC 250 4MATIC 211ps PETROL engined model which is actually slightly cheaper [ in the France or Germany line ups ] than the 2 diesel models offered in the UK.

The 250 petrol will come, just not from launch

 

[crockers]

As above, I managed to get the C450 round Estoril quicker than the C63, just because I could get the power down. We couldn't turn the ESP off and it just kept cutting in on the C63. C450 arrives in coupe, estate and saloon from June.

You just gotta live the way threads diverge...lol.

 

[chardonbleu]

You just gotta live the way threads diverge...lol.

To be fair to JBD, that was fairly on-topic (what with Red C220 discussing "there will be a GLC450 AMG Sport in the not too distant future" and how the C450 performs) and he has already discussed his test drive of the GLC on another thread

So, back to the GLC, my spec amend date expired yesterday so no excuse for the factory not to get right onto building it

 

[SimonRJ]

chardonbleu, I've also ordered my GLC but had no notification of a 'spec amend' deadline (not that I'm looking to change anything) so hopefully they've started to glue it together. When do you hope to have yours ready for collection?

 

[chardonbleu]

SimonRJ - I think your dealer should be able to send you a copy of the factory spec sheet - looks like the official term is OASIS Vehicle Enquiry. It lists your vehicle commission number, all of the relevant dates and all of the options chosen. I've seen people on here and elsewhere querying some of the three-character option codes!

Mine is expected at the dealer second week of October (the production date is third week of September) but supposedly once they're tagged as sold they sometimes come sooner than estimated

 

[SimonRJ]

Thanks chardonbleu, I might give the dealer a call. I've got the vehicle order form from the 5th August when I placed the order - it states the extras but not with the 3 character codes. My estimated delivery is the end of October so like yours, hopefully it'll be sooner. Very excited but a little nervous about giving up the ML - looking forward to seeing a demo soon.