2007 Mercedes-Benz GL450 -- Yet Another SUV

post from Karl on Cars on 13 April 2006 01:04:09 AM. © Karl on Cars

Because the world needs another SUV Mercedes-Benz will be unleashing the GL450 in a few weeks. I drove one home tonight and was struck by two things:1. It has excellent on-road manners, despite Mercedes' claims that it will be very off-road capable.2. Having just driven the all-new GMC Yukon last night I was surprised at how closely these two vehicles feel in terms of on-road behavior.No, it's not that the GMC is "just as good" as the Mercedes...but the gap is smaller than I expected. And I don't think that's because the GL is weak in terms of on-road manners, I think it's because the GMC has really improved in this area. I don't know if it would have been as noticeable had I not driven them back-to-back, but it makes for an interesting comparison. And like the Range Rover I drove last week, the GL450 has a number of annoying ergonomic quirks. There's no tuning knob and figuring out exactly what each button does (and there are many buttons) can be hugely distracting. Once again, I don't care if GL owners will learn all its quirks and eventually get past them. I got in that GMC Yukon last night and instantly knew how to control the audio and navigation systems. That's the way it should be with all vehicles, whether the Germans (and Brits) want to admit it or not.

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