Jason B

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/n...-variants-line

gkgeiger

Just saw on the news that Germany is trying to ban Diesels from a few major cities. That could be tough with one third of their cars being diesel powered.

a2j

This is because we are not burning enough fuel with our diesel powered vehicles. So, they want to ban them.

BlownV8

LOL.

ddruker

My 2011 GL 350 is about to come out of the extended warranty - 7 years expires at the end of next month. At 71,000 miles, it is in the dealer this week to fix an oil leak at the rear of the engine under warranty - I'm not sure if it is going to be the oil cooler seal for the second time, or the rear main seal, or the turbo seals - I will find out soon. I'm amazed I haven't had to replace the suspension airbags yet - I will do that myself when it comes time - and that's about the only major common failure I've not experienced with this truck at least one or twice.

While I was at the dealer, I spoke with their sales manager about the future of the GL. I am not sure if I want to continue to own this truck without a factory warranty in place - it had been having some sort of expensive failure about once a quarter. He said they have no guidance on whether diesels will ever come back in North America, but he said he thinks the focus at Mercedes is on electric powertrains and not diesel. His suggestion was to look for a used 2016 GL350. One of these with an extended warranty would mean protection through 2023.

I looked at values today - my 2011 GL350 with $70k miles is worth about $21,000 according to KBB. A 2016 GL 350 with 20k miles is worth about $55,000. So seems to me the tradeoff is about spending about $35,000 to have a newer truck covered by warranty for six years. So the marginal cost is about $6,000 per year...

When you look at it this way, and given over the last three years the warranty repairs that have been needed on my GL would cost more than $6,000 per year, it's an interesting trade-off. Even assuming switching to an independent for major repairs, with the cost of repair going down by 50%, it's still interesting financial calculus - is it worth it for an expected $3,000 per year over six years to move to a 2016.

I would never be thinking this way if the annual cost of owning the GL350 wasn't so high - my other two vehicles are both low mileage 2001's and still going strong - for every other vehicle but this truck, the combined cost of depreciation plus repair should be coming down dramatically after seven years. Not so for this vehicle...

BlownV8

Why do you want another diesel? Do you tow most of the time?

mefferso

Probably the same reason most people in this category buy diesels, for the substantially higher fuel mileage.

BlownV8

There is no savings given the money he is throwing into maintenance and repairs. I run regular unleaded in my GL and have done so for around 150k miles. Regular is already around 20% lower than diesel in my area and, given the extra cost of maintenance on the diesel, there is no benefit to the diesel unless you use it to tow.

ddruker

Yes I tow a 30 foot Airstream... I like 27 MPG in the GL350 when I'm not towing, but the fuel cost savings is pretty minor compared with the overall cost of the vehicle - here in Calfornia diesel and gasoline are usually about the same price, but fuel is mouse nuts compared with the total cost of ownership of the GL. Mostly what I like about the diesel GL is not having to buy a half ton pickup to tow my airstream in addition to having an SUV for the family, an old Saab for my teenagers, and a very impractical convertible I also have.

Trying to decide if I should start to think about selling the 2011 and picking up a 2016 certified previously owned GL350, or just wait and see if the 2011 magically gets more reliable when the 7-year extended warranty fully expires next month. I like the truck when it's not in the shop.

BlownV8

Sell and get a new one with a warranty. Repeat as necessary. Well, you will need to change brands after the next one. I don't believe MB is bringing back the diesel to the US.

Jason B

Keep it! The new one looks like a minivan without the fenders and rear end/tails look like a bus. Just go with an aftermarket extended warranty for peace of mind. There are many good ones!

ddruker

Thanks!

I am getting the GL back from the dealership tomorrow - just had the dreaded oil cooler seal leak repair for the second time, and also replaced the motor mounts and motor mount arms, both of which were also damaged and leaking. So would have been another $5,000 of repairs if I didn't have an extended warranty. The total repairs under warranty and extended warranty on my GL 350 are somewhere above $30,000 now - for just 70k miles - seems to me to be amazingly poor reliability. At this point the only major expensive common repair my GL 350 hasn't had is the air suspension - I'm sure that's coming soon.

I did a bunch of research and found that folks have had good experiences with the USAA extended warranty for the GL - I think I will buy a year of that which will give me a bridge to buying a newer model GL 350. The USAA policy only about $1,500, and it is transferable and has zero deductible, so I just think of it as pre-paid maintenance.

BlownV8

I'll vouch for the USAA warranty. The only downside is they can be slow to send an inspector and slow to give approval but they will cover some expensive issues and did so on my SL. Make sure your wheels are stock and there have been no modifications since they can deny based on a modified vehicle.