Oman motoring: Get up close and personal with Mercedes-Benz GLC

Lifestyle Sunday 21/May/2017 19:45 PM
By: Times News Service
Oman motoring: Get up close and personal with Mercedes-Benz GLC

Handsome. Just so handsome. This was the first thing that came to my mind when I saw this beauty standing in the Mercedes showroom in Wattayah waiting for me to hop into it. I just got my licence a few months back, therefore I haven’t had much experience driving many cars, especially luxury cars as I will not be able to live with the guilt and a missing kidney if I end up getting even a tiny scratch on it.

But finally I gathered the courage to go to the Mercedes showroom and take the GLC for a spin. After being briefed about the gazillion features of the car, I got into this gorgeous beast that not only looks immaculate from the outside with its edgy cuts and smooth shape, but is also a sight from within too.
The wood dash leather gear panel, black nappa lather seats, diamond patterned door panel, and the classy central armrest makes you feel all chic.

As instructed, the first thing I did after getting into the car was to adjust the seats – the height, distance from accelerator, head rest, and put it in my car’s memory (oh yeah, it can remember my comfort position) before I put it from neutral to the driving mode. It felt as smooth as butter. Effortlessly, I took the car out of the parking lot, turning smoothly over the bends and curves and moving out of the showroom on to the main road.

Feeling more confident behind the wheel now, I sped up a bit and took it onto the expressway. I didn’t even realise that I’d nearly gone past the speed limit, not because I was driving rashly or that I was in a hurry, but just because unlike any car I’d driven before, including the one I own now that makes angry noises when I go past 130km/hr, this SUV just flowed on the road without being unperturbed by the acceleration.

En route, I tried playing around with the feather touch pad that had multiple functions from acting like a remote to change channels on the radio, to typing out the destination on the navigation map and even increasing or reducing the volume.

It was starting to get a little dark and safe for me to open the sun roof without being barbecued. The panoramic sliding sunroof, with its large glazed areas has an electrically operated sliding glass front section for ventilation.

I’m not sure if it’s just me, but on opening the sunroof the interiors seemed bigger and more pleasant for some reason. Also I turned on the headlights, which are white differentiating it from the other cars and making heads turn. I stopped at my friend’s building to pick her up before heading home. Instead of having to wrestle with a usual gear, the gear shifts of this car was on the right side of the steering and all I had to do was lift it once to put it on parking.
My friend jumped in, thoroughly impressed with what I’d gotten her and connected her Bluetooth to the car and started playing some fun EDM numbers.
I suddenly realised that the car had interior ambient lights too. With three different colours and 5 dimming levels, we went for blue, that kind of set the mood inside the car. One thing I am really bad at when it comes to driving is taking the car out of tricky parking spaces or even normal parking spaces. That wasn’t a problem with this car because of its coolest rear and bird’s eye camera.

I’m not even sure how it shows the bird’s eye view of the car but it just makes life so much easier and safer for the car when I am behind the wheels.
Also, the sensors in the front, back, on the rearview mirrors, which is the blindspot assist, make sure that you need to try extremely hard to get a scratch on this beauty.

It also has other safety features such as the alarm if the car senses that the driver has dozed off or pre-safe brake that can reduce risk of collisions and the stop and go pilot, which helps the driver maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front and stay in the centre of the lane.

It was finally time for me to return the car back to the showroom, which I did with a heavy heart. I hadn’t even got the time or opportunity to try the different modes (comfort, sports, and many more) or use the safety features (thank God for that). I will soon be test driving another Merc as the brand has clearly earned another loyal in me.
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Specifications
Engine type: Turbocharged Petrol
Engine manufacturer: Mercedes-Benz
Engine code
Cylinders Straight 4
Capacity 2 litre
1991 cc
(121.498 cu in)
Maximum power output
211 PS (208 bhp) (155 kW)
at 5500 rpm
Maximum torque
350 Nm (258 ft•lb) (35.7 kgm)
at 1200-4000 rpm
Specific torque
175.79 Nm/litre
2.12 ft•lb/cu3

Location
Mercedes-Benz Oman, Wattayah
Call: +968 2465 9222
Email: [email protected]
mercedesbenzme.com/oman
Opening hours
Saturday - Thursday: 8am - 8pm