2018 Mercedes-AMG GLC43 Coupe

Apr 14, 2024, 5:16pm ET

The Mercedes-AMG GLC43 Coupe is a compact coupe/crossover based on the GLC Coupe. Its target customers are GLC43 buyers who want a bit more visual pizzazz rather than practicality.

For those who are really about all-out performance, a Mercedes-Benz GLC63 variant is in the works.

Overview

Outside, the crossover "coupe” gets some light AMG treatments, including the grille, wheels and badging. Under the hood, it gets a higher-output engine and standard 4MATIC all-wheel-drive.

The GLC43's cabin retains the base car's elegant interior, replete with leather and wood options (the standard is aluminum) in varying colors and finishes topping off a tech-laden and elegantly laid-out interior space. Clever packaging allows for lots of storage, especially in the front, where the woofers have been moved out of the doors and into the front frame rails, adding more bump to the audio system's bass line and making space in the doors for additional (and larger) cubbies.

In the rear, the swept roof line takes away any pretense of practicality, but offers a fastback-style look that many buyers seem to be embracing.

An available mbrace system adds a host of cloud-based goodies, including a concierge service, location-based traffic and weather updates, stolen vehicle location assistance, automatic collision notification and more. Available apps add internet browsing, Google local search with street view, Yelp reviews, Facebook access and news reports. Owners can even use an mbrace smartphone app to remotely lock, unlock or locate their vehicles.

Powertrain options

The GLC43 is powered exclusively by a three-liter, biturbo V6 producing 362 horsepower and 384lb-ft of torque. Power goes to the wheels via a nine-speed automatic transmission and standard 4MATIC all-wheel drive.

Standard and Optional Features

The GLC43 Coupe comes standard with a selection of standard features befitting a luxury model, including keyless start, a touchpad interface, power driver's seat with memory, rearview camera, a 7” color multimedia display with a full media interface, dynamic select (engine and transmission), power folding mirrors and a powered liftgate.

The GLC Coupe's Sport package is essentially duplicated in the base GLC43 Coupe. It includes AMG interior and exterior styling elements, including 19” twin 5-spoke grey wheels, an upper dash trimmed in MB-Tex leatherette and upgraded brakes.

The Night package replaces the Sport package's grey wheels with the same design in black. Exterior trim is re-done in gloss black, and the MB-Tex leatherette dash topper carries over. It also includes the other upgrades found in the Sport package where they do not overlap.

The Lighting package adds active full-LED headlamps, LED tail lamps, adaptive high-beam assist and active curve illumination.

The Interior package adds illuminated front door sills, ventilated front seats, leather upholstery and multicolor LED ambient lighting. Selection of this package also requires the Premium package.

The GLC's Premium package is part of the GLC43's standard equipment, meaning blind spot assist, Keyless access and start, heated front seats, an AC power outlet and SiriusXM radio are all baked in to the base model.

The Multimedia package adds COMAND hard-drive navigation and upgrades the infotainment screen to an 8.4-inch unit. It also adds an SD card reader, voice control, SiriusXM traffic and weather and no-charge navigation map updates for three years.

Stand-alone options include the panorama roof, brushed aluminum running boards, the Air Balance cabin air fragrance and purification system, a head-up display, Burmester sound, SiriusXM radio, a heated steering wheel, a 14-way power front passenger seat with memory, heated front and/or rear seats, rear-side window sunshades and chrome door handle inserts.

Occupant Safety

The GLC43 Coupe comes standard with dual front, front pelvic, front side and full-length side curtain airbags in addition to a driver's knee airbag, active front head restraints and traction and stability control systems.

Also standard is an ATTENTION ASSIST system that can alert the driver to the first signs of drowsiness, a factor that causes more than 100,000 accidents a year in the U.S.A steering sensor is coupled to smart software that uses 70 parameters to establish a unique driver profile during the first 20 minutes of driving. Between 50 and 112 mph, the system identifies the erratic steering corrections drivers make as they begin to get drowsy and triggers an audible warning and a "Time for a Rest?" message with a coffee cup icon in the instrument cluster.

Optional safety equipment includes the Lane Keeping Assist system, which alerts the driver by simulating a rumble strip vibration in the steering wheel if the car drifts from its lane without the turn signals on. Part of the Lane Tracking Package, it operates at speeds above 37 mph via a system that recognizes lane markings, thanks to a small camera in the windshield and a computer that analyzes the video images.

The Lane Tracking Package also includes Blind Spot Assist, which monitors both blind spots behind and to the side of the vehicle. Whenever a turn signal is activated with a vehicle in the blind spot, the driver gets visual and audible warnings.

Those looking for even more safety kit can spring for the Driver Assistance package, which adds brake assist plus, active blind spot assist and active lane keeping assist in addition to a radar-based cruise control system.

Key Competitors

The GLC43 Coupe is up against a decent assortment of smaller SUVs and crossovers, but competes most directly with the BMW X4's M40i variant.