The engine is usually the biggest highlight of an AMG Mercedes. According to Kelley Blue Book, that’s not the case with the new GLC 43.
When AMG works over a Mercedes, it’s a thorough process. It makes whichever vehicle it’s transforming look more aggressive, throws on bigger brakes, tunes the exhaust, and adds plenty of badges to tell the rest of the world it’s looking at something special. Those are all important things to focus on, but the biggest party piece of any AMG is typically what’s under the hood.
Unless you ask Kelley Blue Book‘s Zach Vlasuk about the 2017 Mercedes-AMG GLC 43.
In the video above, he praises the GLC 43’s twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 for pulling hard from down low all the way to its 6,500-rpm redline. He also has love for the way the exhaust sounds when the tach needle is swinging for the fences.
But that 362-horsepower, 384-lb-ft AMG-massaged six is not the star of the show, according to Vlasuk. Neither is the force or feel from the brakes or the GLC 43’s 0-60 mph dash of 4.8 seconds.
No, according to Vlasuk, the “crown jewel” of the GLC 43 is what’s below the engine. He enjoys the AMG Performance 4MATIC all-wheel drive system, the stick from the Continental tires, and the way the suspension reigns in body roll. All of that’s enough to make Vlasuk call the GLC 43 a “legitimate handling car.”
Nice to know it can handle the extra power AMG gave it. Then again, that’s just another box AMG has to check off when it performs its mechanical makeovers.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
