By: Dave Abrahams
Stuttgart, Germany - Mercedes-Benz's second attempt at a mid-sized SUV, revealed on Wednesday evening, is far more narrowly focused than its predecessor on its two Teutonic rivals, the BMW X3 and Audi's Q5.
This is not a bad thing; the X3 in particular has demonstrated over more than a decade that the formula works.
From its unexpectedly blunt nose to its gently sloping roofline, the shape is cleaner and less fussy than we are used to from the GLK, the wheelbase 118mm longer for a more elegant profile as well as significantly more interior volume, clearly echoing the GLC Coupé showcar concept we saw at Shanghai in April.
It's also 80kg lighter, thanks mostly to the increased use of aluminium and high-strength steel in the body shell, as well as a 9G-tronic transmission with a magnesium-alloy casing and a new, more compact transfer case.
Off-road credentials come in the form of 4Matic permanent all-wheel drive, multi-chamber air suspension and an extended range of transmission modes. Also available will be optional bumpers with steeper approach and departure angles as well as side running boards - or you can go the other way with sporty AMG plastics at both ends.
INNER SPACE
The cabin layout follows the design language of its bigger GLE sibling, with a big, one-piece console sweeping from the centre air vents to the armrest.
A new touchpad in the handrest over the rotary pushbutton responds to finger gestures as well as handwritten characters to access key infotainment functions, which are displayed on a central screen.
The extra wheelbase translates to 57mm of additional rear legroom and a substantially bigger cargo bay - up 80 to 110 litres (depending on the angle of the 40:20:40 split rear seat back) to a maximum of 580 litres. That expands to 1600 litres with the rear seats folded to create a flat load bay 1320mm long and 1100mm wide - 150mm wider than on the GLK.
But wait, there's more: if your GLC has air suspension you can lower the back of the car by 40mm and open the tailgate automatically just by waggling your foot under the rear bumper.
POWER HAUS
The new GLC will available in South Africa from the third quarter of 2015 with four propulsion propositions - two diesel, two petrol.
The GLC220d and GLC250d have the same two-litre turbodiesel four, tuned for 125kW/400Nm and 150kW/500Nm respectively, for a nominal expenditure of five litres per 100km, while the two-litre, turbopetrol GLC250 is rated at 155kW and 350Nm at a quoted cost of 6.6 litres per 100km, and the same engine is uprated to 180kW and 370Nm in the GLC300.
Each drives through a nine-speed auto transmission and standard all-wheel drive.
At the risk of being labelled an anorak, I remind you that these fuel-consumption figures have absolutely nothing to do with real-world driving, but are calculated using the same pie-in-the-sky formula as everybody else which, in theory, allows you to compare apples with apples.
Mercedes-Benz quotes 0-100km/h figures of 8.3, 7.6, 7.3 and 6.6 seconds respectively, and terminal velocities of 208km/h for the GLC220d, and 221km/h for each of the others.
We're not getting in South Africa but there is also the GLC350e for first-world markets, which pairs the 155kW turbopetrol with an 85kW electric motor and a 7G-Tronic Plus auto transmission. Stuttgart says it'll run up to 34km in pure-electric 'stealth mode', sprint to 100 in less than six seconds using both and top out at 234km/h.
The new GLC comes with five driving programs as standard - Eco, Comfortk, Sport, Sport+ and Individual. The optional Off-Road Package adds Slippery for mud and sand, Off-road for gravel and hard-packed dirt, Incline for steep ramps and long slow uphill stretches, Trailer for towing off-raod and pulling away on slippery surfaces such as a slipway or wet grass, and - if your GLC has air suspension - Rock Assist, which locks up everything and jacks up the suspension so you can work your way out of a sticky situation.
POWER IS NOTHING WITHOUT CONTROL.
Standard GLC issue is steel springs and variable damping; the optional multi-chamber air suspension, however, gives you continuously adjustable damping over a range of dynamic settings.
Sport mode lowers the suspension by 15mm and tightens everything up, while Comfort mode offers a super-plush ride, while resetting the damping individually at each corner every 60 milliseconds to reduce body roll in sharp corners and, more importantly, sudden evasive manoeuvres such as the infamous 'elk test'.
Add the optional off-road package, and an additional mode raises the ride height by 50mm, and dials in a particularly soft basic tuning for maximum articulation.
DRIVER AIDS
These include almost all the features found on the C, E and S Class, including collision prevention assist, crosswind assist, headlight assist and attention assist.
A traffic sign assist program shows speed limit, no-overtaking and no-entry signs on the head-up display - and even warns you if you're going the wrong way down a one-way street or on to a freeway.
Active parking will automatically manoeuvre the GLC into parallel or end-on parking spaces, and, if your GLC has the optional LED headlights, you can leave the brights on while the system masks out the portion of the beam that would dazzle other drivers.
The optional driver assistance package adds Distronic Plus with steering assist and Stop&Go Pilot for heavy traffic, Pre-safe braking with pedestrian detection, brake assistance with cross-traffic warning, blind-spot monitoring and active lane-keeping.