GLC 63 / Levante

[Virage11]

Sorry been quiet the last two months - prep for house move, change of schools and new job

Have had two cars to try in those two months - Merc GLC 63 S and a Maserati Levante D.

[Virage11]

[Virage11]

Maserati looked much better than I remembered - suits a dark colour IMHO much more than a light colour. Personal taste and all, but I loved the interior combination. Had a surprisingly comfortable ride on fairly chunky alloys and was generally quiet, except when put into Sport mode which created a nice subtle burble despite being the diesel variant. Where I didn't work so well was when driving faster - up to 75% throttle it seemed quite effortless and pleasant, but any more than that, suddenly felt a real absence of power and the engine sounded really strained. So good for a family car, fairly rubbish as a semblance of a drivers' sporty SUV...just too heavy for that sized engine.


Mercedes was as epically fast as the on paper stats suggest with a 0-62 time of 3.8 secs and a top speed on 174 mph - which seems faintly ludicrous for a practical mid-sized SUV. No surprise but sounded good too. I am a big fan of the exterior look as well - nicely beefed up without, in my eyes, being too over-the-top. Interior is obviously a bit of a let-down considering this is a £75k + car and the fact it is based on old C interior and not the new E / A more slick, full screen interior. Would I buy one vs a Macan - probably if it was today but am going to assume the face-lift Macan Turbo PP will up the game again to compete with refreshed tech and more power, whilst still maintaining Porsche's handling advantage.

[andreas]

Neither car has quite the same degree of styling finesse as the Macan.

[Wing Commander]

Welcome back!

Thanks for the pics and mini-reviews.

Good luck with the house/school/job moves!

[JJay]

Uuurgh! Both ugly, manufacturers who think class presence is defined by wide body and gaping front ends. Target = sales driven by cameo's in rap videos. Tested both, Merc stands out from the crowd and massive performance in a straight line, don't know what the Levante is trying to be. Perhaps the advertising strap line says it all...the "Maserati of SUV's". Can't think of any category where I'd like to own the Maserati of anything. Second fiddle Ferrari, outclassed in many areas by Alfa...irrelevant.

[andreas]

Uuurgh! Both ugly, manufacturers who think class presence is defined by wide body and gaping front ends.

Harsh but true! I couldn't drive around behind either of those hideous front grilles.

[Deleted User 1874]

Uuurgh! Both ugly, manufacturers who think class presence is defined by wide body and gaping front ends. Target = sales driven by cameo's in rap videos. Tested both, Merc stands out from the crowd and massive performance in a straight line, don't know what the Levante is trying to be. Perhaps the advertising strap line says it all...the "Maserati of SUV's". Can't think of any category where I'd like to own the Maserati of anything. Second fiddle Ferrari, outclassed in many areas by Alfa...irrelevant.

I saw a Levante in the flesh the other day, parked up somewhere in Towcester I think. The front end is pretty horrific, while the back is strangely dated. Interior looks better, but I can't imagine ever buying a Maserati. Not keen on the Merc either - looks old and the interior is just awful. I'd take a new Cayenne ahead of these two for sure.

[Col Lamb]

You have to hand it to the Taxi company that is Mercedes.

They do a cracking job of making the intetior of an expensive car look cheap and tacky.

Despite looking at many Mercs just how they can make leather seats look like the plastic seats we had in the sixties is beyong me.

No comment on the interior of the Fiat.

[andreas]

Despite looking at many Mercs just how they can make leather seats look like the plastic seats we had in the sixties is beyong me.

Some good friends bought a used E-class saloon with the plastic MB-Tex upholstery. To this day, they're convinced that it's leather!