Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 2016 Long-term Review - 5

Mercedes-Benz GLC 250
Long Term Test (Finale)

For the first time, Mercedes-Benz has been able to take the fight directly to Audi’s popular Q5 and BMW’s X3 with its GLC range.

Based on C-Class underpinnings, it was expected to be good, and the chance for the motoring.com.au crew to ‘live’ with the medium prestige SUV for a few months was welcomed.

During this time it has coped admirably with interstate and around-town travel alike, been on and off the road and even seen off Q5 and X3 in a comparison test.

For the finale, I wanted to explore the GLC’s capability from highway to country road, with more time spent on the kind of corrugated gravel you can come across when taking the family on a weekend drive through the Victorian countryside.

On the drive out the GLC’s cabin does a solid job of insulating occupants from the outside world, the nine-speed transmission generally shifting smoothly when left to its own devices as the 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine delivers a mid-range akin to a turbo-diesel, while being happier to rev should the mood take you.

Within this calm space occupants are able to enjoy the quality 590-watt Burmester surround-sound audio system fitted to this car as part of a $2990 COMAND multimedia package (which also upgrades the infotainment screen to 8.4-inch, brings hard disk sat-nav, voice command and Bluetooth interface) as the smooth petrol whirs away in the background.

Substituting highway for country-style tarmac it becomes apparent that the large 20-inch alloy road wheels and 255/45 low-profile rubber make for a combination that isn’t at ease over larger imperfections.

At carpark speeds the ride can be quite supple, but at road speeds the wheels quickly thump upwards, the energy created jarring back into the cabin with an audible thump; it betrays the modern SUV’s focus (particularly in this segment) of being more about on-road ability.

Should you plan the occasional off-road adventure, however, Mercedes-Benz does list an ‘off-road engineering package’ that drops wheel size to 19 inches and adds a selective damping suspension system, which would allow you to program a more suitable ride for a given surface. The package also adds ‘downhill speed regulation’ with ‘off-road light function’, new drive modes (including off-road, incline, slippery, trailer and rocking assist), ‘off-road exterior’ trim and a sump shield.

Even without the added drive modes of that package, the GLC 250 retains four sharply-defined selectable options which modify items such as throttle and steering response, climate control functionality, stop/start and gearshift strategy to give you the most of what you’re after.

On the mostly gravel roads facing this final trip, the additional selection to place the nine-speed auto – which can hunt for ratios in regular on/off/modulate throttle situations into a manual mode and adopt the wheel-mounted shift paddles adds another layer of control, especially when teamed with the improved response sport mode brings.

What doesn’t improve is the ride. The jarring becomes an issue over what appear to be relatively minor potholes, and even the rippled sections left by trucks braking over the surface into tighter corners can thump back through the GLC 250’s cabin. To the Mercedes-Benz’s credit, the interior fit proved capable of withstanding this barrage, with no tell-tale rattles in the cabin.

On a couple of occasions the GLC 250’s braking, though adequate, reveals the vehicle’s mass on the looser surface, the pedal requiring more effort than you may have thought.

On smoother gravel the GLC 250 proves stable in a straight-line and nicely balanced through corners, the systems working in conjunction to ensure strong traction and progressive, early intervention when the systems do trim power. It’s also beneficial to have that manual control over the gear shift, maximising the engine’s torque band and minimising opportunities for wheel spin, however brief.

Slow things down, as you would for steeper inclines, and the combined sport throttle response, manual transmission mode allows the SUV to negotiate ditches and humps occasionally encountered in forestry country with little fuss, the stability control systems and traction control assisting the four-wheel drive system to maximise traction, though the hill-descent control function would assist on downhill sections where little engine braking is apparent.

Away from bumpy gravel stretches the GLC 250 is a comfortable machine with a strong driving position, much standard equipment, decent all-round visibility from its high-set driving position, room for three people in the back and a versatile load space. It’s functional, too, allowing you to fold-down the middle row (which splits 40:20:40) with the press of a boot-mounted button.

As for fuel economy, this more fuel-intensive style of driving pushed the gauge to 9.5L/100km during my time.

As far as first forays go, Mercedes-Benz’s debut mid-size SUV transfers most of the C-Class’s many attributes into a more rounded platform. It’s not quite as complete on the road on its sedan/wagon sibling, but offers surprisingly capable multi-surface capability... if you can cope with the ride. We’ll miss it.

2016 Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 pricing and specifications:
Price: $74,880 (as tested, plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 155kW/350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.2L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 168g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP

Related reading:
>> Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class Local Launch Review
>> Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 Long-Term Test (Introduction)
>> Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 Long-Term Test (Update 1)
>> Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 Long-Term Test (Update 2)
>> Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 Long-Term Test (Update 3)
>> Medium Prestige SUV Comparison