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I took delivery on November 20th, almost 2 months ago, and have done 3k miles. Here are some thoughts so far.
I love the car. It’s fast when I want it to be, but not so fast that I double the speed limit. Also comfortable enough when needed. I have also driven a 2018 GLC43, and the 2018 feels a lot harsher over small bumps in the road. The 2020 model is noticeably smoother and quieter, even on the same Goodyear Eagle 20” radius tires.
MPG average is 18 in highway and suburb driving, minimal stop and go traffic. During more spirited driving sessions, it’s more like 14.
Transmission shifts between 1st and 2nd gear are harsh when in automatic and sport+ modes. I set Individual mode to manual to avoid this.
Driving in manual mode is a blast. Even when accelerating at fairly normal pace, holding second gear at 30-40 mph gives a great sound.
Performance exhaust is required for anyone who ever ventures out of comfort mode. Interestingly, sport mode does not activate PE, only sport+ mode does. For best exhaust cracks and pops, get to 2nd gear and 6k rpm and 40 mph, then let off throttle.
All the comfort/convenience features work perfectly and are a huge upgrade from my 2014 E sedan. This includes auto high beams, key fob detection unlock, kick-to-open rear tailgate, and there is even a button in the cargo area to lower the vehicle ~2 inches for easier loading.
Digital instrument cluster is extremely well designed. Love the center tach and flashing red shift lights.
MBUX is pretty much useless, but the infotainment is the best among any currently available. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay work seamlessly.
Black leather plus red accent stitching looks great. I optioned black seat belts to reduce flashiness.
Interior ambient lighting really shines at night. I like the blue color, which can also be seen during daylight. Other colors are less visible during the day.
Best steering wheel shape and controls ever made, and it’s the same wheel as all other AMGs except for S63, which has a leather center. I optioned standard nappa leather with no Dinamica. No regrets on not paying $500 more for Dinamica, a less durable material.
I don’t miss the heated steering wheel in lieu of the AMG steering wheel. The cabin warms up fast enough that gloves are only needed for 10 minutes and only when temp is below 20F.
Adaptive cruise control is annoying and unusable. The driving speed automatically resets to the actual speed limit when it detects a new speed limit. Traffic can be moving 20 mph faster than the speed limit, which causes a serious safety problem when the car suddenly brakes to a speed 20 mph slower than traffic flow. Very bad.
The car performed well when we got 6 inches of snow during rush hour the other day. No issues with 69% rear wheel drive.
Parking sensors and cameras have been helpful in navigating tight spaces to ensure no dings or curb rash on the wheels.
Options that I did not select: pano roof, heads up display, steering wheel drive select controls. I would have optioned the steering wheel drive controls, but they weren’t available at the time I ordered back in September. Parts shortage perhaps. The controls on the center console are just fine for changing drive modes.
Last edited by MercOne1; Jan 19, 2020 at 09:34 AM.
I took delivery on November 20th, almost 2 months ago, and have done 3k miles. Here are some thoughts so far.
I love the car. It’s fast when I want it to be, but not so fast that I double the speed limit. Also comfortable enough when needed. I have also driven a 2018 GLC43, and the 2018 feels a lot harsher over small bumps in the road. The 2020 model is noticeably smoother and quieter, even on the same Goodyear Eagle 20” radius tires.
MPG average is 18 in highway and suburb driving, minimal stop and go traffic. During more spirited driving sessions, it’s more like 14.
Transmission shifts between 1st and 2nd gear are harsh when in automatic and sport+ modes. I set Individual mode to manual to avoid this.
Driving in manual mode is a blast. Even when accelerating at fairly normal pace, holding second gear at 30-40 mph gives a great sound.
Performance exhaust is required for anyone who ever ventures out of comfort mode. Interestingly, sport mode does not activate PE, only sport+ mode does. For best exhaust cracks and pops, get to 2nd gear and 6k rpm and 40 mph, then let off throttle.
All the comfort/convenience features work perfectly and are a huge upgrade from my 2014 E sedan. This includes auto high beams, key fob detection unlock, kick-to-open rear tailgate, and there is even a button in the cargo area to lower the vehicle ~2 inches for easier loading.
Digital instrument cluster is extremely well designed. Love the center tach and flashing red shift lights.
MBUX is pretty much useless, but the infotainment is the best among any currently available. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay work seamlessly.
Black leather plus red accent stitching looks great. I optioned black seat belts to reduce flashiness.
Interior ambient lighting really shines at night. I like the blue color, which can also be seen during daylight. Other colors are less visible during the day.
Best steering wheel shape and controls ever made, and it’s the same wheel as all other AMGs except for S63, which has a leather center. I optioned standard nappa leather with no Dinamica. No regrets on not paying $500 more for Dinamica, a less durable material.
I don’t miss the heated steering wheel in lieu of the AMG steering wheel. The cabin warms up fast enough that gloves are only needed for 10 minutes and only when temp is below 20F.
Adaptive cruise control is annoying and unusable. The driving speed automatically resets to the actual speed limit when it detects a new speed limit. Traffic can be moving 20 mph faster than the speed limit, which causes a serious safety problem when the car suddenly brakes to a speed 20 mph slower than traffic flow. Very bad.
The car performed well when we got 6 inches of snow during rush hour the other day. No issues with 69% rear wheel drive.
Parking sensors and cameras have been helpful in navigating tight spaces to ensure no dings or curb rash on the wheels.
Options that I did not select: pano roof, heads up display, steering wheel drive select controls. I would have optioned the steering wheel drive controls, but they weren’t available at the time I ordered back in September. Parts shortage perhaps. The controls on the center console are just fine for changing drive modes.
Great to hear you are enjoying it. To highlight a few things I've learned in my first month:
I find MBUX overall to be ok, you just have to figure out how to talk to it. The infotainment in general is a HUGE upgrade compared to COMAND. Driving around in my wifes GLC300 makes it seem like a 10 year old car.
The digital dash is much better than i anticipated. Same comment about driving my wifes GLC300.
I don't use the AMG Drive Unit that much, its more of a nice to have/bell whistle. It's cool and I'm glad that I have it but you aren't missing anything.
Ambient lighting is way cooler than i would have though. The family thinks the same.
Adaptive cruise: I can confirm that I've had the same behavior and I finally figured out how to get it to work like most other cars out there. You have to turn off the traffic sign 'limit adoption' feature in the settings. It still displays the traffic speed that it reads, but it won't update the speed. Works great now.
Thanks for the tip on speed limit adopt. I looked for that setting before, but didn’t realize it was buried under other settings and I had to scroll down.
Great read. I’m 2 months out of receiving mine. Really hoping the exhaust performs well and produces a great sound. Were the sports seats available as an option? Here in Australia the cars are fully loaded with HUD and pano roof, only options are 21”, Performance exhaust and the race style seats like the 63 has.
C-280, 911, Q5, 2020 GLC43, 1947 Chris Craft runabout.
Nice write up. I am still waiting on mine to come in. Great tip on the cruise control. Write ups like this and the other tips is what make this forum invaluable.
Thanks for the update as its always nice to get feedback on a new car. I will be turning off the speed limit feature when we pickup our new car in a couple days.
Rick
This is awesome. Just waiting for my car to arrive in the next week or two. Hoping the ride is also good on the 21's. Although I won't find out until summer. My winter 20's go on right away.
As far as little tips and tricks go, there's one that hasn't been mentioned yet. Apparently there's a way to hide the retractable rear compartment cover underneath the trunk in the storage space. It kinda fits diagonally across the trunk and snaps into place so you can hide it away when folding the rear seats down.
Does that make any sense? I can't confirm because my car is still on order. Can someone verify that you can do this, because it's a nice little perk.
As far as little tips and tricks go, there's one that hasn't been mentioned yet. Apparently there's a way to hide the retractable rear compartment cover underneath the trunk in the storage space. It kinda fits diagonally across the trunk and snaps into place so you can hide it away when folding the rear seats down.
Does that make any sense? I can't confirm because my car is still on order. Can someone verify that you can do this, because it's a nice little perk.
Correct, the rear cargo area cover fits nicely under the floor cover as long as you don’t option the spare wheel/tire.
Love this review. I have from what I can tell an identical build to OP so all the notes with the shifting, popping, exhaust notes etc is interesting.
I just turned the corner on the 1k miles so I started playing with it this week a bit when I have some space and time in my day. Fun times so far for the grocery getter!
My wife noticed one thing, coming to a stop and trying to stop smoothly? It's a bit difficult with a jerking at the end when at full stop? Anyone else have this experience?
We come from a long line of manual cars so it might just be us but if both of us noticed it, I thought I'd ask.
My wife noticed one thing, coming to a stop and trying to stop smoothly? It's a bit difficult with a jerking at the end when at full stop? Anyone else have this experience?
I find this happens in Sport+ with automatic shifting.
Try Sport+ with manual shifting. It doesn’t jerk at all.
Love this review. I have from what I can tell an identical build to OP so all the notes with the shifting, popping, exhaust notes etc is interesting.
I just turned the corner on the 1k miles so I started playing with it this week a bit when I have some space and time in my day. Fun times so far for the grocery getter!
My wife noticed one thing, coming to a stop and trying to stop smoothly? It's a bit difficult with a jerking at the end when at full stop? Anyone else have this experience?
We come from a long line of manual cars so it might just be us but if both of us noticed it, I thought I'd ask.
Happy motoring all.
Aloha
The jerking when coming to a full stop is a known issue with the transmission for the 43. If you pay attention to the gearing it's usually when downshifting from 3rd to 2nd gear. You'll find threads on this forum where other users discussed this. Have to get used to it and consider it a "feature" of the car. This happens in all modes including comfort. If you manually downshift you can avoid this, but honestly who's going to do that every full stop. Hope you enjoy it otherwise!
The jerking when coming to a full stop is a known issue with the transmission for the 43. If you pay attention to the gearing it's usually when downshifting from 3rd to 2nd gear. You'll find threads on this forum where other users discussed this. Have to get used to it and consider it a "feature" of the car. This happens in all modes including comfort. If you manually downshift you can avoid this, but honestly who's going to do that every full stop. Hope you enjoy it otherwise!
Agreed, just curious if it was a 1 out of 5 kind of thing or every one of them. I myself come from a very long list of cars that are "abrupt" by nature so it doesn't bug me at all, more for my wife.
Totally enjoy it so far!
Thanks, Alona.
Hit 3K on my car this week and my only real complaint is that I wish it was easier way to advance to the next song via the steering wheel. i'd rather have a button than swipe.... so no real complaints from me.
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