Used test: Audi SQ5 vs Mercedes-AMG GLC 43
If you want a fast and sporty SUV at a reduced price take a look at these two humdingers. But which one should you choose? We spill the beans...
What are they like inside?
Both are a few millimetres closer to the ground than the regular large SUVs they’re based on, but not by enough that you’d notice. You still get a penthouse view of the road, along with a typical sit-up-and-beg SUV driving position.
The driver’s seat in each is fully electric, although the SQ5’s is more comfortable on long trips and holds you in place better through the corners. Likewise, the SQ5 has a more user-friendly dashboard. You might even be lucky enough to find an SQ5 that’s been fitted with Audi’s Virtual Cockpit; this replaces the instrument dials behind the steering wheel with a 12.3in screen that can be configured to display sat-nav maps and other important information.
Interior quality is where the SQ5 stands out, though. Everything you touch feels rock solid and built to last, and the switches, buttons and dials click like an expensive Swiss watch. The GLC’s interior looks smart enough, but it’s disappointing to hear creaks when you prod the interior panels, and some of the dashboard buttons feel comparatively lightweight.
More good news: both are just as roomy and practical as the regular SUVs on which they’re based. So you’ll have no problem carrying around four tall adults in comfort or taking the family to Wales for the weekend.
The SQ5’s sliding and reclining rear seats are a handy bonus – and with them slid as far back as they’ll go, both cars provide an identical amount of rear leg room. The GLC has a few more centimetres of rear head room, but you’d have to be really lanky to notice.
It’s an easy win for the SQ5 when it comes to boot space. Even with the rear seats slid all the way back, it has a longer and taller load area, and it managed to swallow nine carry-on suitcases below the parcel shelf, compared with eight in the GLC. That said, the GLC has extra storage under its boot floor and there’s no lip at its boot entrance. In the SQ5, there’s an 8cm drop down on to the boot floor.
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