Mercedes looking to ride India's SUV craze with its new GLC

At a time when India's SUV segment has been growing like never before, German luxury car-manufacturer Mercedes-Benz has launched its new GLC. The Mercedes-Benz GLC SUV is priced up to Rs. 50.9 lakhs (ex-showroom Pune). The GLC will fill the gap between the GLA and GLE in Merc's global portfolio.

"We've seen 100% YoY growth in India's SUV segment. 2016 has been an exciting year for Mercedes-Benz in India. We've witnessed the best year, best quarter and best monthly sales ever, all this against the backdrop of the diesel ban in Delhi", Mercedes-Benz India Head Roland Folger said at the GLC launch.

The GLC SUV will go up against the likes of BMW X 3 and Audi Q5. Unveiled at the Auto Expo 2016 in February, the GLC measures 4,656mm in length, 1,644mm in height, 2,096mm in width and has a wheelbase of 2,874mm. The boot space is a sizeable 550 litres, and can be expanded to 1,600 litres.

The GLC has two engine options - a 2,143cc turbocharged diesel and a 1,991cc turbocharged petrol. The diesel engine can produce 170BHP of power and 400Nm of torque, whereas the petrol option can churn out 245BHP of power and 370Nm of torque. Both engines come mated to a nine-speed 9G-TRONIC automatic transmission.

With a solid features list, the sore for some might be that the car will be brought to India as CBU (completely built units), and that it was widely expected to have been priced much lower.

As an industry first, Mercedes is also offering service packages for the GLC that cost up to Rs. 78k. The company claims these packages can last up to 10 years from the date of sale.