Following on from a midlife facelift for the regular Mercedes-Benz GLC and its fire-breathing AMG 63 S alter-ego comes the same treatment for the halfway house between the two, the Mercedes-AMG GLC 43. It gets refreshed looks and technology, plus, of course, a tad more power. Both SUV and Coupe body styles are offered, as before.
More obviously an AMG
While we were fans of the looks of the original Mercedes-AMG GLC 43, buyers of the new version will be delighted that it gets the latest AMG-only radiator grille for maximum visual aggression. That's complemented by new alloy wheels (kicking of with a 19-inch design), new side sills, restyled lights front and rear and round outlets for the quad exhaust system.
A little more twin-turbo power
It's effectively the same twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 breathing through that exhaust, though AMG has managed to liberate 23 more horses for a maximum output of 390hp now. Peak torque is 520Nm. A 0-100km/h time of 4.9 seconds is quoted for both cars, along with a limited top speed of 250km/h. The CO2 emissions are rated at a minimum of 232g/km.
A nine-speed automatic gearbox distributes power to the 'AMG Performance 4Matic' four-wheel-drive system. This sends 69 per cent of the engine output to the rear axle by default, in a bid to give the GLC a sporty attitude in the corners. Assisting that further is AMG Ride Control+, which pairs air springs and three-stage adaptive damping, while speed-sensitive, variable-ratio power steering is also fitted. All these sub-systems are altered according to which if the driving programs is selected; the driver can choose from Slippery, Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual. The selection also affects the AMG Dynamics settings, which actively controls how agile or stable the car feels in a corner.
Black-and-red MBUX-enhanced cabin
The switchgear for all the driving systems sits in a familiar Piano Black centre console and, as before, the colour theme is red on black. There are lush sports seats as standard, upholstered in a mix of Artico man-made leather and Dinamica microfibre, while there's a new AMG steering wheel. The extra controls on it for driving settings is optional, however. At first glance, the dashboard doesn't look very different, as the full-sized Widescreen Cockpit has not made it to the GLC as yet, but the MBUX infotainment system has been ported across, with a 12.3-inch digitally rendered instrumentation screen and a 10.25-inch touchscreen with the usual level of customisation in terms of the look.