Come on guys, don’t be that way, don’t think that by giving us the GLE Coupe we’ll suddenly forget that BMW were first to bring us the popular X6.
The BMW X6 was the world’s first SAC (Sports Activity Coupe) – which is a name you get not just from your appearance but also from the sitting situation inside, though three passengers could fit in the back if they so chose.
Mercedes-Benz VP for SUVs and sports cars, Wolf-Dieter Kurz was recently quoted as saying by Motoring that they “were also looking at that time but then made the decision that we are focusing on the A-Class portfolio to be expanded,” when asked about their thought processes regarding a possible coupe SUV in the early 2000s.
However he doesn’t seem too bitter about it since rivals like BMW are now coming up with B-Class alternatives – still, we all know that would they have developed a Coupe SUV back then, it would have been a huge success, especially from a sales perspective (and especially more so than the B-Class).
If you ask me, there’s no way that Mercedes isn’t sore about not being the first to come up with a Sports Activity Coupe. Back in the early 2000s they were building pretty conservative models, and they’ve never really been as daring as BMW in terms of creating entirely new segments.
So let’s take those quotes with a huge grain of salt.
On top of that, BMW were also first with the X4, while the GLC Coupe will shortly follow. But, here’s the catch: Mercedes were the first ones to the “four-door luxury coupe” playground. The CLS made BMW and Audi build the 6 Series GC and the A7 Sportback respectively.
As for the X6 vs. GLE Coupe rivalry – there isn’t one. At least, not yet. The X6 had an 8 year head start and Mercedes really have their work cut out for them.
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