2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC220d MBUX Infotainment

Now let’s come to the new MBUX infotainment system that debuts in India with the GLC. What’s important to note is that the team at the Mercedes-Benz Research and Development India (MBRDI) at Bengaluru has played a big part in the development of the MBUX. We were fortunate to visit the R&D centre prior to our drive, and were given demonstrations of how the system works, courtesy their engineers. The MBUX system comes with an embedded sim from Vodafone that brings connected car technology to the GLC. Combined with the Mercedes Me smart phone app, you can control a number of functions of the car straight from you phone like locking unlocking, vehicle tracking, speed alert etc. You can also pre-cool the cabin before you get in to start driving and monitor every aspect of your car’s health.

The highlight of the MBUX is the voice assistant that wakes up when you say ‘Hey Mercedes’ or ‘Hi Mercedes’. It understands different accents quite easily and is quick to respond. We tried a few things like asking it to adjust temperatures, and ambient lighting and action was prompt. I even tried saying ‘Hey Mercedes Im hungry’ and it popped up restaurant names and when I said Im tired, it popped up hotel names. Another witty one was ‘Hey Mercedes who’s you Daddy?’ To which it replied Karl Benz. Pretty cool stuff. Im sure it will become more smarter with time.

Another feature is the SOS button. In the unfortunate scenario of an accident, pressing the SOS button located near the IRVM will connect you to a Mercedes-Benz Emergency Centre for assistance. There is also a Mercedes Me button that will directly connect you to a concierge service.

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