Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe review

• Overview
• What is it?
• What’s changed compared to the previous generation?
• What about under the skin?
• Go on then, how does it, er, go?
• How much are we talking?
• What's the verdict?
• BMW X4
• Audi Q5 Sportback
• Driving
• What is it like to drive?
• Why are you telling us, then?
• Ah. How does the suspension we do get compare?
• Interior
• What is it like on the inside?
• Is the central touchscreen any better?
• What’s the space like for passengers?
• Buying
• What should I be paying?
• Nope. What’s the kit like?
• What’s the best spec?

Overview

What is it?

A Mercedes GLC but with a swoopier roofline just about covers it. We’re into second generation territory now, with the regular shaped variant having launched a couple of months back, and given that model is the firm’s best-seller these days, a follow up coupeified variant was inevitable. Lo and behold, here we are.

Undoubtedly its biggest rival is the BMW X4 (a coupeified version of the X3 SUV), but it also competes with the Audi Q5 Sportback (again, a coupeified version of the Q5 SUV, spot the theme here), along with the Range Rover Evoque and Porsche Macan, which like to think of themselves as the more stylish choice.

What’s changed compared to the previous generation?

Well, the new car is 31mm longer and 5mm higher compared to its predecessor, while the longer wheelbase and wider track widths (6mm at the front and 23mm at the rear) result in a smidge more interior space. Oh, and the 0.27 drag coefficient is three hundredths better than before.

Design changes mimic those to the regular shaped GLC SUV, and they’re very much tweaks rather than wholesale. Note the slight updates to the front headlights, grille and lower front bumper, wheelarches and rear lights.

Inside, it gets a 12.3-inch digital instrument display and the now obligatory 11.9-inch portrait infotainment touchscreen, which sits loud and proud in the centre console. Indeed, buttons have been pretty much done away with completely. More on that over on the interior tab.

What about under the skin?

In the UK, your options consist of three mild hybrid assisted units, all 2.0-litre four-cylinders. Your sole petrol option is the 300, while your diesel options consist of the 220d and 300d. All get a starter-generator unit and 48V electrics to support coasting and energy recovery, plus four-wheel drive.

Unlike the GLC SUV – and our European counterparts – there are no plug-in options to choose from on these shores. Which may come as an arrow through the heart to any company car buyers looking to take advantage of any tax benefits.

Go on then, how does it, er, go?

While it steers nicely and the start-stop functionality works well enough, the gearbox is far too indecisive and very hesitant when pulling away, to the extent that on more than one occasion it resulted in rollback at traffic lights. At which point you discover just how little you can see out of the rear window due to the sloping roofline.

In the UK, we also only get sports suspension, as opposed to the four-link front suspension and multi-link independent rear set-up (plus optional air suspension and rear wheel steer) that you get over in Europe. Which is a shame, because we found the sports suspension far too firm for a family SUV, with the other set-ups much improved. Full details over on the driving tab.

How much are we talking?

Prices start from £59,355 OTR for the 220d, £61,325 for the 300 petrol, and £67,895 for the 300d, which forces you to step up one trim level. Like-for-like with the GLC SUV, that’s a hefty £6.5k hike. Head over to the buying tab for the full lowdown.

Like the standard GLC SUV, the second generation GLC Coupe is very much about evolution rather than revolution. Only, it prides itself on style (and only you can decide whether you like the looks), and sacrifices a little headroom, bootspace and rear visibility on account of that swoopier roofline.

Which makes the near £6.5k premium compared to its sibling an even tougher pill to swallow. In addition to the reduced practicality it rides worse on account of the sports suspension, and the absence of any plug-in hybrid options will rule out any company car buyers. If you like the looks and have got money to burn then sure, go ahead, but otherwise the regular GLC is convincingly the better choice.

Continue reading: Driving

Driving

What is it like to drive?

A quick reminder, then – the GLC Coupe arrives in the UK with three mild hybrid assisted petrol and diesel units, all 2.0-litre four-cylinders. The 300 petrol gets 255bhp/295lb ft of torque, while the 220d and 300d get 194bhp/325lb ft and 265bhp/406lb ft respectively. All get four-wheel drive as standard.

However, unlike the regular GLC SUV, the GLC Coupe gets no plug-in hybrid options (the SUV gets 300e and 300de plug-ins, pairing the same 2.0-litre four-pot engines with a 134bhp electric motor mated to a 31.2kWh battery).

Why are you telling us, then?

Well, on the European launch, we drove a 200, 300, and 300de, and while we do get the 300 in the UK, it came with a suspension set-up that we don’t. Indeed, none of those available to test were to the specification we get here.

See, all mild hybrids get sport suspension as standard, the hybrids get a four-link front suspension and multi-link independent rear set-up, while air suspension and rear wheel steer (by up to 4.5 degrees in both directions) is optionally available. Just, er, not to us.

Which is a shame, because it was really rather good indeed, impressively ironing out any imperfections in the road while offering good body control, and reducing the turning circle 90cm to 10.9m. But you can forget all that, because we don’t get it.

What is more pertinent is the 300 petrol car we tried it in. It steers nicely, light enough around the centre point that it’s easy around town, and firming up beyond that. However, the low driving position and long bonnet makes visibility difficult, but nothing compared to the view out the rear window courtesy of that sloping roofline, which is as bad as we’ve tried.

The start-stop functionality is smooth enough courtesy of the 48V mild hybrid tech, but the hesitant gearbox when pulling away is rather alarming, and resulted in a small amount of rollback off the line on more than one occasion. The gearbox just feels too indecisive, even if it does settle down once cruising – until you want to overtake, that is.

Ah. How does the suspension we do get compare?

We tried that next in the 200, and while we won’t bother telling you about engine specifics (we don’t get it, remember), we can tell you the sport suspension is very firm by comparison even in Comfort mode, and results in the car feeling very unsettled to drive. And that’s on European roads, let alone the rough and ready of the UK’s road network. Admittedly, we may have been spoilt by the air suspension we’d tried prior, but we expected better.

Finally, we tried the 300de with the four-link front suspension and multi-link independent rear set-up, which offered a hugely improved ride over the sports suspension, and resulted in only slightly less body control than the air set-up. But it was the powertrain that impressed us further, with the 134bhp electric motor helping to smooth out any gearbox flaws, and the EV range even more impressive still.

Over an 88-mile route through the Alps, we did 77 miles in electric mode compared to Mercedes’ claimed 81-mile range, including several steep hill climbs through the mountains, with the battery regen helping to keep things topped up on any descents. It was really only the high speed motorway driving that killed the range towards the end of the journey – it really feels as though you could rely on electric range 90 per cent of the time in this, and only use the engine/diesel for longer trips. We can’t help but feel it’s a shame we won’t get it over here, especially as any company car buyers would surely lap up the tax benefits.

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Continue reading: Interior

Interior

What is it like on the inside?

It feels very familiar in here, particularly if you’ve driven the current GLC SUV with which it is largely identical, or tried the previous generation SUV/coupe.

Indeed, the biggest talking point is the new 11.9-inch portrait infotainment touchscreen which adorns the centre console. Where previously there was physical switchgear to control the climate controls and suchlike, the screen now fills the position where these once sat, with the airvents repositioned above the screen.

Elsewhere, the driver gets a 12.3-inch digital instrument display, while the steering wheel gains two more spokes and now gets fiddly touch sensitive pads in place of the old physical buttons and rotary controllers – and is none the better for it.

Is the central touchscreen any better?

It’s a slightly better affair, certainly lovely to look at with its pin-sharp resolution and clean graphics, and while it is initially quite daunting to use, it quickly becomes easy to navigate around. Thumbs up to Mercedes for the permanently displayed row of climate controls at the bottom of the screen too.

Less impressive was the optional augmented reality navigation system, which obstructs the map view and signposts any turn offs far too late. Fortunately our test car with this option also had the head-up display, and this really is as good as they come – larger than most and displaying any satnav instructions very clearly.

A few more shortcut buttons dotted around to make the screen quicker to navigate on the move wouldn’t go amiss, though in response to that Mercedes would undoubtedly say we should be using its ‘Hey Mercedes’ voice assistant. It worked well enough when we tested it, though on several occasions thought we were talking to it when we weren’t. Annoying.

What’s the space like for passengers?

It’s certainly very comfortable up front and adequate enough for two adults in the back, though as ever with coupeified variants you do suffer slightly for headroom in the rear. I found it a slight squeeze with my 6ft 2in frame, and anyone taller would find it bordering on uncomfortable.

In the boot you get 545 litres (45 litres more than the previous generation) with the seats up and 1,490 litres (up 90 litres) with the seats down in the mild hybrid. That compares to the 525/1,430 litre BMW X4, and 510/1,480 Audi Q5 Sportback. For reference, you get 620/1,680 litres in the mild hybrid GLC SUV.

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Continue reading: Buying

Buying

What should I be paying?

The 220d starts from £59,355 OTR, the 300 petrol from £61,325, and the 300d, which forces you to step up one trim level, £67,895.

For reference, the GLC SUV 220d starts from £52,880, the 300 petrol from £54,850, and the 300d from £61,420. That’s a £6,475 difference.

It’s more expensive than its two coupeified rivals too, with the Audi Q5 Sportback starting from £49,910, and the BMW X4 from £52,830. So yeah, it ain’t cheap.

Nope. What’s the kit like?

Your starting point is AMG Line, followed by AMG Line Premium, and topping out at AMG Line Premium Plus. Whole lot of AMG going on there, right?

Still, the base spec AMG Line model is pretty well kitted out, with 10.25-inch central touchscreen with voice activation, heated front seats, park assist with reversing camera, privacy glass, 19-inch five-twin-spoke alloys, AMG bodykit and sports seats, LED headlights, and a diamond radiator grille.

AMG Line Premium models add a 12.3-inch driver display, ambient lighting with a choice of 64 colours, augmented reality for navigation, wireless charging, leather sports seats, 20-inch multi-spoke alloys, and multibeam LED headlights.

Top spec AMG Line Premium Plus models get a Burmester surround sound system, keyless entry/go, electric memory seats and 20-inch five-twin-spoke alloys.

What’s the best spec?

While we’re yet to try it on paper the 300d looks the best available engine courtesy of the extra torque over the petrol. In our preferred AMG Line Premium trim, which brings some fancy toys that will surely impress your mates without being OTT, you’re looking at a starting price of £66,790.

Ultimately, however, unless you’ve truly got your heart set on the Coupe’s swoopier bodyshape, we reckon your best bet is avoiding it completely and getting yourself the more practical SUV instead, which also offers those tax friendly plug-in powertrain options for any company car buyers out there.

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Continue reading: Specs & Prices

Keyword: Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe review