I am finally getting around to posting a report about a trip I took from Arizona up to our neighboring northern states a few weeks back...

Had a terrific time! I went with my wife and my two brothers in law

We hit a trail trail up along the tree line in North Central Colorado not far from Minturn, and then spent a week in Moab...

We used the GL to tow the Jeep to the various destinations and it performed like a champ.... I am glad that I was able to get the tow hitch recall done for a little piece of mind, and we had no issues at all towing the 6700 lb trailer over about 2000 miles. I used Weight Distribution Hitch with a built in Sway Control to keep the crosswind affect on the rig at a minimum... It was solid as a rock... Even while driving through a monsoon on the way home with 60 MPH gusts... There was no swaying whatsoever.

We averaged about 14 MPG towing the big brick of a Jeep and carrying roof box. I had intended to keep the speeds to about 60 MPH max, but it was still rock solid at the speed limit on the various roads we travelled, so I averaged about 68 MPH with long stretches of 65 on most state roads and 75 on the interstates.

The diesel engine handled all of the weight with no problems and I always had power in reserve if I needed it... Even for well planned passing on the 2 lane highways in northern Arizona and southern Utah.

I actually hit a truckstop on the way out of town to see how close I was to the Axle Weight and Vehicle Weight Restrictions... With the heavy trailer, all of the luggage in the back and on the roof, I was 40 lbs over the limit for the rear axle and 20 lbs over the limit for the Vehicle Weight Restrictions from the placard on the driver's door sill... After I shifted a few things to the roof and moved my golf clubs from the back of the GL to the inside of the Jeep, I reweighed and I was good to go... Close to the limits but under for the Gross Axle Weight Restrictions and Gross Vehicle Weight Restriction...

Needless to say, I pretty much maxed out the capacities of the GL and even at the limits, the GL still performs with aplomb...

So on to the Pictures:

Here is a pic of our family Rig.


This is an obstacle called Hell's Gate on the Hell's Revenge trail in Moab, UT.


This is an obstacle called The Golden Crack on the Golden Spike trail in Moab, UT.


This picture was taken on the Holy Cross City Trail up along the tree line near Minturn in North Central Colorado.


This picture is on an obstacle called The Waterfall on the Pritchett Canyon trail in Moab, UT


This picture is on an obstacle called Rocker Knocker on the Pritchett Canyon trail in Moab, UT

 

A few more pictures:

Another Picture from Pritchett Canyon trail in Moab, UT


This obstacle is called Axle Hill. Its also on the Pritchett Canyon trail in Moab, UT.

 

Anyone else notice why Axle Hill is so aptly named.

 

Those are some wicked pics Danno. By the looks of it, you had a great time.

 

Love it, need more pictures

 

Very nice post Danno. Amazing shots of your jeep in action and nice narrative on the GL performance.

 

I don't get it - you didn't take the GL on those? I thought you wanted to try out the GL at Moab?

 

Okay a few more pictures...

This is a steep hill on the Hells Revenge trail... Not an obstacle, but pretty cool none the less...


This is a pic of my brother in law at the bottom of Mickey's Hot Tub on the Hells Revenge trail... He was getting ready to winch out... The exit is quite steep and rollovers are a reality on this one...


Here is the exit to Mickey's Hot Tub in the above pic... It give a better perspective of how steep it is... Pretty much a full throttle assault to get out unless you have a winch. It is not possible to even climb out on foot without a rope.


This is the French Creek crossing on the Holy Cross City Trail. It is called a creek but at the time it was more like a river still with a lot of snow melt flow... 3 to 4 feet deep in places. The rocks on the far side must be traversed to continue on the trail... I really didn't have any trouble, but it ate both of my brothers in laws' lunch and they both needed winches to be extracted from the rocks.

 

With no locking diffs or low range available on the GL320, the vehicle really isn't made for this kinda stuff...

It is probably possible to do the Hells Revenge trail in the GL, but body damage would be possible on some sections... Nope, the GL stayed on the bunny slopes... But next time I go, perhaps I will give the GL a shot on a few trails.

 

Awesome Pics!

That is some RugGeD TeRrAiN!

Would love to see what is the GL's capability.

 

Great pictures!!

 

We should do Sycamore Creek. Betcha the GL could do that. I did it in the LX450. A couple of Arizona pin stripes, but nothing too bad. Hell, these are all-wheel-drive vehicles that lift a bit and have off-highway shifting patterns, locks or not. We should use 'em as such! Isn't it a bit of a waste to just drive them on normal roads?

STP

 

I hope this link works. It is a training class hosted by Mercedes. Navigate it and see some of the capabilities of our SUV's.
It's in German, but still fun. From that page, navigate 3 pages to the right, you should see a page of SUV's in an area similar to Utah. Click by a cone that says "Fahrtrainings" and watch a short video of some rock crawling!!

By the way, great pics. I was hoping to see pics of your GL taking its turn.... Maybe towing a stuck jeep out of one of those craters?

http://www.mercedes-benz.de/content/...l_offroad.html

 

I think one big difference you'd see is these will all have ORP on them. And as much fun as that track looks, comparing it with Utah, I think, is a bit of a stretch.

STP