Weights and measures

DIMENSIONS

 Turbine vents have become a hallmark of Mercedes’ interiors, although they’re being phased out for higherend models such as the GLS and updated E-class.  AMG Line gets Artico man-made leather and Alcantara-aping Dinamica upholstery, which help to set the sporting tone that SUV buyers mostly want.  Brushed aluminium and imitation carbonfibre are among the trim smattered about the cabin. They give the interior a lift, at first glance at least.

220d feels markedly more sprightly than its British rival, both off the line and at speed.

With our timing equipment fastened to its boxy exterior, the GLB accelerated from a standstill to 60mph in a two-way average time of 7.4sec. Not only does it better the Land Rover’s 10.3sec effort by a sizeable margin, but it validates Mercedes’ 7.6sec 0-62mph claim as well.

Of greater importance, however, is the ease with which you can tap into that performance out on the road. With a healthy reserve of mid-range torque and a gearbox that’s willing to respond to throttle inputs when left to its own devices, the GLB doesn’t suffer too greatly here. It needs 7.1sec to accelerate from 30mph to 70mph, whereas the Discovery Sport requires an additional 3.4sec. Of course, no real drama or flamboyance accompanies the GLB’S accelerative efforts, but the car nevertheless feels stable at speed and rearward weight transfer isn’t overly conspicuous.

So it’s a bit of a shame to discover that the GLB is a little too eager to remind you of the fact that it takes its fuel from the black pump. It’s not so uncouth as to be a dealbreaker, but there’s a persistent grumbling under lighter throttle loads that becomes notably harsher and more vocal as the revs rise. With closely stacked gear ratios, you never find yourself dwelling on these outbursts for too long, and the noise shrinks into the background nicely at a steady cruise, but it undoubtedly paints the Land Rover’s Ingenium diesel engine as the more cultured of the two.

Braking performance and stability are good, with the GLB able to haul itself to a stop from 70mph in a distance of 45.3m. The brake pedal is nicely calibrated, too, with intuitive levels of pedal progression and decent feel.

HANDLING AND STABILITY

AAAAC

The fact that the GLB’S underpinnings first appeared beneath smaller, more compact hatchbacks is arguably at its most apparent when you ask this sevenseat SUV to change direction.

A twist of the wheel results in a pleasingly brisk, if not exactly urgent, response from its front end and the inevitable roll that comes from having a tall, boxy profile feels nicely contained and progressively dolled out. In fact, given how slab-sided the GLB is and the fact that its suspension is tuned with a bias towards comfort, the relatively conservative lean angles it achieves through faster corners are less pronounced than you might otherwise expect them to be.

Its stout resistance to lateral roll is combined with a good amount of grip and an accurate steering rack that’s reasonably easy-going in its gearing but weights up in an intuitive fashion, so you can see why a keener driver might opt for a GLB over the likes of a comparatively relaxed Discovery Sport. Where the baby Disco feels like an SUV that has been purposebuilt to be able to travel places other small SUVS can’t (and is arguably a classier, more honest product as a result), the GLB’S up-and-at-’em character feels well matched to the city environments in which it will no doubt appear in great numbers.

Mid-corner potholes and expansion joints do throw a small spanner in the works, mind. The heightened level of lateral stiffness that does so well to keep the GLB’S side-to-side body movements in check also leaves it somewhat  Body lean is relatively mild, given the comfort-biased suspension, and the rate of roll is controlled well. There’s decent grip, reassuring stability and good traction, too.