Driving down the road this car is sure to turn heads as its size and presence is hard to miss. The Mercedes GLS 450 is the largest SUV from the world-famous car maker, and this takes the concept of luxury to a whole new level.
The GLS 450 can be compared to the Range Rover or even the latest Land Cruiser for a matter of fact. To understand the competition better, a fully-loaded Range Rover Autobiography costs around three crore twenty lakhs, whereas, the current price of the GLS 450 is significantly lower at around two crore twenty lakhs.
The Mercedes-Benz GLS is a huge three-row luxury SUV that debuted in 2015. It was completely redesigned last year from its previous models, and its high levels of elegance, refinement, and technology have won the hearts of car enthusiasts all over the world.
To those who didn’t know, the "G" line in Mercedes stands for “geländewagen”-- German for an off-road vehicle. Ironically hardly anyone ever takes one of these out in the wild for any off-roading action and for good reasons too as a simple scratch could put a huge dent on the wallet.
Speaking about the vehicle’s presence, the new GLS 450's external appearance is sleek, elegant, and confident, and it incorporates all of Mercedes' current design characteristics.
The car features a 60-millimetre larger wheelbase than its predecessor, providing greater inside capacity than ever before.
The front grille is octagonal, and the hood is flanked by two power domes. You'll never be left in the dark with LED headlights that run at the highest luminance during the day and nighttime.
The new GLS 450's interior is stylish, spacious, and luxurious while remaining practical. Leather upholstery and a slew of high-end features come standard, and the touchscreen infotainment system is a huge 12.3 inches.
Mercedes should have added a place for cell phones besides the cupholders or wireless charger area, which I think is an obvious design oversight.
For maximum comfort and support, each seat row is fully adjustable, and to make room for cargo, the third-row seats can fold directly into the floor and the second row can also be folded forward to provide up to 2,400 litres of cargo space.
The engine in the GLS 450 is a 3.0-litre inline-six turbo with an EQ boost that provides 362 horsepower and 369 foot-pounds of torque.
This gives out a top speed of 246km/h but it's not too impressive when it comes to its mileage. With eight kilometres per litre inside the city, this vehicle can be very expensive to maintain in the long run.
The ride is smooth on the highway and around town; however, using the individualized setting option for the sports suspension on the highway is recommended to firm up the ride, otherwise, it can feel a bit floaty, which given its height, is not entirely surprising.
Despite its numerous rivals, the GLS stands out with an outstanding list of features, performance, and a luxurious feel that's difficult to match. It sure can be called the SUV equivalent of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
