Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe Sketches Out
Mercedes-Benz is set to reveal a new concept at the upcoming 2015 Shanghai Auto Show. It's clear the automaker is in a race with BMW to create as many niche vehicles as possible, so say hello to a sketched version of a concept previewing a potential almost certain GLC Coupe. It's a four-door, coupe-like, crossover, utility vehicle which will surely be described with sporting lines and a dynamic nature. What it won't be called is a wagon... which is what it should be right from the get go.
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This is essentially a second bodystyle for the upcoming GLK replacement, which will be called the "GLC" moving forward, and it rides on the C-Class platform. The competition from BMW has already arrived in the form of the X4, which is another vehicle that has little reason for existing. What we're dealing with in both cases is a either a sport utility vehicle with compromise or a wagon with compromise. You're settling for a middle ground that is more of a design exercise than a vehicle with purpose.
I don't think this is a case of a angsty journalist rallying for more wagons either. If that were true, I'd expect sales of both the X4 and the GLC Coupe to be sales leaders and go against the grain of my thinking. The BMW X4 sells a few hundred unit each month. The X5, which believe it or not serves more of a purpose, sells ten times that amount and it's more expensive. Likewise, the Benz C-Class typically sees between five and seven thousand sales per month (with highs of nearly ten thousand on occasion).
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Soon you'll have customers walking into a Mercedes-Benz dealership where they'll have to choose between the C-Class, GLC, and the GLC Coupe. Will the GLC Coupe cut into sales of the other two? Maybe a little, but it will certainly cost money to build each one, which could've been saved if they just stuck with the two models they already have.
I understand that buyers in the U.S. apparently don't want wagons. That's fine. I also think we don't want a muddied car shopping landscape that leads to confusion through odd naming structures and a blended product lineup. Hopefully that won't be the case.
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