I bought a 2017 GLC 300 4MATIC last month...

The time I visited the dealer, they told me it's all sold out, but two 2017 GLC 300 would arrive in 2 weeks. They showed me the details of both of the incoming cars, and one of them looked good to me. So I reserved it with $1000 deposit, without having looked around the actual car I wanted, since I thought I was pretty familiar with the car after extensive research... But there comes a problem I never expected.

The front lighting system of my car is the "standard" design without the LED low/high beams - so the Daytime Running Lamp (DRL) located below the low/high beam bulbs. Well, I used to think the "upgraded" full-LED front design is the standard for GLC 300, for at least 95% of the online images & videos & actual cars showed the DRL above the low/high beam bulbs (which is the full LED design), and in some other countries like China the full LED design is indeed a standard for all GLC 300.

But what's the big deal, you may ask. Well, the full LED front design put the DRL lamp above the low/high beam lamps, which displays a strikingly elegant curve and fit in the elegant design of GLC 300. Finally, this is a brand-new type of Mercedes Benz!!! But the "standard" xenon bulbs look like the eyes of a stupid mouse!!! The full LED design should have been a default setting!!! The full LED actually makes a GLC a "GLC"!!!

Anyway, I think the full LED design is so much more beautiful and elegant than the "standard" design, especially when the light is on. Comparison pictures below. I may be a perfectionist, but I am traumatized now. Seriously, not kidding.

Full LED (with DRL up)





Standard (with DRL down)


Standard (with DRL down)


Full LED (with DRL up)

 

I understand ordering without seeing it, but surely you saw it once it arrived/before you actually bought it?? You should have simply refused to buy the car once you saw it had a feature you didn't like

 

Yup I agree, it does look rather basic. I thought they all had the eye brows.

 

I do like the brow look better, and of course the xenons or led's look better than halogens to me, but it rarely gets driven at night, and you can't see the DRL's from inside the car. To me this was a non-issue. It's my wife's car anyway, she actually prefers halogens.

 

Looks like I'm not the only one that got screwed lol I too thought the eyebrow led DRL are standard feature. When I ordered my car I was told the car came stock with xenon so I didn't order LEDs but noooo it came with halogens!! yellow *** halogens!

 

Ditto. Full LED is the ones we always get. Any other lights seem dim to me. It's not too late you won't lose your money tell them you want the one with the full LED.

 

There are 3 headlight configurations for the US:

1) Halogen (standard)
2) LED (with the eyebrow, available as standalone option)
3) Active LED (with the eyebrow, available within Premium 3 package)

I ordered a GLC that should be ready this month (we are in October already!). I initially ordered with the Premium 2 package, thinking it included the LED lights as an older Dealer Order Guide from June showed that it was included. Luckily I spotted that the packaging changed and separated out the LED option (see note below). I was able to add it to my order as a standalone option for $850.

Note 1: For anyone looking at a Dealer Order Guide that may be outdated, the Premium 2 package also used to include the Burmester stereo, and that also was unbundled from that package.

Note 2: I actually found a bug in the MBUSA site. If you add Premium 2 to a GLC build, the photo of the front of the vehicle in fact shows the headlights changing from Halogen to LED. However, adding Premium 2 does not automatically select the $850 LED option.

 

By active LED do you mean the Inteliggent Light System or just the LED with auto high beam assist? I think there are a few more variations that aren't necessarily clear from the list

 

The info below is from the MBUSA site. The adaptive high beam assist is part of the "active" setup. The LED headlamp stand-alone package is just upgraded lamps and turn signals.

LED headlamps and taillamps - $850 stand-alone option
With longer life, quicker illumination and beams that approximate daylight even more closely than xenon headlamps, the LED headlamps enhance both vision and visibility during nighttime driving. Bright white LED Daytime Running Lamps and all other front light functions are integrated within the flowing sculpture of the headlamp assemblies, making the design as appealing as it is illuminating. Wide, horizontal taillamps feature an LED "twin-torch" design plus LED turn signals and brake lamps.

Active LED headlamps with Adaptive Highbeam Assist - component in Premium 3 package
Pioneered by Mercedes-Benz, dynamic LED headlamps generate light that's even closer to natural daylight than the standard Bi-Xenon headlamps. Active Curve Illumination and Adaptive Highbeam Assist continuously vary the beam pattern of the LEDs in each headlamp to help maximize the illumination of corners and straightaways, without creating glare for other drivers.

 

Aha ok - interestingly it is called Mercedes Intelligent Light System in the rest of the world. Wonder whether there is some patent issue with that name in the USA.

http://techcenter.mercedes-benz.com/...em/detail.html

 

I am so glad I spotted the discrepancy before my order was finalized. The LED lighting not being on the vehicle would have been an absolute deal-breaker for me. I still struggle with the fact that it is an option on any car over about $35,000.

 

LED Intelligent Light System (Active)


LED High Performance (Passive)



Hope this helps!

 

Thanks @vratenza I've got the same marking on my current GL, must be a US thing to call it differently.