With a test drive car costing €80,000, you can be sure that it has almost all the goodies you need and don’t need.

And when the Mercedes-Benz GLC test car is also made in Finland, it adds a little extra dimension to the test drive.

The GLC is the second most popular Mercedes model in Finland. By the end of July, almost 800 GLC models had been registered in Finland. This is an increase of almost 37% compared to the beginning of last year.

The GLC is not exactly a new model. Production started back in 2015 and the car went on sale in 2016. When it was launched, the GLC replaced the GLK model, which had been in production since 2008.

A taste of the robot car

The test car is already pretty close to being an autonomous car. On a cross-country trip, all you had to do was set the desired speed on the cruise control and keep at least one hand on the wheel.

The car drove nicely for long distances in a queue and kept between lane lines, if there were any. When the queue slowed down, the car slowed down and when the speed increased, the speed increased again – completely automatically.

There was one major problem, not with the car but with the road markings. The problem occurred at junctions where there was an exit lane on the right-hand side.

Of course, the white kerb is painted on the right-hand edge, and there should be a dashed line between the exit lane and the carriageway. But not in all places!

The driver had a real wake-up call when the car made its first abrupt turn to the right into the exit lane, even though the journey was supposed to continue straight ahead.

Once he was prepared for this, he was able to keep a firm grip on the steering wheel.

Choice in the SUV family

The Mercedes-Benz GLC is the second smallest model in the Mercedes SUV family. In addition to the GLC, the GLA, GLE and GLS are also available.

The GLC is approximately 4.6 metres long, 1.9 metres wide and 1.6 metres high. The interior space is sufficient for, for example, four medium-sized people and their luggage, but it is not particularly spacious.

The size and weight of the car provide a stable driving feel and there is nothing to complain about in the driver’s seat. Communication with the screen via the small touchpad is natural once you get the hang of it.

The GLC still has the traditional Mercedes dashboard display, which looks as if it has been retrofitted to the dashboard. However, the screen works well and is at a good viewing height.

The driver gets a good driving position, and all the buttons and controls are within easy reach.

All the front seats’ many adjustments are electric, but the length adjustment is mechanical, as in Mercedes.

The car runs fairly quietly and there’s plenty of room in the back seat. There’s plenty of legroom in the back seat, even if the driver is over six feet tall.

Good space under the floorboards of the boot

the 550-litre boot could do with a bit more height in a car like this. With the rear seats folded down, the boot increases to 1 600 litres. Fortunately, there is a little extra space under the floorboard when there is no spare wheel. This space is surprisingly spacious when you pack it all in.

The GLC has continuous four-wheel drive, which distributes power slightly rear-drive weighted between the front and rear axles in a 45/55 ratio.

As is typical of SUVs, the GLC has a good 18 inches of ground clearance. However, an optional air suspension is available, which increases ground clearance to almost 23 centimetres.

The test-drive vehicle was equipped with a 204-horsepower diesel engine and a 9-speed automatic transmission. There’s plenty of power and acceleration. If you prefer a sportier drive, you can shift gears from the steering wheel wings, for example on a winding road.

Mercedes promises fuel consumption of around 5 litres/100 km. Acceleration from zero to 60 km/h is 7.6 seconds and top speed is 222 km/h.

The GLC also features a drive mode selector, operated via a scroll wheel on the centre console. Eco, Comfort, Sport, Sport and Individual are available.

Traditional Mercedes safety

The GLC features traditional Mercedes assistance and safety systems.

Standard features include collision avoidance, crosswind, headlamp and alertness assist. The car also features a fully automatic eCall emergency call system, active parking assist and an active bonnet for pedestrian protection.

All in all, the GLC makes you feel very safe.

But there is one small annoyance – getting your trousers dirty on the doorstep.

It’s rather surprising that Mercedes hasn’t come up with a good solution to this. In some cars, the door comes over the threshold, but in the GLC, the threshold gets dirty with a racket, and it’s not easy to get in or out of the car without getting your legs dirty.

Does being at home solve the problem?

Mercedes has a huge number of models on offer these days, not to mention a diverse range of SUVs.

So this car cannot be directly recommended to a family that wants a Mercedes SUV. It’s worth remembering that this model is not the largest Mercedes SUV, and the biggest shortcomings are perhaps in the size of the boot. You can squeeze quite a lot of stuff under the partition, but it’s stuck there for the whole journey.

One of the reasons for buying the car may be that it’s made in Finland, as the car is manufactured by the Uusikaupunki car factory.

The basic GLC version costs just over EUR 59 000, the most expensive over EUR 177 000, and the most expensive AMG version has a four-litre, 510 horsepower engine!