HouseBuilder328

I stopped by the MB dealer after work today and luckily there were no salespeople walking around, so I could look in peace. Noticed all the VINs began with W, and stickers also said Made in Germany. I was expecting these GLCs to be made in China.

I thought the GLCs were going to be made in China and imported to the US? Are all US-bound GLCs going to be made in Germany, or are we going to have a "mix?"

Any quality differences we are hearing about US made Mercedes, vs German-made, vs China-made? Heard all the facilities have tight-quality control by Mercedes.

rbrylaw

All US bound GLC's are made in Bremen, Germany. I have a US made 2016 C300 Sport and the quality is every bit as good as the Bremen, built GLC300 we also have.

JEVA

I think it was mentioned on here somewhere that there are some built in China but they are for delivery in other countries outside of the US.

mdsbuc

Yeah, I was thinking I had read that the Chinese built GLC would be for the China market only. Either way, they're not coming here.

HouseBuilder328

Thanks for the clarification.


Was wondering after finding out one of the GLC's main competitors, the next-gen Audi Q5 will be built in Mexico. Seems like everyone is up in arms about that.

JEVA

I had a VW GTI made in Mexico...the results were not good.

dieseldoc

I have had several Mexican built VWs. Not great builds. My last one dripped body sealant during warm weather on the garage floor that my son said looked like nacho cheese.

HouseBuilder328

Yup, I hear you. My family had a GTI made in Mexico, and it's well known in the Audi/VW community that plant was a disaster.

I would hope Audi would be exceptionally careful this time around.

davezaristo

my e-golf is built in Germany and the built quality is excellent while my friend's jetta is built in mexico the quality is horrible..

Gary From LA

The automaker is relying on a “three-pillar system” of its own factories, joint ventures and contract manufacturers, Mercedes-Benz production chief Markus Schaefer said. He left open the option of building new plants.
“We’ll expand our global production capacity when we need it, as part of our strategy to become the No. 1 luxury carmaker,” he said.
Mercedes-Benz is making room for more production of its new GLC-Class as SUVs continue to surge in popularity, Schaefer said in an interview this week at Mercedes’ biggest factory in Sindelfingen, Germany, the facility where the company makes its flagship S-Class, among other models. Mercedes this year also contracted out production of the R-Class wagon to focus its U.S. factory on SUVs.
The expansion is part of Mercedes’ plan to surpass BMW and become the world’s top luxury automaker. Its sales have grown nearly three times as quickly as BMW’s this year. Its C-Class lineup and strong demand in China for the GLK-Class model, the GLC’s predecessor, have put it in position to overtake Audi for the No. 2 spot.
To free up capacity for the GLC at Valmet’s factory, Schaefer said production of the compact A-Class will be shifted to the Mercedes’ plant in Rastatt. Valmet, based in Uusikaupunki, Finland, will produce about 100,000 A-Class hatchbacks for Mercedes from 2013 to 2016 under its contract.
Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler remains in talks for a manufacturing plant in Russia and a final decision will depend on a market recovery, Schaefer said. The German carmaker already holds a stake in Russian truckmaker KamAZ and produces the Sprinter van in a joint venture with GAZ Group.
In the first 10 months of the year, sales at BMW’s namesake marque rose 5.8 per cent to 1.56 million cars. Audi’s deliveries were up 3.6 per cent to 1.49 million vehicles. Mercedes outpaced them both with a 15 per cent jump to 1.53 million cars.
In China, the Daimler unit surpassed its full-year sales volume from 2014 after only ten months, defying a slowdown in the market as a whole.

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thenew3

I don't know about GLC, but I have driven 4 new C300 loaners (one had 6 miles on it when I was given the keys, I was first customer to drive it), and all of them had creaking doors over rough roads or when I drove up my driveway, all 4 door seals creaked badly.

The C300's are built in USA.

I was hesitant to purchase a made in USA German car, but wife wanted a new vehicle and GLK was no longer being made so we ordered a BMW X3 which is also built in USA. So far after 2 months of ownership, I can say the X3 is noise free and as solid as any BMW/MB/Audi I've driven in the past that was made in Germany.

Not sure why all 4 C300's had noisy/creaky bodies.

rbrylaw

I have no idea why you had creaky C300s. Mine is certainly not, even on broken pavement. Unless you looked at the inside door panel, one could never tell the difference between the build quality of our C300 built in Alabama and our GLC300 built in Bremen.

thenew3

I found it pretty odd too. All 4 C300 loaners I've had, all with different build dates, all had creaky doors and one had a metallic rattle in the rear seat area.

I thought it was due to how people abuse the loaners, even though most of them had around 4k miles on it. The most recent loaner only had 6 miles on it and I was the first customer to drive it, and it also had creaky doors and had a very rough start/stop system that would shake the car pretty badly at every stop light.

rbrylaw

Eco is awful, no matter how you slice the cake. What you described is the Eco system and I just don't use it. Not many people who have Eco Start/Stop in their cars do, to be honest.

teksurv

The W205 C class loaners I have had seemed just fine, no squeaks or rattles come to mind. To be fair, my 2015 German built E Class has had a few here and there, and I expect they will be resolved as usual at my next service. As for ECO, yeah no. My start the car routine is parking brake off, ECO off, Sport mode engaged. The V6 is a little more smooth than the I4 for ECO, but I hate it. BMW is worse though.

rbrylaw

I have an individual setting in Agility Select that configures it all the way I want it without having to push multiple buttons.

New to MB in 16

Just took delivery and either the right rear suspension rattles or the tailgate does when going over a small bump. Any similar experiences. Taking it back to the dealer. 550 miles on it....darn.

CA_GLC

No issues like that for me. Only issue I have is annoying grinding sound from left rear door that appears to be related to window assembly. When I roll down window noise goes away and it is not consistent. Some days no noise.

mindi

From 2017 the GLC will not be built by Mercedes at all but outsourced to Valmet in Finland who have a major plant under construction, and who already build the A class on an outsourced basis. This sort of outsourcing does happen, the previous BMW X3 (E83) was never built by BMW but designed and built by Steyr in Austria. So if you want a German one, better be quick..lol

decorily

I have noticed what I thought was a rattle from the tailgate but discovered that sometimes the rear seat belt buckle while not in use (depending on the way it is turned) knocks against the hard plastic beside the seat and rattles.

JM-GLC

In the C-pillar, there is a rubberized slot where you an put the seat belt buckle to keep it from banging/rattling. See page 310 of the Owner's Manual. (I just noticed you are in Ireland. Your Owner's Manual may be different; I am referring to the Owner's Manual provided to owners in the US. Order #: P253 0041 13, Part #: 253 584 62 00, Edition B 2016)

Alex Bel

http://www.valmet-automotive.com/aut...ic/20151126033

"...Valmet Automotive and Mercedes-Benz have announced that Valmet Automotive will start manufacturing additional units of the Mercedes-Benz GLC SUV at the Uusikaupunki, Finland plant. Valmet Automotive starts the preparation of the project immediately. The main production site of the GLC is the Mercedes-Benz plant in Bremen, Germany, which already runs at full capacity.

The manufacturing of the GLC will commence in Finland during the first quarter of 2017. The planned production volume in Uusikaupunki is comparable to the A-Class contract...."

decorily

Thanks..that's good to know.


All I have to do now is train my teenage animals...I mean children to use it!!


.......SLÁINTE

Germancar1

A lot of misinformation there. Of course the cars are still designed by the original manufacturer. The assembly was contracted out, not the design work.

Mercedes just started building the C Convertible at Bremen today and they also noted that the same factory builds the GLC and soon the GLC Coupe. Valmet is only getting some of the GLC production, not all of it.

http://media.daimler.com/marsMediaSi...0aHVtYnM!&rs=2



M

mindi

Very politely put germancar. Wrong, but very polite.