2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV | Car Review

The Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 sits right in the middle of its bread-and-butter segment for the 97-year-old German brand. The previous GLC was the best-selling model for Mercedes-Benz in 2020 and 2021. Modern clean styling mixed with luxury comfort is a great combination for a mid-sized family SUV.

With almost 2 million sales worldwide since it was launched, Mercedes is confident that this latest update to the GLC not only covers the needs of the everyday market but also those who enjoy driving with its new dynamic and efficient 4-cylinder engine. The team at DriveLife were excited to spend a week behind the wheel of the new GLC 300 SUV after testing the car at the official New Zealand launch, to see if it is the talented all-rounder they contend it to be 

What We Like and Dislike About The 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV

What’s In The 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV Range?

There is only one model available for the GLC SUV, which is the 300 4Matic that retails at a base price of $113,899.45. The 300 comes with a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine. This new engine creates 190kW of power and 400Nm of torque and its fuel consumption rating is 7.7 litres per 100km. 

2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV Standard Equipment Highlights

• Mirror Package
  • Ambient lighting with projection logo
  • Automatically dimming rear-view mirror
  • Electrically folding exterior mirrors
• MBUX Navigation Premium
  • Preinstallation for Navigation Services
  • Preinstallation for Live Traffic Information
  • Hard-disc navigation
  • 3 years of free navigation updates for map data
• Adaptive Highbeam Assist 
• USB Package 
• Illuminated door sill panels with “Mercedes-Benz” lettering 
• Smartphone integration 
• Blind Spot Assist
• Package (steering code) – multimedia / digital contents
• Ambient lighting 
• Memory Package 
• Fingerprint scanner 
• Driver display 
• Privacy glass from B-pillar 
• Heated Front Seats 
• Boot Comfort Package 
• Wireless charging for mobile devices – front 
• Preinstallation for digital key transfer 
• Central display 
• AMG Line exterior
  • Polished aluminium roof rails
  • Chrome package
  • AMG bodystyling
  • Braking system with larger brake discs on the front axle 
• AMG Line interior
  • AMG floor mats 
  • Roof liner in black fabric
  • Dashboard and beltlines in ARTICO 
  • Ambient lighting 
• Chrome-package Interior
• 12-volt socket in rear load compartment
• 4-way lumbar support
• Ambient lighting Plus 
• Anthracite linestructure lime wood trim 
• Black ARTICO
• Centre console in high-gloss black
• EASY-PACK load compartment cover 
• EASY-PACK tailgate 
• Interior Light package
• Multifunction sports steering wheel 
• Partition net 
• Power front left seat with memory function 
• Power front right seat with memory function 
• Sports seats
• Sporty engine sound
• THERMATIC automatic climate control 
• 20-inch 5 Twin-Spoke Alloy Wheels in Titanium Grey with High-Sheen Finish 
• Aluminium-look Running Boards 
• Panoramic sliding sunroof 
• Polar White Non-Metallic
• Rain sensor
• Towbar pre-installation
• Wheel arch liners in the vehicle colour 
• Wider wheel arch for AMG wheels
• Active Brake Assist
• Active Lane Keeping Assist 
• Advanced connectivity Plus
• Advanced Sound System 
• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay
• Automatic front passenger airbag deactivation
• Centre airbag
• Communication module (LTE Advanced) for the use of Mercedes me connect services 
• Digital radio 
• DISTRONIC SOLO
• Head-up display 
• Headlamps, LED, static, left-side traffic
• KEYLESS GO starting function
• MBUX multimedia system
• Mercedes-Benz emergency call system
• Pre-installation for DISTRONIC
• Pre-installation for MBUX Entertainment 
• Preinstallation for digital radio
• Sidebags in rear 
• Traffic Sign Assist 
• Tyre pressure loss warning system
• Tyre-change toolkit

2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV Colour Range

There are 9 colour options available, with only two additional cost options. 

• MANUFAKTUR opalite white bright – $1,499.60
• MANUFAKTUR patagonia red metallic – $1,499.60
• Obsidian Black Metallic 
• Nautic Blue metallicy 
• Graphite Grey Metallic 
• Mojave Silver Metallic 
• High-Tech Silver metallic
• Spectral blue
• Polar White Non-Metallic

Our Review Vehicle’s Optional Equipment

Our review vehicle had no additional options so our review car’s retail price is $113,899.45

For a full list of specs and options available for the 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV head on over to the Mercedes-Benz New Zealand’s website.

How Does The 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV Compare To Its Competition?

The options around the mid to large SUV within the New Zealand market are plenty. It really does come down to what is important to you. Is it the practical nature of the vehicle, its styling or is it just the brand?

Make/ Model	Engine	Power/ Torque kW/Nm	Seats	Fuel L/100km	Towing Capacity	Boot Space, litres	Price
Range Rover Evoque HSE	2.0L i4 Turbo petrol	184 / 380	5	9.3	1,800/750	591	$119,000
Audi Q5 45 TFSI Sline	2.0L i4 Turbo petrol	183 / 370	5	8.9	2,400/750	520	$116,990
Mercedes-Benz GLC 300	2.0L i4 Turbo petrol	190 / 400	5	7.7	2,400/750	620	$113,899
BMW X3 xDrive20d	2.0L i4 Turbo diesel	183 / 370	5	5.6	2,600/750	450	$109,300
Alfa Romeo Stelvio Veloce	2.0L i4 Turbo petrol	206 / 400	5	7.0	2,000/750	499	$99,990

Please note that DriveLife does its best to ensure the information below is correct at the time of publication, however, prices, specifications and models can change over time. Please bear that in mind when comparing models in the comparison table.

First Impressions Of The 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV

My first impression of the new GLC is clean and modern. You could even be forgiven for thinking this is a fully electric vehicle, as its design language is very similar to the EQ range of SUV’s. The GLC 300 feels like a high-level model, unlike an entry-level. This is due to the performance styling across the vehicle’s exterior and the large 20-inch alloy wheels.

The GLC is a surprisingly big vehicle, however, due to the styling of the roof and how it curves down at the sides and front, it leaves you with a feeling of it being much smaller. 

What’s The Interior Like In The 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV?

I think this is where Mercedes-Benz shines in the market, as the inside of the GLC 300 is a beautiful place to be. It feels like a much more expensive vehicle too, with the clean dash and the large floating centre console display screen. 

The seats are pretty special, and much like the other Mercedes-Benz we have tested, they are equipped with the auto-sense seat position setup where you just need to enter your height. When they first came along it was a bit weird and never felt right, but now it’s pretty spot on. The seats themselves are also a clean design, with simple vertical lines over the carbon fibre-like pattern in the leather. The headrests are great, and very adjustable, up/down, and in/out. 

The rear seats match the front in style but are not as sculpted and the headrests are smaller and can only adjust up and down. Space in the back is good, lots of room, even for those who are rather tall. The back can be a dark place if you do not have the roof shade to the panoramic glass roof open. Once it is, the back feels much more spacious and comfortable

Infotainment is front and centre on the dash in the stunning floating touch-screen. This screen gives you access to all of the car’s features, functions and apps. From driver profile setup to seat massages and online radio channels. It’s so easy to use, just like a big iPad. Media, weather, radio, phone or even the Mercedes online store, you can do a lot from here. 

Below the screen, there is a cubby where you can store some items and use the cup holders. I felt this space was tight and it did not leave much room for putting general items or stuff from your pockets. Even the wireless phone charger was in a bit of a tricky spot to get to, up under the touch screen. 

The rear seats can fold down in a 40/20/40 configuration, with all the seats down, the rear boot space grows from 620 to 1,680 litres. The rear hatch opens wide and high, so it does not empied the opening, which is a great design. I did however wonder if the fully open door was a bit too high as the close button was well above my head at over 200cm. 

The view out the rear is not bad, not amazing either, as the rear of the car slopes back leaving a smaller rear window and large D-pillars and blind spots. Thankfully this is not a huge issue with all of the additional safety features and blind spot monitoring. 

What’s The 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV Like To Drive?

What I like about the GLC 300 is that it’s a pretty nice and easy car to drive. It is so quiet inside the cabin, to the point where you may even think it’s an electric vehicle. The soundproofing from the engine to the cabin is the best in its class. I would say it’s on par with my Range Rover Sport, which is a much more expensive vehicle.

The GLC 300 has a 2.0-litre turbo-charged petrol engine, which is not a big engine for such a large vehicle. However, the engine has a lot of go, 190kW of power and 400Nm of torque. This means that the GLC 300 can get off the line and up to 100km/h in just over 6 seconds. Not at all bad for an engine that claims to have a combined fuel consumption of 7.7 litres per 100km. After my time in the car, the real-world test figures were closer to 10 litres per 100km. This is probably due to the fact it’s a road test, and in the space of a week, we do a wide range of short and long runs in the car. I feel over time I could get those numbers closer to 8 litres per 100km. 

The great thing about that small engine is that it has more than enough power for the GLC, it pushes it along a a good rate while being efficient and quiet. Long drives in the GLC would be great as the cabin noise and road drone are suppressed 

Around the city, the GLC is effortless to drive, finger soft touch on the steering and you can place it right where you want to. 360-degree cameras and parking assist also take the strain out of difficult and tight parking spaces.

All-round visibility is great with the only limiting place being the rear window – but this is covered by the cameras and also the blind spot monitoring. I never really felt like I was not aware of my surroundings. 

One of the few things I did not like about the GLC is the steering wheel and its elaborate arrangement of buttons. It has two spokes on either side, one above the other. And across all four stalks, there are a wide range of buttons, touch sliders and functions. I felt it was too much and in such a tight space. The bottom two stalks cannot be touched by your thumbs, you have to lift your hand from the wheel and then press the button you need, which to me feels like it defeats the purpose. It could be simpler and I hope this is something we see in the future. 

Drive modes in the GLC 300 are Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual. In full honesty, I just found that the Comfort mode was the best all-around for the GLC 300. The Sport and Sport+ modes just felt like gimmicks, making the engine rev longer and the gears change faster. But the SUV didn’t feel much faster or sporter, and it was not as comfortable as the Comfort mode. So I just left it there as it was set up just right for this vehicle. 

There is so much tech in this car that I would probably have to do another review just to cover them. What I liked about the Mercedes-Benz driver assistance features is that they do not feel intrusive, or overbearing. It’s like a supportive aid, not like someone grabbing the steering wheel from you. All in all, I found they were super helpful and supportive like they should be. 

2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 4Matic SUV – Specifications

Vehicle Type	SUV
Starting Price	$113,899.45 (excl CCP)
Price as Tested	$113,899.45 (excl CCP)
Engine	2.0L Inline 4-cylinder turbo petrol
Power, Torque kW/Nm	190 / 400
Transmission	9G-Tronic
Spare Wheel	N/A
Kerb Weight, Kg	2,355
Length x Width x Height mm	4722 x 1890 x 1600
Boot Space / Cargo Capacity, Litres (seats up/seats down)	620 / 1,680
Fuel tank capacity, litres	62
Fuel Economy, L/100km	Advertised Spec – Combined – 7.7 Real-World Test – Combined – 10.0 Low Usage: 0-6 / Medium Usage 6-12 / High Usage 12+
Towing Capacity Kg, unbraked/braked	750 / 2,460
Turning circle metres	11.8 Small: 6-10m / Medium 10-12m / Large 12m+
Warranty	5 year unlimited KM warranty
Safety information	ANCAP Rating – 5 stars – Link Rightcar.govt.nz – 5 Stars – MBNZ2

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