DrGH

Hello
I am in the market for buying a small size or midsize crossover SUV. I am putting high emphasis on ride comfort (e.g. not feeling speed bumps and pot holes). The GLC was my first choice. But recently I learned that the air suspension option is no longer available in Canada for the GLC 2018. There is one 2018 GLC available for purchase but, in addition to not having the air suspension option, it comes with the sports package. I am concerned that the ride will not be as smooth as I hope for given the sports package and the lack or air suspension. Does the sports package affect the suspension and the ability to deliver a comfortable ride? How? Since ride comfort is a top priority, do you recommend against getting a GLC without the air suspension?

Thanks!

Roowah

I have a GLC with the standard suspension and sports package with the 19" wheels. It is definitely firmer than the vehicle I test drove that didn't have this package and just had the 18" wheels. It's comfortable on the highway, but on local roads, I do feel imperfections and road bumps. The best way to describe it is firm and not at all floaty. I've been able to avoid potholes so far (took delivery this Spring so haven't experienced a Winter with it yet), but I'm sure it'll be a jarring experience.

Air suspension will probably help out quite a bit, and will give you the feel you're looking for, but I didn't want to have a feature that has a reputation of being unreliable and expensive to repair down the road.

My suggestion is to thoroughly test drive it on a variety of surfaces, and see if it meets your ride criteria.

DrGH

Thanks very much, Roowah, for your detailed answer. A follow-up question please: In your car's COMAND, if you use the Dynamic Select / Agility control, and choose the "Individual" mode (as opposed to Comfort, Sport, Sport+, ECO), are you able to choose different settings for the "Suspension" (the spring-like icon)? If so, what options can you set (e.g. can you choose "extra comfort" or so)? Do you know if such an Individual setting of the suspension to "extra comfort" (or similar) can help in any way, or it wouldn't be any better than adopting the main "Comfort" setting (as opposed to Sport, Sport+, ECO)? Thanks!

Roowah

Unfortunately, there's no suspension settings available without the air suspension. The only settings that can be adjusted are steering feel, engine/transmission response, engine start/stop, and climate control (Eco or comfort)..

ajmtbm

Like you my emphasis was comfortable ride. i have a GLC3900 with 18" wheels and standard suspension

i am happy with the ride. for me, slightly firm but comfortable. i don't like floaty so i guess its a good balance for me. any firmer and i dont think i would have been happy

that having been said definitely a long test drive - and in the city - would be the way to go. most dealers seem to like to take you on the highway and show how fast the car can go.

bips

Comparing option packs across countries is fraught, as they vary too much. But I am surprised that air is no longer an option in Canada? What if you ordered the off-road pack? Doesn't the GLC AMG 43 come with air as standard?

I can relate to your emphasis. There was a time when I would have put more emphasis on sporty handling and performance, but you reach a stage of life where you want comfort and a little luxury. And our early reaction to our non-air GLC was that we had spent more money that we ever thought we would on a luxury car, but still missed out on a luxury ride.

The view I eventually came to was the the prime culprit was the RFT tyres, not aided by them being 20" low-profile. Perhaps also the AMG Line pack (chosen for the seats), which I think is roughly your sport pack. My understanding is that the suspension is slightly lowered and slightly firmer.

I have achieved something close to a luxury car by swapping to 19" non-RFT. It also steers a lot better. I wonder whether 18" might have improved the ride even further.

I often read here on MBWorld of people choosing wheels and tyres based solely on looks, but if you want a luxury ride then my advice is to choose them based on factors other than looks. (I will acknowledge that there are people here who claim that the ride is just fine with RFT, but that's not my experience, and I can't help but wonder what sort of roads they drive on.)

Before the wheel and tyre swap, I contemplated switching to another GLC with air. I test drove a demonstrator like mine with air. It was better in some respects, but I found it a bit too 'floaty'. Apparently this is a common complaint. You could partially alleviate that by running the air in its sport setting (Roowah is right that there's no adjustment on the non-air suspension, at least not in Australia), although if you don't want to drive in sport mode all the time then you're going to have to drive in 'individual' mode and switch to it at the start of each day.

I also test drove an AMG 43 model with AMG air and 21" non-RFT. This was the best in my view. I'm pretty happy with my current setup, but the AMG 43 was better. However I don't want or need the AMG 43 and would still like smaller wheels.

If I was in your shoes today I don't know what I'd order. I assume it's not possible to order AMG air in a non-AMG vehicle. I'd like the air because you can raise it for extra clearance when needed, and I have a hunch that you have to have air if you order the off-road pack, which I wish we had. But for general on-road use I think that 18" non-RFT will give you the best all-round comfort experience. Or maybe the AMG 43 model, if that's your thing.

DrGH

Thanks for your message and insight!

I am not interested in the AMG (will ad ~$15k on the base price).

I agree that swapping to 19 or even 18" non-NFT will help and will consider it.

Last year (2017 models), we (in Canada) were able to add the air-suspension option, but you can't add it on the website for the 2018 models (also the dealer confirmed that air suspension is no longer available!), I wonder why....

Flicka60

My '18 order in US has air suspension.

cfugle

Hello
I too thought about the air suspension option and when I decided at the point of ordering to NOT opt for it, the salesman looked at me and said "Are you sure?".
Our former CLS had the air suspension and we both did not like the floaty feel and disconnect with the road. Too much compensation dialled in for regular comfort mode and too harsh in sport modes.
So I opted for the Night sport package/19" wheels/suspension and I think it provides the perfect balance of less body roll, better cornering feel yet comfortable daily ride. It absorbs small bumps and imperfection better than my old GLK for sure. If I smash pothole by accident, yes the car lurches down and up but that's to be expected. Not even air suspension can compensate or this yet with our preemptive road scans. When I tried the base suspension it was too soft for my liking (and I enjoy a comfortable smooth ride) with the back end seemingly "swaying" out of line. Probably it never moved left to right but the feeling was certainly there of body mass shifting as the car is riding 8" off the ground. In my former GLK (I loved her so much) her backend skipped so often, I just got used to it. The GLC feels so more refined though after the GLK. If I drove a GLK again I think it would now feel harm and cheap afterwards.

cfugle

I wonder if when MB Canada saw so few being ordered with Air Suspension that they just eliminated the option for the following MY system. I would think MB HQ in every country must be given deadlines to submit their preferred available options so MB Germany can source out estimated parts orders in advance. The German and UK sites seem to still offer the option though.

chillysyrup

That was the reason the dealer gave: too few orders. It really seems quite arbitrary when it is still offered everywhere else. If you want the option, email Mercedes Canada, maybe they can change it later in the year or for future model years. It's quite a glaring difference for an option to be offered south of the border, but not in Canada.

I second the idea of converting to non-RFTs, but you will have to wait for the first set to wear out or buy another set of wheels. Maybe you could negotiate with your dealer to swap the tires as a compromise and afterward tell them to make sure MB Canada knows that is what it took to get you to buy the car.