Anecdotal observation, but those oil-burners seem to be having a lot of issues based on what's being posted here. If you scroll through the current forum postings, vast majority are questions/concerns specific to the GL320/350 trucks. Especially disconcerting as I'm presuming diesel production was a lot lower than gassers.

 

This is not a new thing and was discernable many years ago.

 

Diesel production was kept low partly because of demand. The various issues raised mostly belong to the category of "design changes caused by too rapid implementation of questionable environmental controls" Without adequate engineering development time the issues had to be sorted out during production not before production.

 

I haven't been on here that long, but wow, the number of problems really jump out at you! Really a shame, as it seems like a lot of promise from the diesels... but those repair costs outweigh any bonus you get from higher MPG!

Sounds like concurrency with the F35... we'll figure it out on the fly!

 

09 gl320....JUNK

 

Maybe because percentage of 320/350 DIY owners is higher than those of 450 and 550 and they ask more questions on forums vs just taking it to the shop?

I love our 320. And not even thinking about getting rid of it.

 

 

Yes, great point! The members/posts here are not representative of the general pop, and are presumably biased toward the DIY crowd. And that overlaps a lot more with the diesel owners. But still, 80% of the recent posts are from diesel owners? That's really crazy.
Anyone know what production numbers are for the different GL models?

 

Good question but I would have to say that is not the case. I don't have the numbers but a guess would be there are 20:1 or more gas than diesel GL's with a similar proportion on this forum through the years.

I've been on the forum for a long time and have owned my 2007 450 since 2007. Very early on, the pattern with the diesels was evident. The 320's seem to be more reliable but that could be due to the very low number of 320's than 350's and that they don't have the Adblue system. The urea injection is a failure point but the biggest issue across all diesel models is the early and repeated timing chain failures, oil cooler/turbo seal failures, and oil level sensors failures leading to seized engines from the oil leaks.

 

the diesel crowd has always been a bit "different" - more mechanically- aware, more technical, more outspoken, more diy - oriented. thus they have percentage-wise much higher representation on the forums and are much more vocal as they are usually more knowledgeable and enthusiastic.

i can tell you firsthand, that at higher mileage i would rather have the diesel than the gasoline gl. i just saw my 7th v8 motor with worn valve guides and all were under 150k miles.

just my new and updated 2 cents

 

I'm with you on higher mileage. Are they all E47 V8s or E55 as well?

 

+1. Especially DIY or mechanically inclined than gasoline powered GL owners.

 

The diesel problems certainly extend to BMW as well. On my 335D, 8 out of the 10 problems i've had over the last 100k miles have been emissions related. Absolutely love my car though. 40mpg on the highway and can accelerate about as fast as a mustang gt.

 

To answer your questions on the E55. Here is a 402,000 mile E55, see link below. I've driven over 700,000 miles on my MB V8's with no mechanical issues. In fact, two of my MB V8's, E55 and GL450, have very high miles with no engine problems. My E55 has around 200k and my 450 will hit 250k soon. Both run like they are new. The bi-turbo V12 runs great too. Just about to hit 100k on that one. The ABC suspension on the V12 is a whole different issue but the V8 engines are solid.

https://mbworld.org/forums/w211-amg/...yno-video.html

 

Yes I did see that article about E class E55. Very nice.
But my question was about GL V8s. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_M273_engine

 

Yes, I thought I addressed the V8 in the GL above. I'm going on 250k miles on my 450 and runs as good now than it did when new. No added oil at 10k mile oil change intervals and runs as smooth as a sewing machine. Could not be more happy with my V8. I'm glad the 320 I ordered did not arrive on time since I can't imagine the experience would have been the same.

 

I don't think you understood my original question, and that is ok. It was question that only alx could answer because it was directed towards his post.

 

Sorry to keep steering this diesel post towards the gas models, but I'd also be curious on Alx's thoughts about the 4.7 reliability vs. the 5.5.