Mercedes GLC 300 Coupe

We say: Merc finds a finer niche for a Coupe-suv. Has no rivals not till the BMW x4 arrives

- Agasti Kaulgi

We thought the GLE Coupe was a wonderful idea. Well, no, it wasn’t the most inventive of ideas, because it was made to meet a single objective – rival the BMW X6. Unlike the X6, the GLE Coupe has got the styling, ride, handling and road presence bits right. Just when we were getting done with ogling the GLE Coupe, its younger sibling showed up – the GLC Coupe.

The GLC Coupe looks almost identical to the GLE Coupe, just not dimensionally. It is 164mm shorter in length compared to the GLE Coupe. Just like the GLE Coupe, the roof drops dramatically at the back, which is what gives it an identity all of its own. The GLC Coupe looks like – to repeat myself – a scaled-down GLE Coupe. There’s the huge three-point star on the grille and gaping air dams on the lower half of the bumper. The wheel arches are far more pronounced than the ones on the GLC. The headlamps, though, are like those seen on most new Mercs of late.

Design-wise, compared to the GLC, things start to change drastically aft of the B-pillar. It gets a much smaller glass area and the rear windscreen is at an angle you’ll seldom find in other SUVs. The biggest problem with the X6 – the face of the coupe-SUV clan – was headroom for rear passengers. Or the lack of it, rather. In the GLC Coupe, however, there’s plenty of room for heads, even if you have passengers who are over six feet tall. Unlike the GLC SUV, the coupe gets carbon fibre inserts for the centre console and other bits of the interior. The rest of the cabin remains largely the same as that of the GLC. Having said that, the effort to make things a bit sportier is apparent.