Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 Review
Car Tested: Mercedes-AMG GLC 43; Road Test No. 908
Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 96.25 lakhs
What I really like about the GLC 43 is how it performs and of course its usable nature
Times are changing. Earlier, it was hard to find practical cars that would offer a good rush of performance and sporty dynamics but now a lot of automakers have been adapting and making cars that offer the punch of a good sports car blended in the package of a practical car that can be a daily driver. One such car is the Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 which is based on the GLC. In India, we get the Coupe version with the AMG heart and there are more than a few reasons why this one is such a nice package.
Motor Quest: Mercedes-Benz sells the regular GLC SUV in India with a choice of petrol and diesel engines but the Coupe version is available only in the AMG guise. The car doesn’t have any proper rival in the same price bracket but in global markets it competes with cars like the BMW X4.
The GLC 43 Coupe looks quite different from the regular GLC
Exteriors – The design and looks department is where the AMG GLC 43 will make you go weak in your knees. The SUV gets a diamond-finished grille which is flanked by the LED projector headlights with LED DRLs on either side and the huge three-pointed star logo in the middle. There’s enough chrome detailing on the car, for instance, on the grille, front lower bumper and on the rear profile. At the side, is where the drama is all about. While the sloping roofline is the design highlight of this SUV, the 19-inch dual-tone AMG wheels and the wraparound LED tail-lights are also bound to catch your attention in a jiffy. The quad exhausts and the aerodynamics aiding lip on the boot lid tell you that this no regular GLC. The vehicle is available in a total of six exterior colours – Designo Hyacinth Red, Brilliant Blue, Obsidian Black, Diamond Silver, Selenite Grey and Polar White and is marginally longer and lower than the regular GLC.
The cabin gets additional AMG bits and an all-black treatment
Interiors – While the cabin is reminiscent of the regular GLC, there are visual differentiators between the standard GLC and AMG GLC Coupe. For starters, the cabin adopts an all-black theme with piano black finishes in the centre console. There is red double stitching on the dash, seats, steering wheel and the door pads and if that’s not too colourful, you also get red seatbelts. The front seats are great in terms of support and comfort and get electrically adjustable squab length while the rear seat isn’t as good as the front. First, the headroom is tight for a person measuring 5’11” & above and second, the windows aren’t that large, so you might end up feeling claustrophobic. That said, leg room at the rear is ample.
Space in the boot gets limited due to the spare tyre
Features on offer include an electric sunroof, 13-speaker Burmester sound system, 8-inch COMAND infotainment system with Bluetooth (not a touchscreen!), Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, electrically adjustable front seats with memory and heating function. The 491-litres boot ironically has very little space as the space saver tyre eats up all of that space. So before driving, you will have to decide whether you need the space saver or your luggage. Quite troublesome, isn’t it?
The 3.0-litre V6 isn’t as wild as the larger V8 AMG engines
Performance – The GLC 43 isn’t a hard core AMG because, well, it is a 43 and not a 63, meaning it comes powered by a 3.0-litre V6 engine. The powerplant churns out 367 HP at 5500-6000 RPM and 520 Nm at 2500-4000 RPM. The engine starts off with a mild grunt and the settles down to a consistent rumble that isn’t really loud. The mill also feels very refined and vibration-free. Dab the throttle and the car will react to inputs instantaneously and will pick up pace quite swiftly and 0-100 km/hr comes up in a claimed 4.9 seconds. Turbo lag isn’t really felt and the GLC 43 is quick off the line. The mid-range is powerful and the surge continues till the redline, and that’s when the exhaust note sounds sporty too, urging you to push the car further.
Different driving modes completely alter the car’s behaviour
Power is sent to all 4 wheels but with a bias towards the rear wheels
The 3.0-litre engine has been mated to a 9-speed automatic gearbox. The transmission does its duties well, gear shifts come up just as you expect them to and there’s no noticeable lag between shifts. On the highways, if you’re cruising down at 100 km/hr in top gear, the RPM needle hovers around the 1400 RPM mark. Mercedes offers the usual driving modes like Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual on the GLC 43 and the different modes do transform the way the car behaves on the the road. Sport mode is the one which feels best suited for highway jaunts because the SUV feels so much more responsive while Comfort can be used while you’re out doing your daily duties. Sport+ can be limited to track usage but it is extremely fun on empty roads too but throttle response becomes way too sharp.
The GLC 43 gets a stiff suspension but has excellent body control
Driving Dynamics – The Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 comes with a stiff suspension set up. The ride is felt quite hard inside the cabin and because of this, every small pothole or bump filters inside loudly. However, the body feels very controlled due to the stiff set up and in spite of the car being so bulky and large, body roll still feels very much under control. The air springs also allow you to increase the ride height of the car. Talking about the steering, it is a tad heavy and offers good feedback too. The GLC 43 feels extremely confident when you push it around corners and while there is slight understeer, the car feels planted and offers an engaging driving experience too.
The Mercedes GLC 43 has a couple of minor negatives, but otherwise is quite brilliant
Verdict – Mercedes have made a very good package with the AMG GLC 43 because this sports car feels enjoyable to drive and comes with splendid mechanicals. It offers decent space for 4 passengers and looks quite unique too. The high ground clearance allows to use this car on bad roads as well, which not many sports cars might be able to do. Along with that, the GLC 43 doesn’t have any proper rival and this gives Mercedes another advantage. This can be excellent choice for someone who fancies driving his sportscar on a daily basis, especially on our kind of roads.
The Coupe body style makes the car stand out immensely
What’s Cool
* Looks really cool and unlike many other SUVs
* Being a Merc, the ergonomics and interiors are well-sorted
* Pleasurable to drive and a well-engineered car
* Offers practicality that not many performance cars can
What’s Not So Cool
* Boot space is very limited with the spare wheel in space
Alternatives:
The GLC 43 is FAST and it can go almost anywhere too
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Further Reading –
Mercedes-Benz GLC Review
Mercedes-Benz GLC Video Review