2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK350 4Matic

2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK350 4Matic

2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK350 4Matic

When a company like Mercedes-Benz can attribute 40 percent of its overall sales to its particular lineup of SUVs, that’s a lot of haymaking. It also requires them to constantly evolve in an effort to stay on top of their game – like a heavily updated entry-level GLK.

The GLK underwent a revision that improved on the build and character of the previous version. Labeled as a 2013 model, it was delivered for retail sales in the summer of 2012. Despite sharing the side profile of its predecessor, the GLK was vastly improved for the new model year.

We hopped on board the range-topping GLK 350 4Matic to check out the differences.

2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK350 4Matic

What is it?
Internally known as the Geländewagen Luxus Kompaktklasse, the GLK originally debuted at the 2008 Beijing Auto Show. Like its much larger G Wagen brother, it was available in Europe for several years before making its first appearance in North America as a 2010 model.

A five-passenger compact crossover, the GLK is a fave amongst a group comprised of pre- and post- family sets, hipsters with cash and urbanites who rarely carry more than two people at a time. Why buy a four-door, five-passenger vehicle when you’ll only carry two, you ask? To scoff at that suggestion would be to miss the point: Buyers seek the confidence of its capabilities rather than having an actual need for such. Sort of like car insurance, you hope you never have to use it, but it is comforting to know it’s there.