South Ocean1

Fabbrisd1

As always, thanks for your very helpful insights!

Velociraptor, are you still out there? Are you building any production GL63s now for export? November was supposed to be the outside North America launch date?

Thanks

sam9187

I finally placed an order with an AMG Performance Center for:

2013 GL63 Iridium Silver with designo Porcelain
Designo Black piano wood
Designo wood / leather Steering Wheel
Rear Entertainment System
Trailer Hitch
B&O Sound System
Rear Sunshades
Accessory Chrome Package
Night View Assist

Are there delays in production or is the first build still in Feb?

xxGenericSNxx

Excellent build. Did you basically get every option?
Did you get the heated wheel in additional to the Designo one, or is that not possible?

Tomshop

I do not believe you can get the heated steering wheel. I would eliminate the Night View. Popular consensus is it is a waste of money.

sam9187

I think I did get most options. I don't think it's possible to get heated steering wheel with wood/leather but I don't need heated steering wheel in Texas. The only question is when will MB allocate these to dealers and start building the GL63's.

I was going to get the 550 but then thought it is better to go with the 63.

sam9187

I was debating that. I think I will call on Monday and delete that option. Is it because its not accurate? Hard to see?

Tomshop

There is a thread here on it. It is hard to use and has limited benefit. When you are driving in the dark are you really going to look at your NAV?

sam9187

AMG steering wheel vs designo wood/leather - Any thoughts?

Tomshop

Personally I prefer the feel of leather to wood on the steering wheel.

xxGenericSNxx

Just keep the night vision. It's a cool gadget and at this point, you may as well get everything.

AMG wheel vs. wood/leather is up to you. Just depends what kind of look you want on the interior. If you wish for more luxurious then go for the wood leather, if you wish for a more sporty appearance and more aggressive grips, go for the AMG.

fabbrisd1

Let's get to the heart of the matter on the "order" and not play wishful games:

1) What did Park Place tell you the MSRP is for your truck as you have spec'd it ?I am not asking about delivery price discussion - I am asking about MSRP only.

2) what exactly did Park Place tell you is the target delivery delivery date when you "placed your order"

3) On your "order" did they give you, or did they tell you when they will give you a Mercedes PO# as confirmation of the specifications of your exact order ?

On a GL63, really defeats the whole AMG thing have anything other than the AMG wheel.

sam9187

Thank you fabbrisd1 for your comments. I ended up not going with Park Place Motors. They have 12 people on the list already. If I went with them I would not seen the car for a long time. A rep at park place did tell me if I went with them the delivery would be sometime in June as they are expecting 3 a month. Since GL 63 will be limited, 3 a month seems overly optimistic.

I went with an AMG center on the east coast. I am no 2 in line. They did not give me a date but they think March if they are no delays. The MSRP for system was around $114 but like I posted before I don't know if its accurate. The base price of the car in net star is $99,999 - some dealers told me its because the price has not been released.

No PO number yet since allocations are not in. They mentioned since they are an AMG performance center the allocations are guaranteed as they get priority. As soon as allocations come through a PO number will be issued. I am getting better at understanding MB order system. Many dealers are not forthcoming on allocations but want to make you believe that the order is accepted by MB in order to get the deposit and in turn a commitment. Some quickly changed the story once they realized I knew the ordering process more than the average customer (thanks to this forum and thank you fabbrisd1)

Thanks for your insight on the steering wheel. I guess I have ample time to decide.

JimBarnhart

Here's my review of Night View:

https://mbworld.org/forums/gl-class-...sist-plus.html

I'd spend the money elsewhere, whatever you spend it on will be a better investment than this feature.

xxGenericSNxx

I did read your review. I'd just like to get it for the cool gadget feature.

blittle

Thanks Jim....! If it weren't for us "old" first adopters.....the others would not benefit, right?!

sam9187

I deleted the wood/leather steering wheel - going with the AMG wheel.

xxGenericSNxx

The 2013 SL63 that I saw today had a wood sport steering wheel that did have the AMG style sport bumps on the top. I wonder on the GL63 if your Designo wood wheel is a "sport" one or more of a standard one with no sport grips or bumps.

sam9187

My research on the ML forum suggests its a standard one - same one as in a GL450 or 550. The paddle shifters in the wood/leather wheel are not the same as the AMG - I think they are plastic instead of metal. Based on this I am going with the AMG wheel.

South Ocean1

Sam9187

Wow - you are not messing around with that build . . .

The silver on porcelain combo will be really sharp. I'm going with the wood steering wheel as well as I prefer that lux look in an SUV.

Like you, I am really curious about when allocations will be made. It has got to be soon if there will be a February build. Thanks for also providing perspective on the length of the queues at some AMG centers. Not sure whether the 12 in line at Park Place or the 2 at your East Coast dealer is more reflective of higher/lower demand.

Kind regards.

sam9187

Thanks. I deleted the wood/leather steering wheel. I did research on this and many in the ML63 forum are advising against the wood/leather steering as its a standard wood/leather steering - same one as in the GL450/550. Few people that were going for the wood/leather and then switched to AMG steering were glad they did once they got their cars.

As far as demand is concerned its hard to gauge. There are 28 AMG performance centers - I must have called roughly half of them. Most had 2 people in line with 12 (at Park Place) being the most. There is a dealer in FL that has 6 but most had 1 or 2. I am not sure what to make of Park Place as the SA also said they had 60-70 on the list for the next S class - again seems excessive to me. Also most AMG centers don't sell to out of state clients with the fear that these cars will be exported and then they get penalized by MB.

I am hoping the build starts in February but the thing is that no one at any of these centers know when the allocations will be made. With the US launch soon there seems to be a disconnect between the factory and dealers - not sure what to make of that. The consensus was that nothing will be done until after the end of the year as MB is focusing on year of end sales. The factory is apparently closed the first week of January so probably middle of January is when we will find out more.

cookstar

I still do not understand why anyone would get on a wait list for a vehicle that is non existant at the moment. There is also a problem with most first batch vehicles coming off the assembly line not having many features that were advertised and marketed. For example a dealer downtown tried to lock me in for a GL in May 2012 when there was no info about the vehicle besides spy shots..... than I found out that the first batch of cars that came out did not have the surround view camera and a bunch of other stuff.... I just dont get it, especially at 100K+ price range. I am in the market for an S class for 2014-2015 as well but would never put down a deposit until all the details have been released and I can drive the car.

sam9187

I assume you are talking about the S class. If so then yes I cannot understand it either. I myself am in the market for the 2014 S class but again will not put down a deposit so far in advance. I am going to wait until its announced - early next year.

cookstar

yep, I was referring to the S-Class, for the GL63 I understand putting a deposit in now because the vehicle is already out and you have a very clear sense of what the car is like minus the performance factor.

Funny thing is when you mention this to MB dealers they give you a look like your crazy for wanting the car to come out first before you put a deposit down... I walked away from 2 dealers because of this sole issue.

Tomshop

Has anyone seen Anthracite Poplar wood?

sam9187

The SA at Park Place thought I was out of my mind for not putting down a deposit for the S-class that has not even been announced and will not be for months.