For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Mercedes GLC have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Cadillac XT5 doesn’t offer pretensioners for the rear seat belts.
The GLC has standard NECK-PRO front head restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the NECK-PRO front head restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The XT5 doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
The GLC has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport offers a blind spot warning system.
To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the GLC has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the XT5 Premium Luxury/Sport has a rear cross-path warning system.
The GLC’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The XT5 doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.
Both the GLC and the XT5 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, lane departure warning systems and around view monitors.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Mercedes GLC is safer than the Cadillac XT5:
|
GLC |
XT5 |
|
Driver |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
120 |
147 |
Neck Injury Risk |
23% |
24% |
Neck Stress |
177 lbs. |
188 lbs. |
|
Passenger |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
113 |
287 |
Neck Injury Risk |
24% |
37% |
Neck Stress |
116 lbs. |
155 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Mercedes GLC is safer than the Cadillac XT5:
|
GLC |
XT5 |
|
Front Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
69 |
112 |
Chest Movement |
.9 inches |
.9 inches |
Abdominal Force |
117 lbs. |
151 lbs. |
|
Rear Seat |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
134 |
183 |
Hip Force |
784 lbs. |
825 lbs. |
|
Into Pole |
|
STARS |
5 Stars |
5 Stars |
HIC |
206 |
399 |
Hip Force |
787 lbs. |
799 lbs. |
New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.
For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, with its optional vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, with its optional vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the GLC the rating of “Top Pick” for 2021, a rating granted to only 145 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The XT5 last would have qualified as a “Top Pick” in 2017.