There’s hardly a car brand now without a mid-range SUV as this segment of the market continues to grow and grow, especially in Ireland. There are now so many choices for potential buyers that it can be a little confusing.

There is, however, a clear split when it comes to price, with so-called luxury brands seeking a premium other equally impressive performers. The Mercedes-Benz range has always commanded a premium price and that has translated into the new GLC, which is a new mid-range SUV from the German brand.

This SUV’s identity is clear; Mercedes-Benz uses a larger than usual badge on the front grille. You won’t mistake this GLC for anything other than a Mercedes-Benz and that’s an important part of the message that the manufacturer wants to give.

To be fair, the GLC has a strong and solid feel to it. That is confirmed by its kerb weight, which is the heaviest in the segment. Everything about the GLC feels a little heavier than the competition, while still giving that luxury feel and with a somewhat understated design.

The competition for the GLC is clearly the Audi Q5, BMW X3, Land Rover Discovery Sport and Volvo XC60. At least they are all in the same price bracket, whether that’s pretentious or not.

Out on the road, the engine performance from the 2.1-litre turbo-diesel is impressive at 170bhp. Combine the high 400Nm of torque with the nine-speed automatic gearbox and it can accelerate fast beating off the competition except the BMW X3.

This level of engine torque is common in the segment and with the GLC it ensures that the gearbox is seamless and smooth.

It also gives the GLC the best towing ability at 2,500kg and given the weight and strength of the car, I would be happy to tow to this limit.

This 2.1-litre turbo-diesel engine is also relatively fuel-efficient. I took the GLC over a lengthy test drive programme covering 960km across a range of driving conditions.The GLC’s computer matched my old-style calculations and showed that I had achieved an economy figure of 15km/litre (6.6l/100km). This is still well below the official rated figure of 20km/litre (5.0l/100km), while being comparable with the competition.

The fuel-saving Mercedes-Benz start-stop engine system is one of the smoothest that I have driven. It makes the car so much more comfortable to drive and contributes to better fuel economy.

The fuel tank for the GLC is relatively small at 50 litres. With its additional AdBlue tank, this will mean more stops, especially if you are towing. Most of the competition SUVs come with significantly larger fuel tanks and that is an important consideration. Even the less luxury brands all have bigger fuel tanks and many are more fuel-efficient than the GLC.

Technical matters aside, this GLC does give the feeling of luxury. The test car was the AMG version and there are extra goodies included at an additional price of €3,500. Given the price options for the GLC, it is all too easy to end up with a price tag of over €55,000 – that’s almost €5,000 more than the entry price. The car drives impressively well and has good road holding on smaller roads. I took the GLC across some fields and never felt threatened as the 4Matic system seemed to kick in automatically when needed.

Controls

From the driver’s seat, the controls are similar across the modern Mercedes-Benz range so, generally, if you have driven one, you will feel quickly comfortable in another. There is a chunky solid feel to driving the GLC that gives some level of comfort.

The dash layout is clear and very functional. The centre information display screen is large and easy to use. I would have expected navigation to be part of the standard package at the entry price for the GLC, which is over €50,000 or £35,580 in NI.

The lighting with LED front and rear is very good. When you approach the car at night and hit the open button, the lighting effect is very impressive and instantly appealing.

The automatic gearbox lever is column-mounted and there is an electric handbrake. There is good space in the foot well helped by the two-pedal automatic drive.

The seats are solid and easily adjustable. There is reasonably good room in the rear, but real comfort seating is for two not three. The boot capacity is the best in the class at 550 litres before you fold down the second row of seats. But, once again, there is no spare wheel and that’s a drawback for a SUV with four-wheel-drive that had ambitions to challenge the off-road where the risk of a puncture is highest. A tow-bar is also on the extra’s list and you can expect to pay close to €1,000 for that addition.

There are a lot of very capable and more affordable mid-range SUVs on the market powered by impressive and economical 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engines. The Mitsubishi Outlander, Toyota RAV4 and Volkswagen Tiguan instantly come to mind. The price difference between these and the like of the Mercedes-Benz GLC is a significant €10,000 at a minimum.

So, why take the luxury choice? There is some merit in the performance and handling of the Mercedes-Benz GLC but be prepared to pay the extra price and higher three-year ownership costs. Running costs will be no less than the competition as so much depends on the depreciation.

With cars like the GLC which are new to the market, we can only give an estimate based on average depreciation rates, which should be slightly lower than average with the Mercedes-Benz brand. Either way, be prepared to pay for the luxury and if you can then just simply enjoy.

New MD for Irish Mercedes-Benz importer

O’Flaherty Holdings Limited, the holder of the Mercedes-Benz car, truck and bus franchise for Ireland has appointed Leitrim man Ciaran Mahon as group managing director. A chartered accountant, Ciaran joined the group in 1991, having previously worked with PwC. He succeeds Tom O’Dowd who retired recently. The company also has interests in the manufacture and distribution of aerial access equipment in North America and Europe and in the plant hire business.

Ford offers summer service value

Ford is offering summer service price reductions for drivers of both new and older Ford models. For example, for drivers of Ford models five years or older (pre-2011), the Ford service offering is called Ford Motorcraft Service, where customers can benefit from a €20 price reduction, bringing the light service down to €109 for a car, €149 for a small van and €179 for a large van and avail of a brake fluid replacement for €50.

For owners of newer Ford models (up to five years old), the Ford service offering is called the Ford Blue Service. Ford Blue Service customers can also avail of reduced priced servicing for their cars, as follows: Ka, Fiesta, B-MAX from just €169; Focus, C-MAX, Grand C-MAX from just €179; and Kuga, Mondeo, S-MAX, Galaxy from just €189. In addition, Ford Blue Service customers also benefit from free pan-European roadside assistance; a free Electronic Vehicle Health Check (eCheck); and similarly with the Ford Motorcraft offering, brake fluid replacement from just €50.

Top three fight for top car marketplace

Ford, Volkswagen and Toyota are almost neck and neck in the new car market, according to the latest figures for the six months of 2016, issued by the Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI). Ford claims the top spot with a combined car and van market leadership, while Volkswagen topped the car market and Toyota came in third place, with a smaller number of vans sold.

Ford registered a total of 397 cars and commercial vehicles in June, giving it market leadership for the month and bringing its six-month tally to a total of 15,006 units (10,027 cars and 4,979 vans). Ford’s six-month sales total finished ahead of VW with 14,005 units (10,945 cars and 3,060 vans) and Toyota, which registered 12,165 units (10,807 cars and 1,358 vans).

The growth has been in the SUV segment of the market where sales have jumped by 58%, from 19,085 to 30,195 for the first six months of 2016. Roscommon has shown the highest percentage growth in new car sales, followed by Wexford and Sligo.

The Hyundai Tucson remains Ireland’s top-selling car for the first six months of 2016, displacing last year’s market leader the Volkswagen Golf into second place. Toyota had three cars in the top 10, the Corolla, Yaris and Auris, while Ford had the Focus and Fiesta and Volkswagen had the Golf and Passat.

Volkswagen Tiguan arrives

Volkswagen’s second-generation Tiguan model has arrived in dealer showrooms with new styling and improved engine performance. Entry prices for the new Tiguan start from €29,720 in petrol form, with a 1.4-litre TSI engine putting out 125bhp. Diesel models start with the 150bhp, 2.0 TDI engine version that comes with a starting price of €33,765.

Volkswagen will offer just this one 2.0 TDI diesel engine size initially with a choice of two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive. The 4Motion all-wheel drive is only available in diesel engines from 150bhp upwards.

Volkswagen has retained the traditional specification grades for Volkswagen with the new Tiguan, starting with Trendline and moving through Comfortline, up to the highest specification, the Highline versions. The new Tiguan is the first Volkswagen Group SUV to be based on the MQB platform. Volkswagen claims that the new model is lighter, more efficient and more spacious. The new Tiguan is longer, lower and wider than the model it replaces and it starts the arrival of a range of SUVs in the Volkswagen range.

Renault joins the pick-up market with Alaskan

Renault has issued the first photos of its new Alaskan pickup, which is based on the design of the Nissan Navara. This is the first 4x4 one-tonne pickup ever produced by the French car company and has strong hints of its Nissan connections.

Renault says that the pickup will be available in either two- or four-wheel drive format. The Alaskan comes with all of the features of the Navara, including the enhanced driving comfort provided by the five-link rear coil-type suspension and a fully boxed frame. Renault is using the same Renault-built 2.3-litre dCi engine in the Alaskan model which, like the Navara, will make it one of the most fuel efficient 4x4 pickups on the market.