2021 Mercedes-Benz GLC vs 2020 Toyota Sienna

Since the second half of the 20th century, each decade has had a hot-topic family car, and, as we’ve noted in a number of reviews this year, the crossover is our current darling vehicle. Before the crossover, there were big, truck-based SUVs. Before that, there were station wagons.

And for the past 35 years, there's always been the minivan.

The Dodge Caravan has been widely considered the Patient Zero of the minivan segment. From there, seemingly everyone joined the party, including Toyota, Nissan, Ford, Chevy, GMC, Volkswagen, Oldsmobile, and more. Heck, even Mercury had a “Nautica Edition” version of the Villager.

The minivan was king once, the crossover is king now, and some other type of vehicle will likely dominate in the near future. But in all this, the 7- and 8-passenger minivans will always represent the ultimate in versatility. The crossover is an image-forward fad with a dash of usability, but the minivan continues to prove itself as the pinnacle of practicality.

The 2020 Toyota Sienna is neither the newest nor flashiest minivan out there, but when you absolutely need space for people and gear, there’s nothing better. Additionally, as of 2020 the Sienna is the only minivan to offer all-wheel drive (AWD), which is something specifically desired by many car buyers.

The modern compact luxury SUV market is an embarrassment of riches. Shoppers have more options than ever before, and all of them are terrific vehicles. There’s the BMW X3, Audi Q5, Volvo XC60, Acura RDX, Alfa Romeo Stelvio, and even the newcomer Lincoln Corsair. Not to be left out of this dizzying list is one of the segment’s most popular options, the 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLC.

While the X3 arguably kicked off the small luxury SUV craze, the bar was raised with the GLC’s predecessor, the GLK. But even the GLK felt like a stopgap compared to a fully realized vehicle like the GLC. It encapsulates everything that buyers are looking for in a compact luxury SUV—an upscale cabin, cutting-edge infotainment and safety technology, and driving dynamics that are equal parts athletic and comfortable. Many vehicles in the aforementioned list have some or all of these things, but few combine them all as elegantly as the GLC. Mercedes-Benz happily boasts the GLC is its best-seller, and with good reason. But should you count yourself among one of their customers? Read on to find out.