I am thinking about getting out of my wife's R350 for either a GL450 or 320 CDI, 2007 or 2008. Questions:

1. I understand the gas mileage differences, but with diesel fuel higher is there any real dollar saving? Also, do the 450's NEED premium fuel? I always run regular in the R but of course run premium in my S55.

2. How is the diesel's acceleration versus the V8? It has lots of torque of course so I would think it would be similar performance wise?

3. I live in SC where it gets plenty hot. Is the 2 zone AC adequate or should I look for the rare 3 zone? Does the 3 zone actually cool any better?

4. Is the rear entertainment worth looking for? It seems to be somewhat antiquated what with wired headphones? I have a bag unit we use in the R with infrared headphones so what am I gaining with a built in unit?

5. What are the major issues / known defects? I am only considering either CPO or extended warranty vehicles but I want to know what to look for on the VMI.

 

1. I have the 320. Fuel prices vary by region. Where I live, diesel is 7-10% more expensive. Diesel engines are typically 30% more efficient than gas. You do the math.

2. The diesel is sluggish between a standing start up to about 20mph. After that, it takes off. You will also need to get used to not over reving the engine. Its power is at lower rpms. Once you get used to it, it is very comfortable to drive but it takes getting used to. Accelerating when you are already moving is effortless. On the freeway for instance, you have a ton of acceleration for passing. I think that the 320 has the best sounding diesel engine available. Actually, one of the best sounding engines period. I will definitely buy another one if I get another gl.

3. I purchased mine from Carlton in Greenville. They are a great dealership that stands behind their cars. They replaced 3 wheels that were damaged by overtightened lugs with really no questions asked. $745 each. It's that kind of treatment that makes you less price sensitive when you buy. Other dealers should take note. I don't have the three zone. The gl vents old air in the back by the third row, and uniformally heats and cools. I think it moves a huge volume through the car and is insulated really well. I have never had a complaint about the temp in the third row and I've spent a lot of time in SC and South FL. I can't say enough about how good the temp control is and my gl is black. That is something you get when buying a mb.

4. I don't have the rse. I have toddlers that would beat the daylights out of the monitors. If I had older kids though, I would want it for long drives. I have portable players and don't like them.

5. I would look through this board. The 07s and 08s seem to have a few more issues but used ones will probably have the problems addressed. Most problems are minor.

Good luck!

 

In my area diesel is no more than 10c more expensive than regular currently, although this varies depending on the season.

Power is certainly adequate and on the highway pretty effortless. As mentioned, once you are used to the characteristics of the powertrain, it becomes easy to drive 'around' the low reving nature of the engine;

I have the RSE and it is fine. I would want it for children; otherwise its not necessary;

We have the three zone A/C and the truck does an excellent job of maintaining the temperature that is set.

Only minor issues with our 320CDI in 21K miles. Highly recommended.

Bish

 

As long as you don't need winter tires, I'd say go with the 320. I love mine but would not get another due to the fact that there is NO run flat winter tire option for the bluetec and the "all weather" runflats are inadequate in comparison to my 3 previous SUVs (which is a major bummer for me in the Northeast). SC doesn't have the same weather issues!

 

It may not snow mucvh in SC but we do drive to skiing quite a bit. Just drove the R to CO and back and needed chains from SanteFe to Pagosa springs.

Why is the "no winter" tire option. Why would they have to be run flats? Do the newer GLs come with run flats and no spare? What did they put in the spare tire well? Why can't you run non-runflat winter tires?


Also, seems like there are a lot of 07 and 08 showing up on the used market right now. Leases coming up? Anyone got a loaded, clean heavily optioned GL lease they have coming due that wants to sell?

 

I've been round and round on this. The Bluetecs use run flats because the Adblue reservoir takes up the space for the spare tire. I've spoken with Mercedes Customer Care but they were of no real help.

PS. There also is no room for chains according to them with the 20" tires that come with the vehicle.....

They suggested non run flat winter tires but I am not really keen on not having a spare tire. Running well in snow and slush is an important thing for me with my cars and quite honestly I would not have gone with the car if I had known that the run flats were so inadequate and that there was no solution to it! I feel this should have been disclosed in some way before the sale.

 

Why not take the approach that Porsche uses? My GT3 does not have a spare tire and it certainly doesn't have run flat tires. All I have is a can of fix flat in the boot. Oh, and a cell phone for AAA.

 

07 and 08 GL320s don't use runflats. 09's and later do due to the Adblue tank and not having a spare on board. You can put whatever you wan't on the 07 and 08's. There are a lot of discussions on this board about what you can put on the 19" wheels. I won't comment on the 20" runflats and winter driving characteristics because it doesn't sound like your interested in an 09 or 10.

07's are probably coming off lease. The economy is terrible. I'm sure there are a lot of people that can't afford to own one right now. I would think (but don't know) that the luxury used car market would be good for buyers. Particularly BMW's and MB's since the maint out of warranty is so expensive.

 

Definitely leaning toward 08 and maybe a 550 as they seem to have standard a lot of the options I would want on a 450.

 

Diesel costs here in the NW are consistently LESS than premium gas (which is what you would use in the 550). Mileage for the '08 should be about double that of the 550 (even better for the '07). For both traction and mileage find the narrowest tires you can - 18" better than 19 or 20. Wider tires make the water on wet roads travel farther to the edge of the tire thus are more likely to hydroplane.
Diesels will have consistently MUCH better resale values when (if) you ever decide to sell the car. Especially Mercedes diesels.

 

Dude, I thought you were concerned about gas mileage? According to Edmunds, the 08 550 is about $16,000 more. You'll pay another $1000 a year in fuel for the 550. Make sure you know what you're getting into.

 

Dude,

I am considering a GL, why would you think I was concerned about gas mileage???? I was simply asking if the Diesels actually got real world MPGs that justified the higher in general diesel fuel price. If I was CONCERNED about gas mileage I' be looking at friggin Hondas. I currently drive an R and a modded S55. Do ya think mileage is my major concern?

What I think I have found out is that the diesels will indeed result in lower fuel operating costs but at the expense of hp (ut not torque) so just get used to a lower rev life (like driving my buddies F250 turbo diesel). Plus the inital cost of the diesels is higher as they seem to hold their value better. BUT, you get more out on the resale end.

I GET totally that a 450 or 550 will most likely only return 14 or so around town and less than 20 on trips. Beats the hell out of an Armada / Infinit QX I am considering instead.

As far as the 450 versus the 550, a MPG or two difference and lots of $'s may be worth it to get the much higher standard level of equipment the 550s offer. Otherwise I will be looking from now until forever trying to find a 450 with all the options I want. I HAD the perfect 450 on a trade and waited a day to think it over and it was sold out from under me I'll just be patient and wait for the right truck to come to market and be ready to pull the trigger this time! It ain't like they are appreciating!

 

Just thought from your first post that mileage was a concern. That's all.

Good luck finding your GL!

 

If fuel is not a concern, I would rate the cars, in order, GL550, GL450, and lastly the GL320/350. The drivablilty of the 320/350 is not as nice as that of the 550 or 450 but the 320/350 excells in mileage and resale and possibly long term engine durability.

Drive them all and see which one you like the best. I originally had a 320 on order but switched to a 450. I really like the acceleration and overall powerband of the 450 while I didn't really care for the 320. The the extra MPG's of the 320 sure would have been nice. The 320/350 is fine but you have to really get used to the acceleration characteristics or lack there of. The GL 420 would be the best of both worlds with huge low end torque for towing and enough hp for quick acceleration.

 

I never understand what people are talking about when they mention acceleration is weaker on the 320 vs the 450. I drove both when we were kicking tires and found the 320 to have a smoother more comfortable acceleration and plenty quick - the 450 always seemed jerky and not as an enjoyable experience. Also, how could you say 'drivability' is not as nice in the 320? Besides the motor - the 450 & 320 share most everything. I would say that the drivability of the 320/450 are not as good as a 550 though. I know I am biased as are you - especially making the change to a 450 in the buying process. But I have found my 320 to be an outstanding mileage/driving/luxury cruise ship machine. If a person is going to tow anything and/or live in hilly/mountianous areas - the diesel is a no brainer! Just my 2 cents!

 

One does 0-60 in 6.6 seconds and the other does it in 9 seconds. That may be one issue. I know it was for me. Not that I drive fast but I want to be able to accelerate quickly when merging into traffic. The 450 gives instant acceleration while the 320 has to build up boost for acceleration and is sluggish off the line. The 320's acceleration could be greatly improved with a twin turbo system to help the low end boost.

 

Just recently I got my 2nd Mercedes with the 7-speed transmission, this time with the 350 gasoline V6.

I'm more convinced than ever now, that the "transmission" problems with diesel GLs are due to the diesel engine match with the transmission. It's flawless on the SLK, and it's a year older.

 

Just my opinion - but if you need that extra 2.4 seconds - maybe an SUV was the wrong choice! I've never not been able to merge quickly - I am a quick driver - always ahead, never the one following. Just don't want people to ge the impression that the diesel is slow, because it is anything but. There is a mild hesitation at times due to turbo lag - but again, it's not a big deal. The diesel benefits far outweigh the trivial issues it has.

I also have no issues with the tranny in my '08 - was there an issue with the '07?

Maybe I got the best 2008 diesel they ever made??

 

Came out of a 600+ HP bi-turbo CL600 to the GL. The GL320 was too much of a shock. You think the 320 has torque....not so much. Try around 800 lb-ft in a modified CL.

I needed the extra space of the GL but could not justify the extra $10,000 for the 550 so the 450 was a perfect fit. So far, I really enjoy my GL but I do miss the acceleration of the CL. I think I would be miserable with the acceleration characteristics of the GL320 but with the number of miles I drive it may have been a better fit. A GL420 would have been perfect.

 

[quote=BlownV8;3903138]Came out of a 600+ HP bi-turbo CL600 to the GL. The GL320 was too much of a shock. You think the 320 has torque....not so much. Try around 800 lb-ft in a modified CL. [quote]

This is sort of where I am coming from in that my DD is a Kleeman stage 4 S55 and I am not sure I would be happy with the 320 when I do drive it (the wife's DD). It may sound trivial but power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely! Maybe I need a 550 with a blower? Did they make a GL 63 or 65?

 

I am coming over to my first MB from a long list of BMWs. I currently have a heavily modified e92 M3. I had a new body style X5 which had the inline 6cyl engine. Not the best for acceleration, but I found that two things made up for it: the excellent transmission which I always shifted manually and the handling. They made up for the fact that I took a little extra time to accelerate.

We are picking up a GL350 in a week. What I found with this vehicle is that it is just a boat. If you buy this vehicle, I think you have to reconcile that fact. While I look forward to appreciating MB's long term quality (what I have been told), I think that their engineers should consider making the stock suspension firmer. Or at least find a way to make the EDC a standard option on ALL the SUV models. My understanding from MB Canada is that the EDC is not offered on the GL350 owing to the AdBlue tank.

If I did not by the GL350 specifically for the diesel engine and the extra space (these were our two priorities), I would have been all over a lightly used GL550 from cars.com. I think that vehicles stance, front grill presentation, and likely better handling with the 21" rims would be phenomenal. But, I could not justify the increase in fuel consumption/cost. I have my M3 for that. To the OP, seeing that this vehicle is for your wife (as it is for mine), do you need the neck snapping acceleration?

On a side note, we borrowed an GL350 from our dealer for 24hrs to evaluate. When my wife was driving it, I have to admit, I was quite impressed with how she took off from red lights. It's not an AMG or M vehicle, but I think you would be sufficiently impressed with it.

One other board member who I cannot remember had what I considered to be the best analysis of the virtue of diesel over gas with respect to mileage...he compared the premium (or lack thereof) of diesel over gas and compared that to the increased percentage in mileage for the diesel. For example, in my city, diesel is 90.9c/litre and premium is 100.9 cents/litre. So, on top of saving money on the fillup, we can go about 1000km on a tank as opposed to 500km on the 550. What I am saying is that diesel would have to be about 40-50% more expensive than premium for the extra mileage to be a non-factor.

I will be more than happy to share more once we pick up ours next Wednesday. For some reason, I find the Mercedes forums as a whole to be very slow relative to the BMW ones. Somewhat bizarre and not really sure why. I would be happy to share any information from my experience. I am planning to try the Braebus lowering module, and possible put the 21" AMG rims on as well.

At any rate, good luck with your decision!