You know, I am starting to like this thing more and more everytime I see one.


By LAWRENCE ULRICH
Published: August 6, 2006

NOTHING against Mercedes-Benz, but I found myself reluctant to drive the company’s big new sport utility vehicle, the GL450. Aside from the environmental bull’s-eye on their back, big S.U.V.’s usually reside at the bottom of my personal list of thrill rides, and I’d already spent several weeks waving from a procession of S.U.V. parade floats: the Audi Q7, the Cadillac Escalade and three varieties of Range Rover.

Ask anyone what the world needs now, and one of the last things you’ll hear is “another hulking luxury S.U.V.” In January, when the GL appeared on the runway at the Detroit auto show, I gave it my best Anna Wintour eye-roll, dismissing it as if it were a frumpy plus-size frock — soooo last season.

But now that I have spent a week in the GL, I have been forced to conclude that rather than being a knockoff, the big thing is actually quite the trendsetter. It should also send car designers at other companies scurrying to their sketchpads: while most big sport-utes break their promise to provide comfortable seating for six or seven adults, the Mercedes delivers with a third-row seat that is more spacious and more easily reached than those in any of its rivals.

There is also icing on this genuine three-layer cake: the GL450 is among the quickest, creamiest-driving big trucks I have ever tested.

Start with the 4.7-liter V-8. On paper, it is not particularly powerful; its 335 horsepower compares with 400-plus in some competitors. But the engine is loaded with useful technology, from variable valve timing to forged connecting rods.

The engine finds a soulmate in Mercedes’s seven-speed automatic transmission, with the most cogs currently on the market. Together, this engine and gearbox bring out each other’s inherent strengths, spurring the Benz from a stop to 60 m.p.h. in an eye-opening 6.4 seconds.

The drivetrain partners also tango with seamless precision. On steep climbs and descents in the Hudson Valley, the Benz was always in just-right mode for cruising or passing, never lurching, hesitating or hunting for gears.

The stubby electronic gear-change stalk on the steering column is more awkward; if you don’t hold the brake firmly when engaging “drive,” it stays resolutely in “park,” leaving you racing the engine and looking as though you need remedial driver’s ed.

Built in Alabama alongside its smaller sibling, the M-Class, the 5,500-pound GL certainly won’t be confused with a sport sedan. Yet the Mercedes charges effortlessly to 100 m.p.h. and beyond and it feels solid and reassuring at speeds most owners will never attempt.

I also managed 15 m.p.g., a bit better than some rivals can attain; the E.P.A. rates the GL450 at 14 in town and 18 on the highway. (A diesel-powered GL, set to arrive in the spring, should deliver closer to 20 m.p.g., though its emissions will keep it off the market in New York, New England and some other states that adhere to California’s clean-air rules.)

Mercedes’s ever-improving air suspension provides a smooth carpet and stable handling, with three ride heights and settings: for comfort, normal and sporty driving. Especially in the softest mode, the GL tamed even the ruined cobblestones of my Brooklyn street. On this revealing gantlet the GL absorbed bumps even better — dare I say it? — than Mercedes’s flagship S-Class sedan.

Necessary or not, the GL covers the off-road bases, too, ensuring that the class bullies can’t raise any issues about its manliness. The big truck has permanent four-wheel-drive, the height-adjustable suspension and a downhill speed regulator: press a button, and the vehicle will safely walk itself down a steep grade. Add the optional off-road package, and the suspension can pump ground clearance to a Hummeresque 10.9 inches. The GL can also tow a mighty 7,500 pounds.

One secret to the GL’s slick performance is its independent rear suspension, which not only improves its ride and handling but let engineers lower the floor to carve out extra passenger and cargo space in the back. Either portion of the split third-row seat powers itself flat via two sets of buttons, one in the hatch and another inside the second-row doors. That means you can pop the power tailgate and rearrange the seats while your arms are full, a function that came in handy when a friend and I managed to load an antique dresser without having to set it down.

Personal comfort in cars is subjective, but as a 6-foot male, I could manage three or four complaint-free hours in the third row. The rearmost seat is also relatively easy to climb into — and especially out of — without worrying about tripping and landing face-first on the pavement. The Cadillac Escalade, to name one rival, has a larger exterior but an unpleasantly cramped third row, and less usable cargo space behind that seat.



Handsome bird’s-eye maple trim, leather with neat stitching and a two-tone instrument panel highlight the rich interior. Another strong point: Mercedes offers some of the industry’s most comfortable and supportive seats, and the GL’s optional multicontour chairs are no exception. The range of lumbar support seems almost limitless.

As for cons, the front console box is stingy — too small to hold even the thick owner’s manual. The stereo’s six-CD changer is out of reach inside the glovebox, and the second-row cup holders are too shallow, a grape-juice spill waiting to happen.

Mercedes calls its screen-based vehicle control setup the Comand system, and though it has been improved it still resists your efforts to boss it around. The navigation setup remains second-rate, and some operations are a hassle.

Often-used functions, including the zoom that focuses in on the map, remain invisible on screen until you press an equally unmarked row of tiny buttons; even if you guess the correct one, it takes a redundant two strokes — one to call up the function, a second to perform it.

The GL is competitively priced at $55,675, though like other luxury carmakers, Mercedes charges extra for the really good stuff. Adding some $13,000 in options brought my GL to $68,075, in line with an Escalade or a Lexus LX 470 but a good $20,000 less than a comparable Range Rover.

Options on the test truck included 19-inch wheels, a dual-screen entertainment system, a Harman/Kardon audio system, a satellite navigation aid, multicontour seats, three-zone climate control, wood-and-leather steering wheel, a huge panoramic sunroof, power rear quarter windows and more.

In this high-wattage class, the GL’s subdued styling may be its soft spot. The jutting prow, led by the biggest three-pointed star in memory, does tells you something big is approaching. And the crouched, pavement-sniffing stance offers a clue to the GL’s greyhound speed. (Fine, a well-fed greyhound). But the Mercedes gives off a cautious, gated-community vibe, lacking the visual pomp of the Range Rover or the chrome-plated pop of the Escalade.

For more conservative buyers, the GL’s reserved style may come as a relief. It is certainly preferable to the trend of S.U.V.’s undergoing tummy tucks and liposuction just to stand out from the heavy-metal herd. To name one, the Audi Q7’s strained bid for styling originality — including its sharply sloping roof — is exactly what compromises its interior utility.



As with Mercedes’s own R-Class “sports tourer,” the Audi ends up being 10 pounds of truck in a 5-pound sack: Huge on the outside, but with practical room for only four adults, or the same number that fit comfortably in a Honda Civic. Trucks like these not only waste space, they sacrifice handling, fuel economy and ease of parking while — unlike the GL450 — offering few benefits in return.

In other words, let’s not forget that the big sport utility was always ideally more of a school bus than a sports car. On a class trip in the rich-and-roomy GL, even the grownups will be singing “Kumbaya.”

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I'm amazed that you actually see one of these on the road...cause all I see is the new Scalade roaring around...

I actually see a handfull of them everyday. I guess it all depends on where you live.

Saw my first one on the road today right at the nearest corner. Black and really a nice looking truck...so much more solid looking and stylish than the Escalade. I have to believe this will catch on and convert some of those GM people, especially when the diesel model hits the market and word gets out about it.

Yep, yep, it is a nice looking truck. It took a while for me to digest, but I really do like it. One of them parked in front of my building the other day and I sat there looking at it for a while. My old man was talking to me about it, so you never know - we might get a GL

I drove the GL450 about two weeks ago and came away modestly impressed. The power isn't neck-snapping, but it is good. Fit and finish were acceptable, and the ride was up to the task of fording West LA's countless potholes.

My impression wasn't one of "woah, this is the next level" but I certainly felt that the GL slaps the Esclade upside its own bloated ego. If I was in the market for a big, obnoxious SUV, the GL would most likely be my pick.