Let’s just say that in more recent times, the years haven’t been so kind to the once-dominant brand. Changing times, consumer trends, and more affordable but equally luxurious cars have breached the market and eaten at the share of Benz’s pie. As the brand scrambled to keep up, some of the qualities that endeared it to the ‘OG’ fans were watered down and lost in the shuffle.

Personally, I’ve always been a Benz fan; my family had a few back in the day, and I can say with all honesty that no modern Mercedes-Benz captures the same interest for me as the classics do… until now. I recently was tossed the keys to the Mercedes-Benz GLC 350e, and before anything else, I wanted to review it without my fanboy hat on, give it a fair shake in today’s highly competitive luxury SUV segment.

The GLC 350e was launched just last year, which means as a model it isn’t that far along in terms of age. It competes in a very competitive segment with competitors like the BMW X3, Lexus NX, and the recently launched updated Audi Q5. The GLC looks like a modern Benz; in fact, it takes a lot of cues from its sedan counterpart, the C-Class. The front fascia and rear design are almost copies of the C-Class, which isn’t a bad thing; the sedan is handsome in a modern way. Mercedes did a good job of translating the design into a raised SUV; it looks more sculpted and muscular but with a very subdued overall design; classy is the word I’d use.

One of my favorite parts is the interior; I love how it came in a mix of modern and old-school touches. Immediately, my eyes were drawn to the tan leather seats, such a welcome and plush break from the usual black-on-black look. I’ve always liked Mercedes’ use of metals in the interior, a touch of industrial class, like the air-conditioning vents, steering wheel and other small panels. It might be ‘corny’ for some, but I appreciated the ambient lighting system that bathes the cabin in a wide variety of colors. My only gripe is the panel that houses the center stack and some of the dashboard; it’s a faux mesh-designed plastic panel that almost ruins the interior because of how “cheap” it feels compared to everything else inside. It’s hard to miss because it covers a substantial amount of the cabin.

In terms of overall kit, the GLC 350e comes complete in my eyes; it has memory seats, an automatically adjustable steering wheel, wireless charging, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Premium audio quality was assured through the fantastic 15-speaker Burmester sound system. However, the star of the show is the updated “Hey Mercedes!” voice command system that finally works as intended. I would issue commands to the system that I thought would flummox it, but it was able to discern my thought process and apply the proper settings I was asking for.

There was even a time when I may have accidentally prompted it while singing to music; it went on a lengthy speech about how it is designed to improve with every use, also picking up cues from how I use the system and drive the car. In other words, it is built to understand its owners and fine-tune itself over time. As creepy as that sounds, in a premium car that’s actually something very much appreciated; it’s like having a butler in a car.

Powering the GLC 350e is a 2.0-liter (1,999cc) turbocharged 4-cylinder gasoline engine paired with an electric motor. It makes a decent combined output of 313 horsepower and 550 Nm of torque. The engine sends the power to the brand’s 4Matic all-wheel-drive system through a 9-speed automatic transmission. One key aspect about the GLC 350e is that it is a Plug-in hybrid (PHEV), which gives it the ability to run in pure EV mode; in fact, the car has a full EV range of 100 kilometers. Another thing to note is safety: the GLC 350e came with some ADAS features like adaptive cruise control, lane keeping, and more. These features used to be omitted in older specs of the car; it’s nice to see Mercedes is finally making it standard.

I normally don’t have high hopes for SUVs when it comes to driving, but the GLC aced this part in most of the aspects I wanted. Since it’s a PHEV, in normal driving it’s quiet and serene, and even when I occasionally engage the internal combustion engine, it’s barely noticeable. It could also be because the GLC’s NVH levels are top-class; the door cars are insanely thick and so are the windows; it’s really like driving in a bubble. What also surprised me was the ride; we’re used to SUVs from European brands leaning on the stiffer side, but the GLC rides very well, able to waft but not pitch and roll too much. I’d say that it handles well, but while the suspension can keep it relatively flat and stable, the steering is tuned more for lightness, leading it to feel a little numb, but I didn’t mind so much.

Now onto the engine performance, apart from being quiet, the PHEV system in the GLC 350e likes to use up all the battery power before the gasoline engine kicks in. I left it in hybrid mode for most of the time, and it really didn’t use the engine unless I put my foot down; even then, it would shut off the engine quickly. This led to an insane amount of fuel saving in the first two days of driving, which were during the onset of heavy rains in the Metro, leading to standstill traffic everywhere; yet in hybrid mode, the car averaged 50 km/L, and the car even tells you how much electricity you’re using. In hybrid mode, the car would use no lower than 93 percent electricity. So, if you charge it at home at the end of every workday, in theory you’d be saving a ton of fuel.

For the sake of comparison, I also switched to battery hold mode, which holds the charge left, meaning it’ll use more of the engine. Even then, I was able to average over 20 km/L in heavy traffic conditions, so as a PHEV, the GLC 350e works well. Speed-wise, it is more than enough; it was brisk, not brutal, and the sensation of speed was muted very well; you could get it up to over 100 km/h thinking you’re only doing 60 km/h.

So, now onto the verdict: is it a ‘Chedeng?’ Well, to me it is; it might not be a sedan for which Benz is really known, but as a modern Mercedes it works. I feel that the quality and the craftsmanship are slowly coming back, but most importantly, it feels premium. You aren’t just buying a badge in this case; it feels like a well-thought-out product. At P 4,980,000, it is priced higher than most of its direct rivals, but not by much.