Our preferred trim is AMG Line Executive because it has sportier interior and exterior styling and more supportive sports seats.
AMG Line Premium adds the passenger superscreen, 20-inch wheels, electric front seat adjustment with memory settings, dual-zone climate control, and adaptive suspension. Meanwhile, the fully-loaded AMG Line Premium Plus has adaptive Multibeam headlights, an upgraded Burmester sound system, a heated steering wheel, and a head-up display.
Interior and dashboard design
Digital displays play a major role in Mercedes’ current interior design trends, and the GLB doesn’t disappoint in that regard. All cars come with a high-resolution 14-inch screen that takes centre stage, while Premium and Premium Plus models add a second touchscreen of the same size for passengers.
There’s a 10.25-inch driver’s display, too, and the screens are all housed in an upright dashboard with shiny black plastic surrounds, while at either end there are stylised air vents with LED illumination. There’s additional lighting throughout the cabin, with different themes on offer that can be adjusted in terms of colour and brightness.
If there’s one detail we would criticise, it’s Mercedes’ decision to follow Volkswagen and cheap out on offering four individual window switches. The combined switch with a button to select between the front and rear windows adds an extra step and complication where there need not be any, all for the sake of saving on two switches.
Materials and build quality
While there are some harder plastics lower down in the cabin, the quality of the fit and finish in the GLB is very good. Most cars come with Artico man-made leather, with the base model adding fabric upholstery, while real leather is available as an option. There are different trim finishers on the centre console and doors depending on which model you choose, with the matt white natural finish of AMG Line Premium Plus cars being a particular highlight.
Infotainment, sat-nav and stereo
Mercedes packs all its cars with cutting-edge tech, and its MBUX interface lets you use voice commands to control functions – including asking for your current efficiency reading in whatever units you prefer. However, as with some rival systems, it can automatically activate if it ‘hears’ the trigger phrase within a conversation you might be having with passengers, which can be irritating. You can deactivate voice control or set it to work only when you press the microphone button below the central air vents. This is positioned next to the hazard-warning switch, while a few other shortcuts also help navigate to the home screen, climate menu and drive settings. But while there’s a button to activate windscreen defrosting, the heated rear screen is only accessible via the main display.