Mercedes combines a hot car and a sporty SUV
Bright Blue Metallic Mercedes AMG GLC43 Coupe parks on Hawk Ridge, above Duluth›s East End. Photos by John Gilbert. Mercedes Benz has maintained a consistent trajectory onward and upward with both its sedans and SUVs, and as a virtual poster-child for the blending of cars and SUVs, the Mercedes more compact SUVs will do just about anything anyone could ask a sedan to do. A perfect example is the 2020 Mercedes GLC, which is the standard designation for the company’s compact sports-utility vehicle, and as a downsized compact, it won Motor Trend’s SUV of the year award when it was born for 2019. Ah, but now it fits the mold of taking on the appearance
of a compact SUV that not only wants to fill a sedan’s shoes, but gets both the 4-door “Coupe” treatment but the high-performance AMG specialization. The result is the AMG GLC43 Coupe, which is the ultimate subterfuge to confuse the vehiclebuying public. AMG used to take the sportiest Mercedes sedans and give them a thorough makeover for engine, drivetrain, suspension, interior, seats, and even the steering wheel, and then it also took on a raft of addedon grooves, contours and special identifying traits. AMG became so
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prominent that Mercedes took on its affiliate to make it part of the company. Walking up to the GLC43, I was taken by the brilliant blue metallic paint — identified as “Brilliant Blue Metallic,” incidentally — which is not as dark as deep navy and not as bright as royal. As a compromise, it is a unique color, even to a blue-freak like me, and I believe I like it better than either navy or royal for a car’s exterior. If you approach from the rear, you’re thinking that you suspected it was an SUV, but you must be mistaken, because that sloped rear roofline has a sporty-car flair, and those four silver exhaust tubes, and the rear deckled spoiler are further sporty touches. From the front, the thin grille is more
High-tech controls, from steering wheel to switchgear, and to quilted white leather seats makes GLC43 special. September 10, 2020
