Audi has the SQ5, BMW the X4 M40 i and now Mercedes-AMG is coming with the GLC 43 4Matic. The Stuttgart, which is located in the middle class of the SUV, receives the double-charged unit from the C 43 and thus ranks above the premium competitors in terms of performance. The Swabians take 367 hp out of the six-cylinder engine and show a push towards sportiness. If you can be really sporty with an SUV.
In New York, Mercedes, as a small Amuse Gueule, shows us the new Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 4Matic. Although it is still unclear whether there will be a further expansion stage with the letters AMG, but also in the C-Class, the platform donor, the Stuttgart went this way. Better to say: the combination of the Stuttgarter and Affalterbacher went this way. Because even in the middle-class sedan there is a C 43 drive and a C 63 AMG. Why not for the GLC?
But let's stay with the here and now. The sporty SUV, like its brother - the C-Class - with a double-charged 3.0 liter V6 front, which works in a similar form in the Mercedes-AMG E 43 4Matic, which we have recently introduced. The mid-range SUV would thus fit perfectly into the series of dynamic off-road vehicles from Mercedes or AMG. Thus, the GLE 63 AMG, the GLS 63 AMG, or the AMG variants of the G-Class, the G 63 or G 65 sell well. Especially abroad.
But since the GLC is smaller than the ones mentioned above, he should use this size difference and move accordingly. The engineers also thought so and missed the four-wheel drive a rear-facing design, the 69 percent of the drive power normally delivers to the rear axle. Together with the 9G-Tronic with inter-gas function and the particularly short shift times in the Sport Plus position, this is intended to create an extremely dynamic driving style. Those who do not want to be so sporty, but still has the choice between Comfort, Sport and Eco. In these modes, the standard sprint will certainly not be done in 4,9 seconds - but the average consumption of specified 8,3 liters per 100km probably not. Too much fun should make it, the 520 Nm, which rest between 2.500 and 4.500 tours, again and again to massage the diaphragm.
But with pure power, a model bearing AMG in its name is not just done. That's why the GLC 43 gets a bigger brake system, 19-alloy wheels from AMG and an air-sprung suspension. Independently developed steering knuckles, a four-link front axle and the increase of the negative camber should increase the driving dynamics as well as the driving safety.
Inside, the SUV drives with an AMG instrumentation and upholstery with a Mercedes-typical leather replica and Alcantara. Optionally, you can order performance seats, which again put a lot on it, as far as the look, but especially the lateral support. But if you need it in an SUV? The question also arises in the extra charge 21-Zoll-Räder in two-color paint: They are nice to look at, but makes the equipment with the carriage wheels really makes sense.