2023 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 review: International first drive

For two years in a row, the Mercedes-Benz GLC has been the brand's best-seller. Its replacement is fully hybridised and prices are to increase by 15 per cent.

For decades, the global Mercedes hit list was dominated first by the E-class and then by the C-class. But not anymore. In the era of the SUV, the GLC is now the most popular starship by a healthy margin, and in its wake demand for the GLA, GLE and GLB is also rising.

When a car manufacturer is on to a winner, the last thing management will do is dramatically change the profitable formula of success. That ́s why the GLC MkII is not only visually a low-risk project - it also stays true to the long-running MRA platform which excludes a pure zero-emission derivative.

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But what about the the EQC, launched in 2019 – which already is, in effect, an electric GLC?

The EQC (due to be phased out when the EQE SUV arrives next spring) uses a one-off mix-and-match transformation architecture hampered by high weight, ho-hum efficiency and average range. It stands little chance against the 2023 Audi Q6 e-Tron and 2024 BMW iX3.

While the EQE SUVs and their replacements are future-oriented hardcore clean-air SUVs, the GLC is an up-specced but down-engined crowd-pleaser designated to guide undecided users through the paradigm shift that is fast gaining momentum in many parts of the world.

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The more sophisticated engineering content features such mod cons as air suspension, rear-wheel steering, an S-class-style infotainment system and a batch of plug-in versions good for up to 80 miles of clean-air range.

Engine-wise, this model can only count to four, but that ́s enough to produce up to 284kW even before the AMG power doctors apply their scalpels.

Aerodynamicists have lacquered the GLC's drag coefficient to a commendably low 0.29. A little longer and lower than the previous effort, the evolutionary package creates more rear legroom and a ginormous 620-litre boot, up 70 litres compared to last year's vintage.

Inside, this is a proper Mercedes that blends trad luxury with the latest digital trickeries. The large upright main monitor is now easier to use thanks to the Zero Layer approach, which prioritises access to the user's favourite icons. Killing the nerdy warning lights, chimes and vibrations is now an easy two-stab affair, no longer a lengthy sub-menu diving course.

Inside, this is a proper Mercedes that blends trad luxury with the latest digital trickeries.

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GLC 400 e interior pictured

The pricey full-electronic monty includes a large instrument panel with a choice of different graphics from dull to brash, a crowded head-up display and the driver's live view relayed to the in-dash screen complete with road sign projections and directional sat-nav arrows – welcome to overkill software wonderland.

Are we going to miss the rev-hungry straight-six and the ballsy V8? You bet. But this is 2022, climate change must be stopped, and there is no time to be wasted. So your next GLC43 AMG and 63 AMG will be powered by a humble 2.0-litre four in combination with a beefy electric helper motor.

The most popular model and the subject of our assessment here, the GLC300, has a less highly tuned four-cylinder and will be at Australian dealers in early 2023.

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GLC 400 e display pictured

Delivering an unchanged 192kW along with 400Nm of torque, it propels the heavier (by up to 135kg, depending on specification) new GLC from 0-100km/h in 6.2 seconds. Where legal, the top speed is a perfectly relaxed 240km/h.

Thanks to the standard mild-hybrid system that throws in an on-demand 17kW and 200Nm kick in the butt good for about fifteen seconds, average fuel consumption improves from 8.0L/100km to 7.4L/100km.

For a truly dramatic cut in on-paper thirst, you must wait for the plug-ins that promise a token 0.5L/100km, but will deliver only while the battery charge lasts.

We drove the low-bling, high-efficiency MB crossover north out of Barcelona to the Pyrenees, where the tiny principality of Andorra is wedged in a corner between France and Spain.

Surrounded by tall peaks and concealed behind unreal rock formations is a small designated off-road paradise where the GLC showed its eye-opening 'when doomsday meets armageddon' talents.

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Although it lacks a low-range transfer case, a mechanical diff lock and rough-terrain tyres, the coat-and-tie Benz quickly donned its adventure outfit and wasted no time scaring the wits out of its unassuming driver.

True, the test car was fitted with the extra-cost off-road pack for more ground clearance, extended axle articulation, hill descent control, ride height adjustment and an underbody camera relaying that transparent bonnet effect pioneered by Land Rover.

But who would have thought that this born poseur could master a challenging sickbag parcours without getting stuck a single time? In PHEV form, you can even do the whole stunt without firing up the combustion engine.

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Back on proper roads, the GLC300 rarely put a hoof wrong either. Its two major strengths are the perfectly compliant ride and the exceptional noise suppression.

Even when shod with 20-inch wheels, the air suspension acts as an adaptive eiderdown dispensing service that plugs every pothole, shaves every transverse ridge, and beefs up every crumbling camber.

The cosseting low-noise environment very nearly matches the E- and S-class for creature comfort and can be further enhanced by specifying tempered sandwich glass and the awesome multi-functional massage seats, which are pure bliss for sore backs.

Dynamically, the new GLC moves up a notch, too. The steering is now more precise and direct, while the optional rear-wheel steering cuts the turning circle by 0.9 metres. It is a real asset off the beaten track and further consolidates the directional stability.

The brakes could however do with more initial bite, and their modularity and stamina are not worth writing home about either.

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Back on proper roads, the GLC300 rarely put a hoof wrong either. Its two major strengths are the perfectly compliant ride and the exceptional noise suppression.

The same goes for the throttle, which takes its time to respond, coordinates engine and transmission in a rather casual fashion, and displays an odd stop-sign restart lag.

Give her stick, and la donna nobile will waltz emphatically from apex to apex, rolling a bit more than expected and making a curtsy under hard deceleration.

Dialling in Sport mode firms up the dampers a touch and speeds up the shifter by a similar measure but there is still not even a whiff of AMG-ness to be felt at the wheel, which is okay since the real things are yet to come.

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More annoying is the patronising predicative sat-nav software, which lifts off way too early on the approach to your favourite roundabout – which you could easily take 30km/h faster – advises against overtaking for no obvious reason and will only coast when the algorithm deems it fit to do so. Like it or not, this spy in the cab is always on the alert.

When required, it automatically finds an emergency lane, diverts to the hard shoulder and switches on the hazards, steers and brakes autonomously (within reason), retraces the car's steps in reverse and selects the best route for pulling a trailer. Priceless assistance or eerie bullying?

Difficult to judge, but the autonomous future may not be quite as rosy as the industry would have us believe.

The new-generation GLC300 will reach Australian showrooms in the first half of 2023, and buyers have reason to hope for the first quarter rather than the second. This new GLC will be one worth consideration.