The Mercedes GLB Electric is a compact premium electric vehicle with a long range, offering seven seats and a useful dose of family-friendly practicality. In the few months it has been on sale, the new Mercedes-Benz CLA has already become a common sight on US roads. Clearly, the idea of a compact premium EV with a long range appeals to buyers. A saloon is all well and good, but the SUV is now king, so that's what we have here. On the same underpinnings as the CLA comes the new Mercedes-Benz GLB. It takes over from both the old piston GLB and its electric EQB sibling. It launches as an EV, but hybrid versions will follow soon.
Like its predecessors, the GLB is slightly unusual for a car of this size in offering seven seats. In a market flooded with coupé-aping SUVs, that could give it really distinguishing utility. In launching the super-aerodynamic CLA first, Mercedes has set an impossibly high standard for the GLB, because the CLA impressed us with its Tesla-chasing efficiency and its mature, balanced ride and handling. Those key strengths will be necessarily diminished in the GLB as a result of being a taller, heavier SUV.
View Price on AmazonHowever, if it can maintain enough of those qualities, while adding a useful dose of family-friendly practicality, the GLB could be another winner for Mercedes. Like the previous generation, the new GLB is part of a set of compact Mercedes, together with the CLA saloon and the upcoming GLA crossover. All of them use the new MMA platform, which stands for Mercedes Modular Architecture rather than anything fighty. The modular part refers to the fact that it can accommodate both electric and petrol-hybrid powertrains. It is designed as an EV first, hence why the petrol engines are limited to a couple of variations of the same transversely mounted 1.5-liter four-cylinder.
The GLB 250+ has a single motor with 268 horsepower and the GLB 350 4Matic has a dual motor with 348 horsepower. The front luggage compartment is a usefully square shape with 4.5 cubic feet of capacity, so you can use it for more than just storing the charge cables. Opening it requires pulling a lever in the interior. As is expected of a new premium EV, the GLB has 800V electricals for improved efficiency and fast charging (up to 170 kW). As standard, it's not compatible with 400V charging stations (such as Tesla Superchargers), but a converter is available as an option from launch.
Source: autocar.co.uk
