I have been a long time lurker on this forum as I, until recently, owned a 2008 Mercedes Benz GL320CDI. I live in rural Idaho and used it as my winter driver primarily to go skiing with my kids in the Rocky Mountains. I recently traded it in on a BMW X5 xdrive35d not because I didn’t like it but because my MB dealer was 50 miles away and I grew tired of having the inconvenience of traveling that far for service (which I will detail below.) Unfortunately my MB dealer was quite poor and treated me like a Kia customer (which they gave me as a loaner during my last repair—the straw that broke the camels back so to speak) rather than a MB customer. Thus I sold it and looked for another ski ride. Didn’t like the Audi SUV and won’t drive American (except my ’63 Chevy pickup) and lacking another luxury car dealer in Idaho Falls decided on the BMW. I have had it now for 500 miles and thought if someone was trying to decide between the two that a direct comparison between them would be nice. Since I have owned both and sold the MB because of a poor dealership rather than dissatisfaction with the truck (with a better MB dealership in my hometown I surely would have kept it for 20 years) I should be able to be objective.

Ride Quality- The BMW has a much more car like ride quality than the MB. Often I just couldn’t get over the fact that the MB truly felt like I was driving a truck around with a very high center of gravity, especially when driving over uneven surfaces. The BMW is just much smoother and feels much lower to the ground than it actually is. It also has a sportier, more taut suspension, which I like but my wife wishes was softer.

Ride height adjustment- Only had to use it once on the MB, but it helped get me unstuck from some deep snow by raising the vehicle a couple of inches. Wish the BMW had this feature.

Turbo lag- Again, much better with the BMW. My wife hated crossing traffic in the MB, feeing the turbo lag made it downright unsafe to try to accelerate quickly from a standstill. In contrast, while the BMW does have lag, it is nearly imperceptible compared to the MB.

Size- I do miss the size of the MB . The third row was completely usable and comfortable enough for me at 6’3” for trips of even moderate length. The kids didn’t complain about it at all. I didn’t even order the third row in the BMW. It is a joke. The kids would much rather travel three across in the back seat than have to get stuck in that third row. With the third row down in the MB, it was easy to get in 4 golf bags and speed carts. I guess if the whole family is going golfing, we will have to take the minivan as even 2 bags and carts will be a challenge with passengers in the backseat in the BMW.

Sunroof- While the two separate sunroofs in the MB were cool, the panoramic roof in the BMW is much, well, more panoramic…

Seats- This is where the BMW really shines. I got the 20 way adjustable heated/ventilated seats and they are the most comfortable seats I have ever been in. Wish I had these in my home theater. The MB seats were nice, but not in the same league and had no ventilation option. I did prefer the leather in the MB, but not by a wide enough margin to make me wish I had the MB seats instead.

Leather Dash- Had this option on both trucks and probably thought the dash on the MB was nicer looking, but not by a huge margin. The MB dash leather had more texture than the BMW and the contrasting stitching really stands out. I suppose this is a matter of taste, but my taste prefers the MB. In fact, I preferred the overall look of the MB “cockpit” to the BMW, as you will see below.

Cup holders- No question the MB kills the BMW in this regard. Don’t give me the German car enthusiast “you should be driving the car not drinking” line. This isn’t a sports car, it’s a truck. The huge, well placed cup holders in the MB will be sorely missed. The BMW holders don’t even come close and I reconsider my decision to sell the MB every time I use them (while a bit of an exaggeration, its not as much as you would think.)

Transmission shift lever- I hate the BMW lever. I am sorry but it reminds me of a phallus. A simple column mounted shifter like in the MB would more than suffice and then leave room for better cup holders.

Glove box- Again, the MB is better. Not as deep yet more usable space with a nice shelf to help in organization. I mounted my radar detector here. The iPod connector is here too, a much better spot than free floating in the center console of the BMW. The BMW glove box is so deep that small items just get lost down there and are difficult to find. I also preferred the center console of the MB with the single opening top to the split top of the BMW. A Surefire executive flashlight does fit nicely in the forward depression of the BMW center console though, which keeps it from rolling around. Is this space for a flashlight that BMW no longer supplies, or something else like change or lifesavers?

iDrive- The 2010 X5 comes with the new iDrive and I really like it. Seems intuitive and is a pleasure to use. Much, much, much better than the control schema for navigation and iPod control in the MB. I really do miss the direct telephone entry keypad in the MB that would also let you enter radio stations directly, but this is the only feature that bests the BMW in this arena.

Side view mirrors- Bigger on the BMW equals better. I always thought the mirrors on the MB were far too small.

Top view vs rear view- I like the top view for parking but the traditional rear view I like too as it gives you a farther view rearward. By the time you see items directly behind you on the top view camera, they are awfully close. I would like a hybrid where you get the top view that had a longer view out the back.

Parking proximity sensor- I liked that the MB system is always on. Unless I am backing up (or missing something,) I have to turn the BMW system on manually which is a pain. I also liked the visual indicator on the front dash and rear headliner in the MB better than the graphic on the iDrive screen.

Radar cruise control- I can’t believe that this is not even an option on the BMW. My wife had this on her Toyota Sienna Minivan and the MB had it as well. Very useful feature that I miss a lot.

Range- Because of a larger gas tank (I think) the MB has a bit more range, up to 700 miles on a tank in highway driving. This was a great feature. Too early to give any real data on a mileage comparison, but coming back 90 miles from a ski trip while losing over 3500 feet in elevation the BMW with only 500 miles got 26 mpg. My much more broken in MB routinely got 32 mpg. Hopefully the BMW will improve as it breaks in.

Problems- In 2 years and about 12k miles I had a motor go out on the steering column height adjuster that had to be replaced, the passenger side window motor went out and had to be replaced as well. There was a recall on my towing hitch for a bad weld that I never got a notice about and only (luckily) found out when an low oil level sensor went out on a trip where we were going to do our first serious towing. The sensor and oil pan were replaced. We also had a dead battery at my mother’s house on Christmas Eve as the rear hatch did not latch properly when automatically closing and caused a significant battery drain while we were visiting for some reason. Jumping the battery was all that was necessary but was surely an inconvenient time.
At only 350 miles I had our first problem with the BMW. Coming out of the mall, I was able to start the truck but it would not go out of park into any gear or neutral. A call to BMW was unable to troubleshoot the problem and I had to use a tool to force in into neutral and it had to be towed to the dealer. They could not find any faults with the computer so they “reprogrammed” it and it works fine now. I sure would hate for this to happen at a less convenient time however and it spooks me as they could not identify what the problem was.

So where does that leave us after this long post. Neither is perfect, but I could create the perfect winter transportation with a combination of the two. The MB size, cockpit and radar cruise control, with the BMW engine, seats and iDrive would be near perfect if combined with a competent local dealership. Since this is not an option, I chose the BMW and if it isn’t plagued by problems I will likely be happy for the foreseeable future. Too bad the Blizzak snow tires are too big and the Weathertech floor mats the wrong size, and pulling out the radar detector was $400 and…at least my 8 year old daughter doesn’t get as car sick riding in it.

 

Excellent review. I test drove the 35d when they first arrived. My quick observations were pretty close to everything you said. I loved the twin turbo. It definitely decreases turbo lag. I personally didn't like the "car-like" ride, maybe because I have been driving large diesel pickups for 28 years. I also didn't like the interior trim nearly as well but that is more of a personal taste issue. The model I drove didn't have the ventilated seats but I was able to check them out in a non-diesel model, and they are incredible.

As far as room, it is not really a parallel comparison since the X5 is really more comparable with the ML.

 

I agree with the above; it's far better to compare the BMW X5 with the ML. The GL is in another size class.

That being said, a vehicle based on a car chassis like the X5 and designed to ride much more 'car like', will always win a 'which drives better on the street contest'.

I thought long about getting the diesel X5 as I've had many BMWs, but equipped the way I would want it it was damn near the cost of our GL, and the extra room for 7 real humans won the argument.

Enjoy the car and keep us informed of your experiences with it.

Bish

 

Great review. For those reading this not familiar with the 09 and 10 GLs, they have larger rearview mirrors and a significantly improved nav system. Just thought I would issue that disclaimer. My mb dealer also treated my car like a Kia. Fortunately I have options.

 

there is really no comparison.

the x5 is a car with a high center of gravity, perfect highway manners and beats on you around town.

the gl is a truck and is boat, boat-like highway manners and floats nicely around town

in my mind- you either need the third row (and you get the gl) or.. you dont and then the x5 is hard to fault.

alex

 

............... or your like me and you don't really need a 2nd row and you buy a GL anyway.

 

Agree with all the comments posted so far. As a long time BMW fan and having test driven the X5 numerous times and owning the GL, I can say that the X5 is a wonderful SUV in its own right. It has wonderful seats, great technology (IDrive on the 2010 is far better than COMAND, bigger screen, top-down rear camera, heads-up display, etc), great diesel engine, and drives like a car. However, the GL beats it in space, size, NVH, and comfort. The X5 will feel better the 10% of the time you want to drive for fun, but the GL will feel and drive better the remaining 90% of the time when you're simply transporting passengers, commuting, or on long trips. The ML is the direct competitor of the X5, but the ML is still quieter and more comfortable than the X5 as a daily driver, with the X5 being the more fun SUV to drive. The twin-turbo diesel in the X5 is better than the diesel on the MB in that it produces more power and gets better gas mileage (at least published gas mileage).


The one thing I dislike about the BMWs is that they are high maintenance vehicles, more so than Mercedes. It's great that they offer a 4yr/50K free maintenance that covers even brakes, but once the free maintenance period is over, they tend to cost a lot to maintain. By 80K miles or so, the entire cooling system (radiator, thermostat, thermostat housing, water pump, etc) needs to be replaced. The suspension needs an overhaul (bushings front and rear, ball bearings, control arms, etc, which is a trade-off for the excellent handling that all BMWs possess). But these items only need addressing every 75k-100K miles, so after forking out several thousand to take care of them, you should have a problem-free and fun car to drive.

My perfect GL would have the BMW IDrive system and screen (9 in display), the BMW 3.5 twin turbo diesel engine, adjustable 2nd row, and have more comfortable seats ala BMW or the GL550.

 

Nice discussion!

I'm approaching lease end on an '07 GL450, and so I'm very interested in what other vehicles might be right for me.
I had a 2003 4.4 X5, which was a wonderful little vehicle that handled like a dream. The GL is, as a previous poster eloquently stated, a very comfortable boat in which to navigate suburbia.

In these fuel & $$ conscience times, I find myself considering the options when my lease ends in a few months. Everything I've read about the new diesel X5 intrigues me. Most of what I've read of the GL350's performance leaves me un-impressed.

I truly thought my X5's interior finishes were very nice indeed, but I always hated the seats. I had not optioned for the "comfort seat" option in 2003, and always regretted it on any trip longer than 1/2 hour. As a sufferer of lower back problems, a nice seat is a very high priority to me. The OP's comments on the 20 way seat comfort factor has me ready to go for an extended test drive on these seats, if possible.

Thanks for the topic cshull, and I look forward to additional comments.

David in MD

 

For anyone that might be interested in including the Q7 TDI in this discussion, I recently test drove one back to back with the 2010 GL-350. My basic conclusions were similar to the comments regarding the X5.

The Q7 had more car-like ride and handling, and a nicer look and feel to the interior. The one interior advantage I would give to MB is the power folding 3rd row, which is one of the things that won my wife over. Also note that ventilated seats are an option on the 2010 GL.

I can't really comment fairly on the control system, since as an Audi owner, I already am familiar with the Audi MMI and the COMAND system was a new experience. They are certainly different but I can't say one is better w/o more time with the MB. The MB system did seem to have more voice activated capabilities, although I didn't go into this in detail on the Audi.

Capacity, the GL wins hands down with a more usable and easy to access 3rd row and a much higher towing capability.

Engine wise, I would be happy with either one and didn't see much difference in either acceleration or turbo lag (not a problem on either). Audi does claim 2 mpg more in hwy mileage but I'd have to see it in the real world to verify that claim, since the two engines are close in performance and the MB is actually a little lighter.

Our choice boiled down to how we use the SUV. It is not a daily driver for either of us. We both have cars for commuting. We use the truck for towing, hauling, and for when we have large groups we need to transport. For those purposes, the GL was the clear winner. I ordered a GL-350 and it is due to start production next week.

 

Surely if you want something sporty to drive you don't buy an SUV, so its a bit of an odd point ........ the X5 also badly needs a facelift; its looking pretty dated.

 

Of all the comments above, I feel the most salient feature in the MB favor is its size, in many respects. I will sorely miss the third row, larger cargo capacity, greater towing ability, longer range and bigger cup holders. It would be great if BMW could come up with a larger SUV to address these points (X8?) but retain all of the great qualities I mentioned in my original review. Until then, guess I'll have to compromise. It might seem that I feel the X5 is the winner in this comparison but I don't. It really is an apples/oranges thing given their vast size difference. If it weren't for the poor dealership in a town 50 miles away I would not have sold it. The only thing I truly hated about the MB was the turbo lag but I didn't view it as a sports car anyway. On the other hand, the comfort seats in the BMW are truly amazing and the feature that got me to seriously consider the change in the first place. A must have option for anyone ordering an X5.

cshull

 

Sounds to me like you needed a ECU flash or something, because with correct throttle application, I find the diesel very responsive and drivable, and never have any doubts about lag cropping up. Just remember that any turbo, and more importantly turbo diesels like you to tip into the throttle more slowly than just mashing it. It helps boost exhaust pressure, get the turbo spinning, and then it can jam in more intake air. I can't imagine the BMW would be that different, but maybe that's where your extra mileage is going... more aggressive fuel mapping?

 

I completely agree! The GL won us by its size, real 3rd row seats, riding comfortness (steady as a boat!), classic/elegant design and top quality finish. Also the price was a big factor. Back to 09/09, we were able to get a GL about $15k less than an equivalent configured X5. As a totally personal taste, the BMW simply looks and feels a level down from the MB, in and out.

If I'm looking for sth for "fun", I won't consider anything SUV/Truck or "car-like", I would go straight to a CAR!

 

I had hoped an ECU flash or something else could be done to fix the really horrible turbo lag, but my stellar dealer said that it was normal. I found myself stepping on the accelerator slightly while the light was still red to "get ready" to go. The BMW is _much_ better in this regard, but I don't really know if my MB was simply not working up to spec and the dealer to lazy to see if they could improve it.

cshull

 

If your 320CDI was experiencing turbo lag like this it was defective, and is not normal. While the turbo takes a little longer than some to spool up, it never seems excessively 'laggy' to me.
Bish

 

Although I love the GL 320, there is no denying the presence of turbo lag. It has it and so does every other turbo diesel, some to a larger degree than others. It's not a matter of flashing the electronics, it's purely mechanical. The variable pitched vanes reduce it somewhat but the twins come closer than all others. They are designed for this purpose by adding a smaller turbo that spools up quicker to give that initial boost.

 

sorry, scotty but the mb engine is not laggy at all if driven correctly, and is working right from the ecu point of view. When I first test drove the 320, I got one fresh of the truck prior to pdi, and it was laggy and almost imposiblebto drive. All the others I have tried have been lag free. Having driven various mopar, porsche, Audi, vw and Saab turbos over the years, I can tell you the mb is the most seamless and lag free I have ever driven. If there is lag, it is an electonic or computer fault. The turbo is small and low pressure with the variable vanes: no reason to feel itthat much

 

great river, I have driven my brother in laws X5 35d, 2010, new with 300+- miles in it. I really didn't like it. IMO, benzs gismos I like it better, I drive is good, but as good as GLs command, if MB command has the iDrive nobe, then Benz rule... I like the sport drive in X5, but don't know how effective it is. Because I didn't push their car hard. Never drive MB GL350d, so I can't compare with it.... but, cshull, you got try the Caddillac Esclade, IMO, not bad at all, 2010 the new one, man I never evedr test drove any American suv's, but this one is just great. but these american cars and trucks have problem, when they were new they very good, in 2-3 years they will be junk...

here is the pictures

 

I hate my 2.0T VW Passat everytime when I merging into the high traffic on the freeway, it takes the engine 3 seconds to response to the gas paddle. (in fact, I'm thinking to sell the car for a non-turbos). I'll never buy any car w/ turbo gas engine again.

If that experience was called "turbo lag", I have to admit I haven't been experiencing it on the 09 GL 320BTC

 

You can rest assured the next generation GL and ML will have the I-drive style knob and bigger screen. Look at all the new restyled MBs (C, E, S, GLK, etc). They have all gotten the knob and bigger screen.

 

Great discussion thread...good to see that not all MBWorld Forum threads degrade into a "why you suck and I rule" exchanges!

I wonder if I'm in the minority in wishing that my '10 GL came with the COMAND knob...I can hardly believe myself typing these words!!

A few years ago, I leased an Audi A8L because I found the MMI to be much more intuitive and effective when compared to the then new BMW iDrive on the 745Li; and when my folks got the E66 750Li a couple of years later, it only confirmed my decision.

Then I tried the new COMAND on an '08 W221 S-class and found it to be the middle player: better than the iDrive but still not as good as the MMI. BUT I also began to see the light why it's better to replace most (not ALL!!) buttons on the center console.

Enter the F01 7-series, which my parents just leased to replace their E66, and I must say BMW made a huge leap forward with the iDrive! To the point that if I have a BMW with the system now, I honestly think I can live happily with it. Now, if only they can figure out the idiotic door lock system when the car goes back into "P" and the driver's side door opens that fails to unlock other doors...they'd have a winner!

So, I think the controller and large display is the way to the future, and I look forward to the next GL with the true new COMAND, not just the display, but the whole kit and caboodle with the joystick controller.

 

That's one thing I like about the MB Forums here. I find most users here mature and able to carry a discussion without resorting to insults.

In any case, you have provided some great input regarding IDrive, MMI, and COMAND. I remember the first time BMW introduced the knob and IDrive (back in 2002-2003) in the e60 5 series and e65 7 series. I thought it was so revolutionary being able to control/integrate audio, phone, navigation, etc with one knob and at the same time, remove so many buttons from the cluttered BMW dash. It was still not very intuitive. Audi then copied it with MMI, and made it much better. (Many automakers since then have copied it too.) For 2010, BMW has really improved the iDrive. As you know, not only is the software better, but they have added buttons (navigation, phone, back, etc) to go along with the knob. It's sort of like a mix of the MB COMAND (the buttons to the left are NAV, PHONE, AUDIO, etc). The knob would remove the bottom right arrow keys on COMAND. Instead of leaving those buttons on the dash, BMW moved them near the shifter/arm rest right next to the knob. I was hoping that for 2010, the GL facelift would add the knob to replace arrow keys, but it didn't happen. However, it has the voice commands and updated COMAND system which is still a HUGE improvement over the 07-08 COMAND system in our GL. I find that for 75% of the time, the voice commands are sufficient enough to perform daily duties (controlling audio, nav, and dialing, without using arrow keys or a knob if it was present).

Other than that, I consider the 2010 GL to be an awesome SUV. I look forward to the revised screen and knob currently present in the S/E/C in the next iteration of the GL.

 

I installed the Kleemann tuner on my GL320 and it is far more responsive from a stand still. Turbo lag is not nearly as noticeable.

 

Agreed, the updated software with the display from the 'new' COMAND is a huge improvement, I had an W211 E63 with the old display and the navigation system improvements alone were worth the price of admission.

I do miss the 507 bhp though...

 

haven't seen the new yet, my oil change is due, next time i will check it out at the dealership