The new GLB with EQ technology aims to maintain its reputation as the most practical of Mercedes-Benz’s entry-level models in the electric age. Following the CLA and its Shooting Brake variant, Stuttgart has now unveiled the most versatile model based on the MMA platform. While the drivetrain options hold no surprises, the design certainly does.
Just a few weeks before its world premiere, Mercedes released the first images of the new GLB, captured in its own climatic wind tunnel with the car concealed under a thick layer of ice. The new GLB generation will initially launch as a purely battery-electric vehicle and, like the CLA, will later also be available as a 48-volt hybrid. It features a less angular design than its predecessor, but to retain its high practicality, the upright rear window remains. The GLB is still unmistakably a GLB.
“The all-new GLB embodies our philosophy of ‘Sensual Purity ‘in a particularly powerful way,” said Mercedes Chief Designer Gorden Wagener of his latest creation. ‘It expands our Entry Luxury portfolio and ushers the iconic Mercedes-Benz design into a new era. A SUV with character, sensual, and soul.”
ICE-like design language
While Wagener and his team omitted the continuous light strip at the front of the GLC unveiled at the IAA, the new GLB features one. As with the CLA, it neither connects to the hood nor the radiator grille, which Mercedes has reintroduced as a defining design element even in its electric models.
The black grille, adorned with numerous Mercedes stars, is differentiated from the CLA by two horizontal black slats, further emphasised by chrome inserts. This is apparently intended to underscore the SUV’s more robust character.
In profile, the new GLB cannot hide its identity. The somewhat rounded front is followed by a long hood, which is necessary for the upcoming hybrid version and is, in any case, part of Mercedes’ increasingly combustion-engine-like design language.
The cabin, with its nearly horizontal roofline and steep rear, clearly echoes the predecessor, which was previously called the EQB in its electric version. Unlike many models in this segment, the GLB is optionally available as a seven-seater. And if the rearmost row of seats is not in use, the versatile model offers ample space for luggage.
Already known drivetrains
Concerning the drivetrains of this MMA platform, there are no surprises. They are already well-known from the CLA and its estate variant. Mercedes is launching the GLB with a large 85 kWh battery in two versions: the ‘GLB 250+ with EQ technology’ and the all-wheel-drive ‘GLB 350 4Matic with EQ technology’. What on earth persuaded the marketing guys in Stuttgart to choose such hideous nomenclature, we will never know or understand.
Both versions share the 85 kWh NMC battery. The GLB 250+ with its 200 kW rear-wheel-drive powertrain is the range champion of the entire model line, hence the ‘+’ in its name. Mercedes states a WLTP range of 631 kilometers for this variant.
That is no surprise after the CLA’s 781 kilometers, and the Shooting Brake’s 761 kilometers. The GLB is significantly taller, and its steep rear end is far from aerodynamically optimised. However, this enhances its practicality, which is a weakness of the lower-slung CLA. Thus, the two MMA models complement each other.
The all-wheel-drive version achieves up to 614 kilometers on the WLTP cycle. As with the CLA, the differences here are minimal, thanks to the technology: the front electric motor, with its 80 kW, can be disengaged in a flash via a decoupler and is only activated when needed.
It means the 4Matic model mainly operates as a rear-wheel-drive vehicle, and the permanently excited synchronous motor is Mercedes’ in-house development, featuring a two-speed transmission and silicon carbide inverters, optimised for efficiency.
There are no differences in charging performance: the 800-volt system enables charging power of up to 320 kW. It allows the battery to be charged from 10 to 80% in 22 minutes, with Mercedes also stating that 260 kilometers of range can be added in ten minutes. AC charging is optionally available up to 22 kW. Like the GLC, the GLB also supports bidirectional charging.
Other models, pricing
It is likely, though not yet confirmed, that the GLB 200 will follow the two launch variants. This model will feature a 58 kWh LFP battery under the body, capable of charging at up to 200 kW, reaching 80% charge in 20 minutes. The range and price of this variant are not yet known. In the case of the CLA, the LFP battery is about €6,000 cheaper.
This would put the base GLB at around 53,000 euros, as the prices for the two variants with the larger battery are already known in Germany. Mercedes is already accepting orders, and the models can be configured online from 8 December.
In Germany, the GLB 250+ starts at 59,048 euros, while the GLB 350 4MATIC begins at 62,178 euros. Mercedes quotes a monthly leasing rate of 305 euros for private customers as an example, over 36 months and 15,000 kilometers per year, but with a hefty 20% down payment.
Practicality is key
Compared to the CLA Shooting Brake, the GLB 250+ is around 2,000 euros more expensive, while the difference for the 350 4MATIC is less than 1,000 euros. In return, the SUV offers significantly greater practicality. While the CLA estate can accommodate up to 1,290 liters with the rear seats folded down, the GLB can hold up to 1,715 liters (or 1,605 liters in the seven-seater).
The standard boot capacity is 540/480 liters (five-/seven-seater). There is also an entirely new storage compartment: with 127 liters, the model boasts the largest front boot or ‘frunk’ in the new model family. “Enough space for a crate of drinks, or three footballs, or a compact tent,” Mercedes suggests.
“Those who opt for the version with two additional seats in the third row can travel to the next league match with an entire tennis team or pile the neighbour’s children in and haul them to the school festival.”
At 4.73 m, it is 4.8 cm longer than the previous EQB. The width is 1.86 m (+2.7 cm) and the height is 1.69 m (-1.4 cm). The two additional single seats in the optional third row comfortably accommodate passengers up to 1.71 m tall, according to Mercedes, which is 3 cm more than the predecessor.
Access to the third row is also easier than in the previous model. “This is due in part to the Easy Entry function’s 32-mm longer adjustment range and the enlarged rear door cuts,” the German manufacturer explained.
The increased wheelbase (+60 mm to 2.89 m) ensures that passengers in the middle row have more space. There is also an improvement in towing capacity, now up to two tons for the GLB 350 4MATIC.
Mercedes interior
Inside, the SUV follows the CLA’s template, featuring the massive Superscreen that spans the entire dashboard. Between the front passengers, a floating centre console will be introduced. At the same time, occupants of the new model are said to enjoy more headroom, despite the large panoramic roof with a starry-sky design.
In this context, Mercedes also highlights the new heat pump in the GLB. Based on a twenty-minute drive at minus 7 degrees Celsius, the interior is said to heat up twice as fast as in the predecessor. At the same time, Mercedes claims that only half the energy is needed to warm up.
The heating starts automatically as soon as someone enters the car. At the heart of these improvements is the new heat pump, which incorporates insights from the efficiency-focused ‘Vision EQXX’ program.
