Hi guys first time posting in mbworld, but long time lurker :-) My lease to my cla45 is up next week. So
Im in a process of looking for new car, I have my eyes on the GLC 63 suv and there is not alot. I narrowed it down to 2 cars
I'm really avoiding having any buyers remorse so I've been researching the options. For those of you who have the 2020 glc,
would you chose the AMG Drive unit or Optional Advanced LED headlights. It is frustrating that I can't have both unless i go to the
glc coupe 63s or I custom order one.

I appreciate your input thanks

 

I have had my 2020 GLC63 SUV since December. I got the Drive Unit but not the adaptive/LED High beam package. I didn't think i'd use the Drive Unit much but it is nice to have.

The standard LED headlights seem work really well.

 

​​​​​​​That's what I was thinking as well since the new standard LED headlights looked pretty nice as well, at least its not the ugly halogen ones. After getting your glc 63 any regrets?

 

It's close to a 100k car, I would hold out until I could get exactly what I wanted.

That being said, I stopped into the mercedes place to go to the bathroom, (I am in sales so on the road, you look for the nicest places to go and since I had a GLE 63s, I was fine running in there, getting a snack and a drink and going to the bathroom) and I be darned if somehow my BMW stayed there and I left in a 63s....

 

Frankly I don't understand the drive unit at all. The same controls are on the center console, and honestly, how often will you be switching driving modes? Compare that to how often you'll use your headlights and to me it's a no brainer - go for the headlight upgrade.

 

I personally use the drive unit all the time. Now that i don't have to worry about the auto start/stop, i switched the two buttons to exhaust on/off and manual mode. I'm also constantly switching between drive modes. Less distracting and faster than the center console. I honestly didn't think i would use it as much as i do now. I had adaptive headlights in my previous S8. On dark, windy back roads they were helpful (no was night vision for that matter), but for city driving on well lit streets I didn't think it was noticeable. My 2 cents.

 

got mine 43 on order but i did not go for AMG drive unit. the lighting is much more prefer than the buttons.

 

Get the lights. The Drive unit is easily replaceable with a Draggy. You will regret not getting the upgraded lights.
https://dragymotorsports.com/

 

I think you are confusing the AMG Drive Unit with AMG Track Pace.

AMG Drive Unit:



FWIW, I have both on my C63S Coupe. The AMG Drive Unit is standard on the S models. It's one of the best additions from AMG. Yes, the same functions can be accomplished with the buttons on the center console, but not w/o taking your eyes off the road. The AMG Drive Unit is meant to be used while driving. It's much more intuitive to change drive modes from the steering wheel. The rotary knob is much more intuitive and pushing it directly activates the Individual mode. To those questioning how often one might change drives modes, I would answer all the time since these cars always start in Comfort mode. I use it everyday to activate Individual mode when I get on the highway or an open road and then back to Comfort around town. I also frequently go between manual transmission mode and automatic transmission mode, so I have that mapped to one of the buttons on the left. The second button I have mapped to the exhaust, which I always open if I'm in Comfort mode or switch back to Comfort mode. The AMG Drive Unit changes the driving experience. It might look like a gimmick at first, but so far most end up loving it and using it constantly.

As far as the upgraded LED lights goes, they are very nice as well. They turn night into day, but to be honest I haven't compared them to the standard LED headlights. The thing is in the USA we don't get the full functionality of these upgraded headlights. The main feature of them is the fact that they are made up of about 80 individual LEDs, which can be darkened one at the time to avoid blinding oncoming cars. The cameras detect oncoming cars and other light sources and strategically darken parts of the light beam. That's really what these headlights are all about, but this feature is currently still not legal in the USA, so the US spec cars get dumbed down software that emulate adaptive high beams. It still uses the camera to detect oncoming cars, but instead of just darkening the appropriate areas of the beam it turns off the simulated high beams. It does it in stages, so that's kinda cool. Instead of turning them completely off right away it starts shortening the beam length as the oncoming cars come closer and the lights do this kind of curtain light show when the high beams come on, so it's cool, but honestly I rarely drive in areas where I even need the high beams. These lights are so bright, that I rarely use the high beams at all.

Having said all this, why compromise on a car like this? Order the exact spec that you want instead of compromising what's sitting on the lot somewhere. Never understood the buy off the lot attitude in this country. I grew up in Europe, where dealerships don't have inventories like here. They have a few demo cars, and then the customers order the spec that they want. Obviously, we live in uncertain times at the moment, so if you order one you have pretty much no idea when you'll get it, and if you are in desperate needs of a car right now, then I can understand buying off the lot, but if you can wait, why not wait for the exact spec?

 

I'm all for the Drive unit, but felt that it was unnecessary to have from the get go since you have the ability to change everything in the center console. Turns out that I RARELY if ever use the center console buttons. It's a minor inconvenience that the vehicle doesn't retain the mode you chose the next time you start up, but a quick flip of the wheel on the Drive unit and you're back where it needs to be. As for the standard lights....they are my most disliked part of the car. I don't hate them, just like the Adaptive lights ascetically. I took a car that was already built, so I missed out on a few things i wanted, but I got a better deal than i would have if i ordered (no regerts). If i was forced to choose, I'd still take the Drive unit, very nice to be able to shift modes on the fly without fumbling with the console controls.