ImaGorilla

People tell me MB breaks down all the time and costs a zillion dollars to maintain. I don't know anything about cars, don't fix them or do any maintenance myself.

However, I'm captivated by an '18 AMG GLC43 SUV (I've test driven it twice). Didn't realize how FAST this car would be and how much fun it would be to drive. The second time I took the car out, the guy at the dealership called me to see where I was. Me: "Oh, I had to stop and use the bathroom and get a snack. I'll be back soon." I'm just an older lady who likes nice cars.

I need something very comfortable that can also handle some snow here and there and a bit of rough and unpaved roads -- it's about 3 miles from my house to the pavement.

I really love driving this little MB SUV. One owner, well maintained, low miles, immaculate inside and out. I'm just not sure about cost to maintain it if it breaks down. It's not like I'm poor but nobody wants huge repair bills. Would I regret buying this car?

I used to own a 1989 BMW 735i. Other than brake rotors heating up in the mountains it never gave me any grief, until it finally got old and senile and started leaking and speaking in German and spewing hot air instead of A/C in the summer, A/C instead of heat in the winter. But I LOVED that car! I know these newer German cars are different. I don't know what to do or who to trust on the cost to own. Appreciate any advice. Thanks guys!

ImaGorilla

Okay, if nobody has the straight scoop, I'm up for the lies.

PartyVan

It's as reliable as a toyota, maintanence is cheaper than a hyandai and it performs better than a lambo.

hyperion667

Wait.... you think the GLC is a beauty?

ImaGorilla

Does it come with solid rocket boosters and a cloaking shield as well?

ImaGorilla

Beauty is subjective. Just ask the owner of this.

kennys2003

Most people aren't responding because they are superstitious, they don't want anything bad to happen. I bought my car new and it is a GLC63 and I plan to set aside some $$ to pay for the routine and other types of maintenance issues that come up. The only gotcha will be a major repair, which no one can predict. From what I can tell, everyone with a newer GLC* has had very good reliability, but I'm not sure many people are at the magic number of 100K+ where problems start to identify themselves. We've had 3 newer Mercedes (2 leases and my GLC63) and all have only required routine maintenance.

I would be a little worried about driving on an unpaved road so often, but maybe the 43 has a softer suspension than a 63; these cars are not E or S classes, so they have some rattles, etc. That would get worse over time driving on unpaved roads. You might want to price what the suspension repairs would be over time; maybe an extended warranty might cover that?

ParadigmDawg

I have had ~25 cars and a lot have been high performance SUVs. The longest I have ever kept a car until my GLC63s is 2 years. I am at 2.5 years and I am not ever close to getting rid of it.

On maintenance and reliability, I have no idea because mine is tuned and lowered so that adds in a lot of different factors.

The general concept is to never own an AMG after the warranty expires but that may be different on an "AMG Light"

hyperion667

Do you typically lease?

ParadigmDawg

Probably 50/50. I throw away a lot of money on cars always thinking "I am really going to keep this one...."

hyperion667

Haha! Back when I was buying lots of cars I always though that too! Now I have 3 kids ha!

zombie37

I just sold mine and bought a Tesla Y long range because in the real world it's much faster. If you're going to the track then go ahead and get the GLC but do yourself a favor and drive a Y first. Even the long range without the acceleration boost option ($2000 software download) you can experience it - cruise at 40 or 50 or so and floor it. Because there is no lag and no hunting for the right gear it moves out like a gas car can't.

ParadigmDawg

With the character of a sewing machine. A car is to be felt and heard and make you one with the road.

...and in the "real world" I would still blow your doors off in 0-60, 1/8th, 1/4 and 1/2 mile....

zombie37

Yeah... ON THE RACETRACK

ParadigmDawg

...or anywhere you want to take them....

zombie37

Just remember that you're driving a $30k SUV with a $40k drivetrain plus whatever options and mods you've done. In my case the bill came to a little over $90k and if I had to do it over I would have bought a Model S.
BTW, have you seen the performance numbers on the S Plaid? Bet you can't beat those no matter how much you spend.

Ever had the experience of coming out of a side street to heavy traffic and have to stand on it to get into a space and have the traction control kill the engine? That never happens with a Tesla. You can stand on it and hang a 90 with just a chirp and you're gone as fast as the tires and surface will allow. Try that in the "Real World" with your traction control on like everyone else (I'm guessing you turn that off first thing).

ParadigmDawg

The Plaid is plagued with battery issues. Elon is an idiot and the cars are butt ugly and they have big time build quality issues.

I bet you will be best served on a tesla forum and not here....

I have a TCU tune too so I don't experience what you are talkin about.

E55Greasemonkey

My friend has a new Model Y. I crawled all over the car inside and out, checked the seams, gaps, trim. I found one window chrome trim past the edge of the door which I slid back into place. The paint (metallic red) was flawless. The poor build quality you speak of must have been years ago. MB has been recently plagued with poor build quality. Look no further than the disastrous one-sixty-lemon (2020/1 GLE-GLS) launch. Model S Plaid just made every AMG obsolete, and I own 2 AMG'S myself.

ImaGorilla

Thanks to all for the interesting and helpful feedback. I did make an offer on the GLC but it was not accepted, and I wasn't in the mood to pay that much for a car so I walked away and bought a Cadillac-ac-ac-ac-ac-ac.

Appreciate the feedback. The roads are often in better shape than the paved roads around here, but do get washboardy at times. Rattling can definitely become problem over time.

nickle57

Just a quick note in case you didn't know. When I bought my 2020 GLC43 I did not know you couldn't get all season tires easily for 21" wheels. I have had mine for 8 months now and it has been a dream to drive. I have put about 7500 miles on it. The oil changes are way more expensive than what other cheaper cars cost. I had a Toyota Highlander and with full synthetic my oil change was $79. Oil changes with the GLC43 are in the $500 range and the next one can be as high as $700 or so I have been told. I guess I could check back in after a year of ownership.

JW001

That's a bold statement. if you are talking about straight line acceleration, yeah maybe. but a lot of people also buy AMG's for their V8 engines. I own lamborghini's, maclarens, porsches, but I can't ever get myself to get a tesla because noise plays a huge part in my enjoyment of a performance car.

W205C43PFL

It is actually not that bad if you DIY your own Service A which is really just a bunch of checks that you can do at home and oil + oil filter change. As for Service B it is considered a "major service" which includes brake fluid change, if you can DIY that, you will be saving a lot. I bought my engine oil filter from the MB dealership and then get the oil (Liqui Moly) from FCPEuro. You can choose the whole set that comes with the filter too.

nickle57

I spent my younger years doing all my own oil changes and car work, from brakes, radiators, CV shafts, suspension work, etc. I am 51 and I have more money than I do cartilage in my knees, so car service is something I am willing to pay for nowadays. I did help my daughter replace the wheel bearings in her Subaru Forester about a year ago and that was just murder on my back and knees. Now my daughter is all fired up about doing her own service, so at least I passed on some knowledge.

W205C43PFL

I see. No worries, I fully understand why you don't want to DIY but I was just trying to say that if you DIY service on your MB, it could be around the same price as your Toyota because MB's services are expensive due to high labour rate (as we were talking about the differences of price of Toyota and MB's service). Happy to hear that your daughter is able to do the service herself, good for her
Enjoy your car in good health : )

KMKA

Amen to nickle57… 10-years of Brazilian jiu-jitsu has my neck cringe just washing my ride… so did I read this forum right? Woman asks about wanting to drive AMG down a dirt road and then some Tesla salesman gets on, and then lady buys a Cadillac? Humans suck.

I wouldn’t really know the ‘per service’ price as we bought 4yrs of service upfront… I guess I’m prolonging the joy of discovery I just wanted a sports-car wrapped in SUV clothing…can’t hate a girl for loving sleepers.