School homerun New car for the new school term, anyone?
or 25 minutes, I’m driven around the German countryside by Prof Dr Thomas Weber, Mercedes’ head of R&D this past decade. Imperiously resistant to most of my attempts to get a question in edgeways (and I’m generally an annoyingly frst-rate interrupter), he expounds at length about the good points of his new GLE, and a lot more about other matters in Mercedes’ engineering present and future. At no point does he talk about his cars being especially good to drive.
And in the TopGear sense, this one isn’t. But then, it’s an SUV, and Mercedes SUV buyers don’t want their cars to corner like hot hatches, because if they did there would be too many other sacrifces. But the GLC does drive like a rather good Mercedes. Which means solid as a vault, relaxing, safe and comfortable, but not spicy or engaging.
It’s a great car for bowling along, admiring the scenery. Or even becoming
FBMWX3 It’s a BMW, the GLC
is a Mercedes, and that about sums it up part of the scenery. Not by crashing into a hedge – the semi-autonomous safety systems are almost up to S-Class level – but by driving way, way of the beaten track. For a car without a low ’box or dif locks, it’s a staggeringly efective device in the rough.
You might know that Mercedes until now built the GLK, a boxy crossover smaller than the ML. It wasn’t sold here because bits of the 4x4 gear would have fouled a RHD steering column. With the new platform (shared with the C-Class) and a compact nine-speed auto ’box, the 3D engine-bay jigsaw fnally fts. The name change from GLK to GLC corresponds with the change from ML to GLE. All Mercedes crossovers henceforth get the GL prefx plus a third letter indicating their size.
It’s propelled by Mercedes’ good old 2.1 diesel, but it operates more quietly than usual. The badges say GLC 220d and GLC 250d. They make 168bhp and 201bhp respectively, but the performance step isn’t that signifcant. Neither is quick, but the nine-speeder conjures its shifts imperceptibly.
Uniquely for this size of SUV, air suspension is available. It’s £1,500 well spent for self-levelling under load and for jacking up the of-road clearance, or for lowering at speed. And it should bring a suppler ride. I didn’t get a go at the coil-sprung standard set-up, but on air it cradles you very nicely. The payback is handling that gets waterlogged when you hurl it into a tight bend, but most of the time its reactions are precise but measured and very far from agile.
The wheelbase is longer than the C-Class’s, so the cabin is palatial, front and back. It’s pretty regal in its materials and quality too. So if the scenery outside isn’t as glorious as the SUV dream, at least you can turn your attention indoors.