Mercedes GLC 300 e and GLC 300 de EV Charging Cable

The 2019 to 2022 car is straightforward and quite good

13.5 kWh gross, about 26 miles of electric range on the 300 e and 28 on the 300 de, and a 7.4 kW onboard charger that is genuinely single phase. That last part is the useful bit: a British house delivers the whole 7.4 kW rather than a derated share of a three phase figure, so a 32A cable gives the car everything and a full charge takes about two and a quarter hours.

Nothing on this car takes DC. There is no rapid socket to fall back on, so the Type 2 lead is not an accessory you might use, it is the only route electricity ever takes into the battery. Buy a used one without a cable in the boot and it is a petrol car until you do. That applies to this generation only. The 2022 car gained a DC socket, and a substantial one.

The 2022 car has remarkable DC charging and an unpublished AC figure

The GLC that arrived in 2022 more than doubles the battery to 31.2 kWh gross and takes electric range to about 81 miles on the 300 e and 79 on the 300 de. It also takes 60 kW on DC, for a ten to eighty per cent stop in about twenty minutes. On a plug-in hybrid that is close to unheard of, and it genuinely changes what the car can do on a long journey.

What is not published anywhere is its AC charging power. We looked at Mercedes's own material, the German technical databases and the independent EV databases, and the AC field is simply empty on every one of them: the Type 2 inlet is confirmed present and its rating is not stated. So we are not going to tell you whether a 32A cable helps on that car. If it matters to you, ask a dealer, and in the meantime the DC capability means you are less dependent on the answer than you would be on most plug-ins.

How long a full charge takes

Hours are worked from battery size against power drawn, plus a 13 per cent allowance for what is lost as heat, rounded to fifteen minutes. Columns are the 2019 to 2022 car and the 2022 one at gross capacity, since no usable figure is published for either. The 31.2 kWh column is shown at the rates we can verify; if the newer car turns out to accept more on AC, its real times will be shorter than shown.

Which length for a GLC plug-in

Rear offside on the 2019 to 2022 car and rear nearside on the 2022 one, which is a genuine change between generations rather than a data inconsistency. Both come from German market data and neither is confirmed for a right hand drive car.

The GLC is 4.72 metres. Given the port side changed and is unconfirmed for UK cars, this is one where the thirty seconds spent looking is worth more than any rule of thumb, but 10 metres covers you either way. Park the car where it normally lives, walk the run with a tape, and buy the next size up from what you measure.

How these cables are built

IEC 62196-2 construction, CE marked, IP55 sealed and tested from -30C through to +50C.

Three pin leads are made to IEC 62752, CE marked and IP67 sealed, with a -30C to +60C specification. The manufacturer warrants it for two years, delivery in the UK is free and next working day, and returns run to 30 days.

Looking at another Mercedes? Start with the Mercedes EQA EV Charging Cable, or browse every model in Mercedes charging cables.

Mercedes GLC plug-in hybrid charging cable questions

Which cable does a GLC 300 e need?

A 32A Type 2 to Type 2 lead for a 2019 to 2022 car, whose 7.4 kW charger is genuinely single phase. For the 2022 car we cannot say, because the AC rating is not published anywhere.

Can a GLC plug-in rapid charge?

The 2022 car can, at up to 60 kW for a ten to eighty per cent stop in about twenty minutes, which is very unusual on a plug-in hybrid. The 2019 to 2022 car has no DC socket at all.

How long does the older GLC take to charge?

About two and a quarter hours from empty at 7.4 kW on its 13.5 kWh pack.

Why will you not state the newer car's AC speed?

Because nobody publishes it. Mercedes, the German technical databases and the independent EV databases all leave the AC field blank for that car, and we would rather say so than guess.