[Vid6639]

Mercedes-Benz has launched the GLC facelift in India at Rs. 52.75L for the petrol and Rs. 57.75L for the diesel. Apart from the minor exterior and interior updates, both engines are now BS6 compliant. However, the petrol is now the lower state of tune GLC200 (vs GLC300 earlier) with 197 BHP going to the rear wheels only. The diesel remains the same GLC220d, but it is a brand new OM654 2.0L engine also found on the C and E-Class. It puts out 194 BHP with 400 Nm torque and has a 4MATIC AWD system.

This review has been jointly compiled with SmartCat. Thanks to him for the expert observations!

The GLC was covered in our official driven report. Hence this post will focus on the changes to the facelift.

So, what's new on the outside?

The front has been updated with new lights, grille, bumper and bonnet. However, it's the lights that stand out as the biggest difference between the earlier model and this facelift. The front bumper now gets even more chrome and a more prominent logo with piano black inserts in between the 3 spokes:


Front grille gets finer detailing in the 2 silver slats and overall, the front looks more aggressive than before:


A close look at the new LED matrix type headlights that look really cool with the 2-piece DRLs:


With the headlights turned on. The lower array is for high beam and the upper for low beam:


The nose of the GLC looks more chiselled now and even the bumper is sharply cut upwards improving the approach angle:


The side profile is identical, save for 2 changes...


...massive 19-inch alloy wheels in a new dual-tone design and...


...a running board which is more for show than actual use as this is a low slung soft-roader:


BS6 diesel engine needs DEF (Adblue) for SCR regen at regular intervals:


The rear sees minimal changes with new tail lamps and a redesigned lower bumper with completely fake exhaust tips. The older car actually had its exhaust in those cutouts. This car has a single exhaust on the left pointing downwards way behind the cutout:

[Vid6639]

So, what’s new on the inside?

The dash design remains similar barring the new colour theme, larger screen (now touch) and the new steering wheel:


The new steering wheel is a huge improvement with a sportier design, much better controls with knurled knobs as well as touchpads on either side to control the respective screens:


Below the AC vents, you still get proper metal finished tactile buttons for the climate control and some quick access buttons for the various menus. It's only a matter of time before these disappear (sigh):


If you don't want to stretch your hand towards the touch screen, you can use this touchpad to navigate the entire infotainment system. It even has haptic feedback which helps tremendously. On the left of the touchpad, there is a knurled dial for the various drive modes and on the right of the touchpad, there is a knurled dial for the volume control. This should have been swapped for RHD cars. Below the knurled dials are buttons for parking assistance, M mode, auto start / stop and ESP on / off:


So, you don't want to stretch out to the touch screen on the left, nor do you want to remove your hand off the wheel for accessing the touchpad in the centre console? No problem. Just use the touchpad on the left side of the steering wheel which allows you to navigate the entire screen without lifting your hand from the wheel:


There is a similar touchpad on the right which you can use to navigate the MID screen between the dials:


Similar to the earlier pre-facelift, the front seats get useful extendable under-thigh support. You can also see the lumbar support button on the side of the seat. Seats are not real leather, but man-made leather that Mercedes calls Artico. All colours except silver get beige interiors. Cars with a silver exterior come with black interiors which look very sporty, but also makes the cabin feel much more smaller:


The rest of the seat controls are located on the door in typical Mercedes Benz fashion. However, what's shocking is that the GLC still does not get memory presets for even the driver's seat:


Instead of piano black, there's now a classy wood veneer finish and you can actually feel the grains of the wood. This feels super premium:


The dials are redesigned slightly but what's sad is that we don't get the virtual dials which are internationally present on the GLC. This is a 50L car and it shouldn't have been left out. You can see the centre screen shows distance. This is actually the display mode to show the distance to the car in front. The GLC has some sort of radar or sensor array that kept warning me when I was too close to the car in front by showing a red warning light and the distance to the car in front on this screen. Neat feature:


10.25 inch (1920x720p resolution) screen is very sharp and one of the most responsive touchscreen systems. It is the heart of the new MB-UX system, debuting in India with the GLC. It has been covered in the next post:


Reverse camera with park assist, but no 360 camera:


Buttons on the roof for the lights and also for SOS calls to Mercedes emergency helpline or to the Mercedes "Me" concierge system. Also note 2 mics on either side. There are 2 for a reason as you will see in the next post:


There's Qi wireless charging in the front centre console, but the armrest has 2 USB-C ports for your phone. There are no regular USB ports so you will need to buy new USB-C cables:


The rear of the GLC remains unchanged from before. Space at the back is average and by no means is the GLC a spacious SUV / crossover. With the front seats set to my driving position (I'm 6' tall), I barely had any knee room to sit comfortably:


The rear sunblinds are much needed:

[Vid6639]

"Hey, Mercedes"

During the media drive, Mercedes Benz invited us to its R&D facility in Bangalore (MBRDI). The reason for inviting us was to show us the main highlight of the new GLC, which is the new MB-UX infotainment system. This has been rolled out internationally and is the future of Mercedes infotainment and connectivity systems. It is their version of the connected car and comes with all sorts of features which I will mention below. A lot of the MB-UX system in terms of hardware and software has been designed, developed and tested here in India by MBRDI before making its way into the Mercedes cars across the world.

Seen here is the test rig at MBRDI to emulate the complete MB-UX system for testing purposes. You can see the dual screens (which we don't get in India) as well as the trackpad and the steering wheel touchpads:


The 10.25-inch touch screen with the new MB-UX system is one of the slickest UI's we have used. The system is powered by a 6 core CPU with an Nvidia graphics card as well as 8GB DDR4 memory. Apart from the touch interface, you can control it via the trackpad on the centre console or the touchpad on the steering wheel. Mercedes has made sure you can access the system in multiple ways to make it user friendly:


This haptic feedback trackpad also makes it easy to type out destinations on the maps in whole words now vs letter by letter earlier:


If you still don't want to use any of the touch interfaces, the MB-UX system has a Siri / Alexa like voice assistant activated by the command "Hey Mercedes". You can control some functions of the car like ambient lighting, climate control, audio system, etc. For safety reasons, Mercedes has not enabled sunroof and window control via voice. Overall, the system is very intelligent but one can't help get the feeling that it is also very gimmicky. The voice assistant is a hit and miss and when it doesn't understand a command, it keeps asking you randomly. There's a long way to go before it is close to Alexa or Google assistant. The attachment below lists out some of the commands that the system understands. Yes, some of them are quite hilarious, like "Hey Mercedes, Who's your Daddy?":


Remember I mentioned there are 2 mics on the roof for the voice commands. Well, the mics detect where the voice command originated from, either driver or passenger. So if the passenger says "Hey Mercedes, I'm feeling cold", the system will only increase the climate control temperature on the passenger side. This is pretty cool. The rear passengers don't have any such option and can only watch from behind while the front seat occupants interact with the system:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uipPk2Jmyo

Like most connected cars today, there is an app available to access the car features. The GLC comes with an onboard 4G LTE e-sim from Vodafone that allows remote access via the Mercedes Me app. The app allows you to lock / unlock the car and see a host of details about the vehicle status as seen below:


You can even see brake pad life and brake fluid level from the app:


There's also a TPMS system showing individual tyre pressures:

[Vid6639]

Driving the 2.0L Diesel AT

Mercedes didn't have the GLC200 petrol for us to drive so we only got to drive the GLC220d through Bangalore's traffic as well as on the highway up to Nandi hills. The GLC220d has the newest OM654 2.0L engine with 194 BHP @ 3,800 rpm and a very healthy 400 Nm of torque from 1,600-2,800 rpm. The engine is BS6 compliant with Adblue reservoir for the SCR and a DPF.

The first thing that hits you when you start the GLC's motor is the refinement. It is almost impossible to make out that there is a diesel under the hood from inside the cabin. There is no diesel clatter or thrum from the motor. The NVH level is too good to be a diesel. The same refinement and smoothness carry on when driving in town with light to medium throttle inputs, you never hear the diesel engine. It is only when you push the motor past 3,000 rpm that you hear a faint diesel thrum and even that isn't intrusive.

The GLC220d is very pleasant to drive overall. It's more relaxed and comfort-oriented vs fun to drive seat of the pants. There is no diesel kick when the turbo kicks in and the power delivery is smooth and linear. Even though it is 194 BHP on paper, which is 26 horses more than the earlier model, it doesn't feel like it thanks to the refinement and linear power delivery. The best way to enjoy the GLC is to cruise and waft along on the highway enjoying the refinement, but it has to be below 120 km/h, as above that, you will go completely bonkers with the speed warning. All cars now have the speed warning and all have different implementations. But Mercedes has taken things a bit too far IMO. You're listening to music and cruising on the highway when you cross 80 km/h and the music suddenly mutes and there is a warning chime, after which, the music starts again. After a few seconds, this repeats and every few seconds the music will mute, the warning will chime and music will play again. You then speed up a little and cross 120 km/h. Now the music mutes permanently and all you hear is the chime. In every other car, you can listen to music with the warning chime going off but Mercedes will ensure you hear the chime and not ignore it by playing music. I know this is a safety norm but nowhere does it say that the audio system needs to be muted when there is a warning chime.

The GLC gets the same 9G-TRONIC transmission, which like the motor, is relaxed and never gets aggressive even in Sports mode. You also get paddle shifters that work in D mode and a dedicated M mode, which we didn't know it had till later. It is below the drive mode dial on the centre console. When climbing Nandi hills, even in Sport mode, the gearbox never gave me an aggressive downshift before a hairpin bend and when I pressed the accelerator when exiting the hairpin, there was always a delay in delivering the power to the wheels. In Normal and Eco mode, this was even more pronounced. While Normal and Eco is fine in the city, out on the highway, I always found the delay in power to be unnerving for overtaking comfortably, especially on single-lane roads. Overall, if you're looking for a fun to drive vehicle, walk over to the blue and white propeller showroom. The GLC is good for folks who want to travel in comfort in a relaxed manner.

Mercedes has also tweaked the suspension and the GLC has a very good balance of ride comfort and handling. The ride at slow speeds is firm but pliant. The ride could have probably been better had Mercedes not decided to slap on massive 19-inch wheels and stuck to 18-inch wheels. While the suspension works well, sharp bumps catch it off guard and you do get a thud in the cabin if you "miss" one of them. You know the suspension is pliant but they can only do so much without the tyres absorbing the sharp bumps. This does have a plus side to it and the GLC can be chucked around bends in a way that doesn't suit its character. There is body roll but it is not excessive and allows you to enter corners with more speed than you think it should be doing.

But in the end, the Mercedes GLC comes off as a comfortable relaxed alternative to the C-Class thanks to a bit more practicality with the increased ground clearance allowing it to tackle the urban jungles as well as visit your estate / farmhouse or a golf course out of the city over the weekends.

Disclaimer: Mercedes invited Team-BHP for the GLC test-drive. They covered all the travel expenses for this driving event.

[Aditya]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[Sahil]

Having a GLC300 in our garage, I am pretty disappointed with this facelift. While I am very envious of the new large screen and MB-UX, the new engines are underwhelming. They ought to have kept the GLC 300 in rather than bring in the GLC 200. The 300 itself isn't the most sporty engine but it can be fun to drive, i am sure the 200 engine will be far from fun in any scenario.

The seat material is also left the same which is a disappointment as it is prone to damage, especially the drivers seat bottom cushion which I have got replaced under warranty and yet again its got a tear/bubble under normal usage. MBIL has taken cost cutting too far, if you are cutting out leather atleast give us a high quality vegan leather.

The ride on 18s is stiff enough, 19s are not a good idea for this car. The rim design is quite boring and doesn't feel worth the upsize.

Lastly, the speed warning as mentioned in this review is just ridiculous. I hope MBIL doesn't put this in all it's cars going forward.
While on the topic, I am surprised that my newly purchased F-Pace does not have any speed warning chime, its 2019 MFD. All that happens is that once you cross 80 the digital display of the speed font turns from white to orange and again at 120 it blinks and changes color.

[Vitalstatistiks]

Originally Posted by Sahil

"Having a GLC300 in our garage...." "....my newly purchased F-Pace ...."

Congratulations Sahil, on the F-Pace! On that note, it will be really helpful if you could jot down your thoughts on an F-Pace v. GLC (T-bhp review of F-Pace is dated now). If I can speak for myself, following will be key items:

Ride in the city
Visibility from drivers seat
Low end torque (I realize you have 300, but any feedback will be nice)
Rear sear legroom + headroom
Features (specifically, does F-Pace have virtual cockpit and/or memory seats)
Space in boot (specifically, does F-Pace come with a spare tyre that does not sit in the boot)

Thanks!

[Sahil]

Originally Posted by Vitalstatistiks

Congratulations Sahil, on the F-Pace! On that note, it will be really helpful if you could jot down your thoughts on an F-Pace v. GLC (T-bhp review of F-Pace is dated now). If I can speak for myself, following will be key items:

Ride in the city
Visibility from drivers seat
Low end torque (I realize you have 300, but any feedback will be nice)
Rear sear legroom + headroom
Features (specifically, does F-Pace have virtual cockpit and/or memory seats)
Space in boot (specifically, does F-Pace come with a spare tyre that does not sit in the boot)

Thanks!

Thanks.
I have already updated the F-pace thread with my mini review,check it out: https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-...ml#post4731058 (Driven: Jaguar F-Pace)

Regarding F-pace vs GLC, the F-pace wins on all aspects mentioned by you. Only headroom I think the GLC is slightly more.

Yes F-pace has an excellent virtual cockpit and memory seats. Space in boot is similar to the GLC but FAR more usable as the spare tyre sits below in a designated wheel cover. The GLC boot is useless with the spare wheel there.

The F-pace definitely feels a segment above the GLC. It's more comparable to the GLE I think in a lot of ways

[d3mon]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Like most connected cars today, there is an app available to access the car features. The GLC comes with an onboard 4G LTE e-sim from Vodafone that allows remote access via the Mercedes Me app. The app allows you to lock / unlock the car and see a host of details about the vehicle status as seen below:
Attachment 1950951

You can even see brake pad life and brake fluid level from the app:
Attachment 1950950

Not much to comment on the car itself, but I could not resist noting that not much effort has been put into the typography for the app, which makes certain details look more befitting of a Tier 2 / Tier 3 manufacturer; definitely not for Mercedes.

For instance -

1) "Next service", but "Tyre Pressure"?
Why is the 'S' not capitalized if the 'P' is?

2) Starter battery "charged"?
Why couldn't you capitalize the C? Same for Windows "closed", Sunroof "closed" & Vehicle "unlocked". Mind you, the Trips section starts with a capital Y in "Your", which occurs in the same logical section.

3) What the hell are "Brakepads"?
Last I checked, we use "Brake Pads". At least this is an improvement over the last version of the app, which if I remember correctly, called this out as "Brake Lining"

Remember, this is Mercedes we are talking about - so no detail should be too small for the designers to ignore. Once you see it, it can not be unseen.

[_lewie_]

And so the timeless design theory of Mercedes continues. I really love those sweet headlamps that reminds me of the AMG gtr( a grill like that would've been a bonus ). Looks much more aggressive up front, can't say about the sides and the rear tho. After all it's a C class that has worn a pair of boots. The chrome on the front bumper isn't of my taste (should've had a skid plate instead for a more SUV'ish look), but the mass market loves "Chroooomee". But then this is a car that you'd probably drive to let others know that you have got a huge success in your life.
P. S. The three pointed star has more value than that of the whole car.

[SmartCat]

So the driver can control the MB-UX system with -

- Touchpad on the steering wheel
- Trackpad on the center console
- Touchscreen on the main unit
- Voice commands

while the Saheb sitting at the back gets nothing.

Since front driver/passenger already has the touchscreen, that trackpad on front center console should have been re-located to the back - perhaps integrated into the rear armrest. Adding 2 more microphones at the back will help too.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

Mercedes-Benz has launched the GLC facelift in India at Rs. 52.75L for the petrol and Rs. 57.75L for the diesel. ...
A close look at the new LED matrix type headlights that look really cool with the 2-piece DRLs:
Attachment 1950903

With the headlights turned on. The lower array is for high beam and the upper for low beam:
Attachment 1950904...

Small correction. These are not "Matrix" LEDs (Multi-Beam in Mercedes language and they are different technologies serving the same purpose) rather these are so-called "High-performance" LEDs.

High-performance LEDs: Marketing Gimmick for static LEDs because as standard Mercs still give only Halogen lamps!!

Multi-Beam LEDs: Adapative LEDs with Selective High-Beam and light intensity varying, bending light function. Based on 84 individual LEDs per Light module controlled by an intel processor.

See Here: https://www.mercedes-benz.de/passeng.../lightandsight

Merc HighPerformance LED and Multi-Beam LEDs:

[ariesonu]

Last Monday, I rode one as passeneger for about 200 kms journey in Gujarat.
My two cents:
Backseat has nothing except the AC vent knob to fiddle with.
Ingress & Egress from backseat is tough for senior citizens.
Seats material gets smudged very easily - not to mention that we were visiting some spice processing units.
Touchscreen unit looks are nothing much to talk about.
Audio quality is also just above average.
Dual Sunroofs with cloth like material and rear sunroof cannot be operated from backseat. You have to ask driver to open it.
but most unusual was poor NVHH levels, which is not expected from a Merc vehicle. Could easily hear engines of two-wheelers passing by us.
Also the model I rode did not have boot-closing button.

Regards-SS

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Vid6639

The first thing that hits you when you start the GLC's motor is the refinement. It is almost impossible to make out that there is a diesel under the hood from inside the cabin. There is no diesel clatter or thrum from the motor. The NVH level is too good to be a diesel. The same refinement and smoothness carry on when driving in town with light to medium throttle inputs, you never hear the diesel engine. It is only when you push the motor past 3,000 rpm that you hear a faint diesel thrum and even that isn't intrusive.

Seems to be a major improvement then compared to the pre facelift GLC. My neighbour has one and it is quite audible most of the time.

Sad to see the petrol being de tuned. Defies all logic considering the fact the competition i.e BMW and Audi offer their 4 pot turbo petrols in the top 250+ BHP specs. Of course with those speed warning chimes, 250 BHP makes little sense these days!

[avira_tk]

The petrol should be rear wheel drive, not front wheel drive as reported. This car is based on the C class.

Good option if ground clearance is required.