Mercedes-Benz was among the earliest brands to offer the controversial coupe SUV body style, but now it’s reportedly looking to drop its slippery SUVs.
German publication Handelsblatt reports Mercedes-Benz insiders have said the brand is considering dropping its sloped-back ‘coupe SUVs’ from its lineup, such as the GLC and GLE.
In each case, these SUVs are offered both in their traditional ‘wagon’ and the controversial ‘coupe’ styles, the latter of which feature back ends inspired by sports cars – which impacts their practicality and results in polarising styling.
While there are some within the company who reportedly want the coupe SUVs to stay – or even be melded into one model, much as Mercedes-Benz merged its C-Class and E-Class two-door ranges – the consensus seems to be that they’ll disappear after the current-generation vehicles wrap up their production cycle.
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Mercedes-AMG GLE Coupe
Mercedes-Benz launched the first-gen GLC in 2015 and offered a coupe-like body style from the beginning, unlike the GLE coupe which came in the same year but well after its wagon equivalent’s debut.
Last year it was reported the replacement for the outgoing electric EQC wouldn’t be offered with a coupe SUV body style, following the larger EQE SUV and EQS SUV which are also each offered with one more conventional SUV shape.
In Australia, there’s a clear preference among local buyers for the traditional wagon bodies.
Between January and August 2024, Mercedes-Benz delivered 1927 GLC wagons compared to 1012 GLC coupes.
There’s an even bigger disparity between the GLEs, of which it delivered 954 wagons and just 264 coupes across the same period.
Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe
At this stage, these rumours are yet to be confirmed by Mercedes-Benz, but it wouldn’t be the only German brand considering ditching its coupe SUVs.
In July, Motor1 Italy reported a BMW representative said the X4 – a rival to the GLC coupe – wouldn’t be renewed, as it’s only slightly larger than the new X2 and doesn’t sell as well as the X3 upon which it’s based.
While there could yet be an electric successor to the current X4, it too has proven less popular than its more traditionally styled X3 sibling.
In the first eight months of the year, BMW Australia delivered 2385 X3s and 536 X4s, making the latter one of the brand’s slowest sellers locally.
MORE: Everything Mercedes-Benz GLC • GLE
