Compare the2025 Porsche CayenneVS 2025 Mercedes GLC

Both the Cayenne and GLC have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Cayenne has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The GLC’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Porsche Cayenne has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The GLC doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Cayenne. But it costs extra on the GLC.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Cayenne helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The GLC doesn’t offer a night vision system.

The Cayenne’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the GLC.

Both the Cayenne and the GLC have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The Cayenne’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the GLC’s (12 vs. 5 years).

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Cayenne’s reliability 50 points higher than the GLC.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Cayenne second among upper midsize premium suvs in their 2024 Initial Quality Study. The GLC isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Porsche vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Porsche above average in initial quality. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Porsche vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Porsche above average in long-term dependability. With 15 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Mercedes is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Porsche vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Porsche 21 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

The Cayenne has more powerful engines than the GLC:

As tested in Car and Driver the Porsche Cayenne turbo V6 is faster than the Mercedes GLC:

The Cayenne E-Hybrid’s standard fuel tank has 5.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLC 350e’s standard fuel tank (18.4 vs. 12.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Cayenne’s standard fuel tank has 7.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLC’s standard fuel tank (23.7 vs. 16.4 gallons).

The Cayenne’s optional launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The GLC doesn’t offer launch control.

For better stopping power the Cayenne’s brake rotors are larger than those on the GLC:

The Cayenne offers optional heat-treated ceramic brake rotors, which last ten to twenty times as long as conventional cast iron rotors, don’t rust, don’t fade during repeated high speed braking, and their lighter weight contribute to better braking, handling and acceleration. The GLC doesn’t offer ceramic brake rotors.

The Cayenne Turbo has standard air brakes, which adjust the spoiler automatically during high-speed braking in order to shorten stopping distances. The GLC doesn’t offer air brakes.

The Cayenne stops much shorter than the GLC:

For better traction, the Cayenne has larger standard tires than the GLC (F:255/55R20 & R:295/45R20 vs. 235/60R18). The Cayenne’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the GLC (F:285/45R21 & R:315/40R21 vs. 255/45R20).

The Cayenne’s standard 255/55R20 front and 295/45R20 rear tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series front and 45 series rear profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the GLC’s standard 60 series tires. The Cayenne’s optional 285/40R22 front and 315/35R22 rear tires have a lower 40 series front and 35 series rear profile than the GLC’s optional 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Cayenne has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the GLC. The Cayenne’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels optional on the GLC.

The Cayenne offers active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The GLC doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The Cayenne offers an available adjustable active suspension system, which counteracts cornering forces actively, limiting body roll and improving handling and stability. Mercedes doesn’t offer an active suspension on the GLC.

The Cayenne has a standard driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The GLC’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Cayenne handles at 1.02 G’s, while the GLC 350e pulls only .86 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Cayenne S executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 3.7 seconds quicker than the GLC 300 4MATIC (23.6 seconds @ .83 average G’s vs. 27.3 seconds @ .65 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid has a 1.3 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the GLC (9.5 vs. 8.2 inches), allowing the Cayenne to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The front grille of the Cayenne uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The GLC doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Cayenne has .4 inches more front legroom, 1.8 inches more front shoulder room and 2.9 inches more rear legroom than the GLC.

The Cayenne has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the GLC with its rear seat up (27.3 vs. 21.9 cubic feet). The Cayenne has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the GLC with its rear seat folded (60.3 vs. 56.3 cubic feet).

The Cayenne’s cargo area is larger than the GLC’s in every dimension:

The Cayenne’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the GLC’s (7716 vs. 3500 pounds).

A trailer sway control is standard on the Cayenne, using the Porsche Stability Management sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. A trailer sway program costs extra on the GLC.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Porsche service is better than Mercedes. J.D. Power ranks Porsche second in service department satisfaction. With a 36% lower rating, Mercedes is ranked 17th.

The Cayenne’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The GLC does not have an oil pressure gauge.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Cayenne offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The GLC doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To better shield the driver and front passenger’s vision, the Cayenne has standard dual-element sun visors that can block glare from two directions simultaneously. The GLC doesn’t offer secondary sun visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Cayenne to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The GLC doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Optional air conditioned front and rear seats keep the Cayenne’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The GLC doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats in the rear.

The Cayenne has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the GLC.

The Cayenne offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the GLC.

The Cayenne’s Active Parking Assistance can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Optional Remote ParkAssist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The GLC’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Porsche Cayenne, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Mercedes GLC isn't recommended.