AMG exterior US vs. Europe
#1
AMG exterior US vs. Europe
I ordered the GLC with the sport package - which supposedly has AMG exterior styling - before the configurator and GLC info page on mbusa.com was up.
Looking at the pictures/configurator at mbusa.com now, however, the AMG styling front bumber looks with quite different from anything we've seen before... (e.g., auto shows, cars at dealers in Europe, US ordering guide posted elsewhere in this forum, etc). It looks significantly worse in my opinion (Although in subtle ways I'll admit) and I'm a bit concerned. The US version does not seem to have chrome all the way to the sides at the bottom of the bumper. There has been no info as far as I can tell that the US would get a different AMG exterior. I'm sort of hoping it's a mbusa.com website error... but in the recent TV commercials for mbusa the same issue appears.
Anybody else observed this discrepancy? Or does anyone know if the AMG exterior will be different from those sold in Europe?
[first pic from mbusa.com, second pic from European mb configurator]
Looking at the pictures/configurator at mbusa.com now, however, the AMG styling front bumber looks with quite different from anything we've seen before... (e.g., auto shows, cars at dealers in Europe, US ordering guide posted elsewhere in this forum, etc). It looks significantly worse in my opinion (Although in subtle ways I'll admit) and I'm a bit concerned. The US version does not seem to have chrome all the way to the sides at the bottom of the bumper. There has been no info as far as I can tell that the US would get a different AMG exterior. I'm sort of hoping it's a mbusa.com website error... but in the recent TV commercials for mbusa the same issue appears.
Anybody else observed this discrepancy? Or does anyone know if the AMG exterior will be different from those sold in Europe?
[first pic from mbusa.com, second pic from European mb configurator]
Last edited by dr_swe; 10-03-2015 at 09:47 PM.
#2
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Dr_Swe,
Good spot. Frankly I hope this is true.
I also have a US AMG on order. IMO, the US model in the picture is better looking than the European picture. The ONLY thing about the front end of the European model that I don't particularly care for is that bright, straight trim. Personal preference, of course.
I'm guessing, but I suspect that MB received some negative feedback about the front end and decided to make some last minute changes.
Regards,
Dan.
Good spot. Frankly I hope this is true.
I also have a US AMG on order. IMO, the US model in the picture is better looking than the European picture. The ONLY thing about the front end of the European model that I don't particularly care for is that bright, straight trim. Personal preference, of course.
I'm guessing, but I suspect that MB received some negative feedback about the front end and decided to make some last minute changes.
Regards,
Dan.
#3
Dr_Swe,
Good spot. Frankly I hope this is true.
I also have a US AMG on order. IMO, the US model in the picture is better looking than the European picture. The ONLY thing about the front end of the European model that I don't particularly care for is that bright, straight trim. Personal preference, of course.
I'm guessing, but I suspect that MB received some negative feedback about the front end and decided to make some last minute changes.
Regards,
Dan.
Good spot. Frankly I hope this is true.
I also have a US AMG on order. IMO, the US model in the picture is better looking than the European picture. The ONLY thing about the front end of the European model that I don't particularly care for is that bright, straight trim. Personal preference, of course.
I'm guessing, but I suspect that MB received some negative feedback about the front end and decided to make some last minute changes.
Regards,
Dan.
It's borderline false advertising by MB because there was no info about this change, and my sales person certainly didn't mention it. And it's too late to change my order now...
#4
Member
I'm pretty upset with MB myself, as I honestly think the $3000 sport package isn't worth it anymore. The difference with the off-road exterior is now much smaller. (Note that the bumper angle is now more pronounced; more upright.)
It's borderline false advertising by MB because there was no info about this change, and my sales person certainly didn't mention it. And it's too late to change my order now...
It's borderline false advertising by MB because there was no info about this change, and my sales person certainly didn't mention it. And it's too late to change my order now...
#5
I don't see anything wrong. From what I can tell, you just have the Night Package configured. Remove the Night Package, select the Sport Package and you should have the front bumper you're looking for.
Maybe I'm mis-reading your post, but it sounds like you made an impulse purchase based on assumptions and now you're trying to blame the manufacturer and/or your dealer now that your assumptions might be wrong. Maybe you should have, you know, waited?
Maybe I'm mis-reading your post, but it sounds like you made an impulse purchase based on assumptions and now you're trying to blame the manufacturer and/or your dealer now that your assumptions might be wrong. Maybe you should have, you know, waited?
Yes, in hindsight I should have probably waited. I made a whole bunch of assumptions when ordering the car, including about engine displacement, transmission and the dimensions of the car; all based on information from Mercedes-Benz. In particular, in this case I assumed the AMG exterior would look like in the US ordering guide (see image below), but that clearly turned out to be a false assumption. I realize that MB has every legal right to deviate from the specifications of the ordering guide, presumably. If they also change, say, the engine to a 150 hp three cylinder then I couldn't agree with you more.
Last edited by dr_swe; 10-05-2015 at 11:32 AM.
#6
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Yes, in hindsight I should have probably waited. I made a whole bunch of assumptions when ordering the car, including about engine displacement, transmission and the dimensions of the car; all based on information from Mercedes-Benz. In particular, in this case I assumed the AMG exterior would look like in the US ordering guide (see image below), but that clearly turned out to be a false assumption. I realize that MB has every legal right to deviate from the specifications of the ordering guide, presumably. If they also change, say, the engine to a 150 hp three cylinder then I couldn't agree with you more.
#7
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There is a very good reason - wasted time. I'll have waited six months to get my GLC in January. I ordered it with the expectation of getting what was in the US ordering guide.
For me, the change looks like it's for the better. Note that I said "looks". I don't know what it will look like when it hits our shores. If it doesn't look like what I expect (or better), I'll dump the whole thing and get a BMW or Audi.
One feature I very much wanted was the Non-US air suspension package. I think it was a dumb marketing mistake.
One concern I have is that the US GLC will turn out to be nothing more than a glorified mommy-van. Removing the special air suspension in US models is one indication that this might be true.
Another concern I have is that the GLC will have the same first-year problems that the C-Class has.
Dan.
p.s. My salesman has not given me any indication that the GLC specs have changed. That is NOT a positive sign.
Last edited by Dan_public; 10-05-2015 at 02:57 PM.
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ordering guides say preliminary and subject to change for a reason. I wonder if the difference in the lower front spoiler has to do with the weird guidelines for approach angles we have in the US. This happened on the Lexus NX. The US version has a much larger approach angle vs euro spec versions and the explanation was that in the US, if it has a higher angle, then it is classified as another type of vehicle, and therefore is not subject to the same regulations (be it emissions, mpg figures, etc) as an SUV without those offloading pretensions
The US version has more of a "beak"
vs
The US version has more of a "beak"
vs
Last edited by joshg1001; 10-06-2015 at 02:02 PM.