What happens if you want a coupé, but also want four doors and also want all-road ability, yet good highway manners? The automotive equivalent of contemporary fusion cuisine. That’s what happens. And it results in a compact-luxury sports-activity four-door four-wheel-drive crossover coupé.
Story: Jim Gorde
Photography: Sanjay Raikar
The automotive world is in a tizzy. The market hasn’t evolved per se, it has simply exploded. Novelty and distinction, apart from efficiency, remain priorities for many. Yet people don’t want a sedan or a boxy SUV. They yearn for a sports car, a coupé, sleek and striking. But, again, they want space, and all-road capability should the going get rough. How do you address so many needs, so many questions, with one answer?
The long name says it all: Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 Coupé. ‘Mercedes’ luxury. ‘AMG’ sport credentials. ‘GL’ all-road ability. ‘C’-class experience. ’43’ six-cylinder engine balancing performance and efficiency with intelligent all-wheel-drive dynamics. ‘Coupé’ design with four doors. Breathe.
We’ve already driven the erstwhile Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 AMG, now Mercedes-AMG GLE 43 Coupé, the larger and more spacious sibling, and were pleasantly surprised not just by how quick it was, but how usable it was even being a big creation with more than generous dimensions. It grows on you. Then we drove the Mercedes-AMG C 43. And that was properly all kinds of good.
So what of the middle ground? How exactly does the GLC 43 Coupé stack up? That’s what we’re going to establish.
At 4,727 millimetres long and a 2,873-mm wheelbase, the GLC Coupé isn’t too large. But it isn’t all that small either. It takes some getting used to; a large sharply-sloping coupé with four doors that’s two metres wide and stands 1,586 mm high as well. The faces are now getting even more familiar. The single chrome slat on the blacked-out chrome star-studded grille has been seen before, on the C sedan. The LED headlamps add a touch of visual brilliance to the front end. In true ‘GL’ style, the GLC gets matte-aluminium finished skid-plates, front and rear. Looks, of course, are subjective, and the appearance of a bulbous coupé 181 mm off the ground may or may not strike your fancy. But this one is all about purpose.
Inside, the layout is familiar yet premium and energetic. The sport credentials are amplified by the black seats with red stitching, upholstered in a combination of man-made leather and alcantara. The GLC 43 requires the key in your hand to unlock the car and get in, then push it in its slot and turn it to start. No keyless go here. Surprising. But that shouldn’t be a bother.
Mercedes Apps and a surround-sound Burmester audio system are part of the infotainment kit, as is the COMAND system which also gives you a centre display that puts every function at the turn of a dial. The sub-menus could get you distracted at first, but once you figures out the placement, it feels more natural. Another plus point is the space. While it may look compact, it isn’t really. There is more than enough head-room at the front. At the rear, too, it isn’t a constraint. It’s ideally meant for four, but five passengers could squeeze in. There is more than enough knee- and foot-room at the rear to comfortably accommodate two XL-sized adults. The rear boot, when not dominated by the spare wheel, has 550 litres of cargo volume. Fold down the seats and you have up to 1,400 litres.
