After eighteen months and almost 10k miles it was time to say goodbye. Ironically, I traded in a 2022 GLE 63 that I put 12k miles on for it. Main reasons (there are two) is I'll be doing thousands of miles going cross country next year with various stops to see family members across different parts of the country.

1.) A Lamborghini Urus is a little too flashy for this as I'd be going through parts of St. Louis, Atlanta and other areas that would be unknown to me. A new MB (alpine grey) will definitely fly under the radar much better. Even though it's a 63 almost no one will know the difference. It will be just another "nice" SUV as there are lots on the road.

2.) There are many things that really bug me about the Urus. First was no surround view camera. Are you kidding me on an expensive SUV. What happened is that it was standard for the Urus but an upgrade for the Urus Performante. Most salesman and managers who ordered the car initally didn't catch that and I was caught up in that. Everytime I had to use reverse that would just gnaw at me. Next up, safety features. As far as I'm concerned MB is one of the best in the business.

I was very bothered by the way blind spot assist worked. Turn signal indicator in the Urus is amber. Also, the blind spot warning is in amber on the inner portion of the mirror housing. Seeing the amber blind spot for a split second makes my brain think it's the turn signal and vice versa. I have no idea why this is not RED like in the MB. Red means stop/don't go. Why amber? In the MB you have an audible alert with the blind spot as well if you decide to turn it on. No audible at all in the Urus. In addition, many of the features in the MB are active/evasive not so in the Urus.

Little things: two very tiny sized cupholders, a center console deep enough for an iphone (not kidding), no configurable HUD, can only use cruise control in strada (comfort) mode. Also, the Urus Performante has 23 inch wheels and a set of tires are 5K. This would be a very harsh ride on 23s and even more so in the Performante because it has steel springs instead of air suspension.

GLE 63 will be like driving on a cloud with 21-inch wheels and all the cool features for this type of travel. I'll have heated/cooled cup holders and a decent center console. I ordered a loaded GLE 63 for 150K which is less than half the price of a Urus. Urus is a great car and I enjoyed my time with it. However, it's not worth the price and yes you are partly paying for the badge. I will also say the Urus is a better built and more reliable car then an MB. Had zero issues the entire time of ownership. Wish I could say that about an MB. My 2022 GLE 63 had its share of problems (fuel pump recall, air suspension module, etc..,). Next, my 2023 C63 was a lemon law buyback (have a thread on that - just search). Even though with the shortcomings of MB. I feel this is the best decision for my needs. Nice extra bonus is the MB dealer is less than ten minutes from my house. I'll close it out with some Urus Performante pics.

 

Sorry for your troubles - glad your life will be back in order soon

 

OP, all the best! I still remember the pain you had with the lemon law buy back I wish you all the best with the coming vehicles.

 

The Urus has a few Lamborghini specific parts, but most comes straight form the Audi parts bin. If you look under the covers you'll find the Audi rings on almost every part. The way blind spot assist works in the Urus is how it works in Audis, because it's the same system. All the things that bother you are Audi systems. I had a similar complaint with the blind spot assist in my previous Audis. Found it largely useless. I rarely even noticed the amber warning light in the mirror housing. Mine actually had a malfunction and in stop&go traffic it eventually disabled itself. It was some software bug that had issues when the cars around it weren't moving. Audi refused to update it because I had PPF on the rear bumper and they blamed it on the PPF even though it was a known software bug. Funny thing is that when it disabled itself, I didn't notice for days, that's how useless the system was. You could have gotten an Audi RS Q8 for a lot less money and probably 90% of what the Urus is and fly under the radar, but then you'd still have those Audi systems that bother you.

 

Thanks for the Urus evaluation. I am in a Cayenne now and have the Urus on a “maybe” list. Performante with steel springs is the same setup as the Cayenne Turbo GT. Enthusiast focused and trackable - not my use case and sounds like not yours.

I have air suspension on the Cayenne and it is top notch for both comfort and handling. I can imagine a 63 on air would be nice. As you mentioned, MB quality is sub par and inexcusable. Having said that, I am considering a 53 or 580 for a Cayenne replacement, in addition to moving to a newer Cayenne.

I need 7k towing and I want air ride and low-4s 0-60 (or better) with acceptable reliability. Not a BMW or Audi fan so that leaves MB and Porsche in the midsize segment. GX is a candidate but it is bigger than I need.

 

Exactly. I knew all of that about the RS and wouldn't even have considered it. I much prefer MBUX and the one long "surfboard" screen. Not a fan of the big center screen stuck on the center console like in the GLC and other MB products. I'm also not interested in the 2027, whatever that may be as well. I've heard hybrid, big screen in the middle. Sounds like a lot of initial bugs and growing pains. Nice thing is if this is the last W167, I know it's pretty sorted. If I do have any issues like I said, dealer is minutes from my house and I've bought several cars from them over the years and have a good relationship with them.

 

Ride in the Urus never bothered me, as I've become accustomed to stiff riding sports cars over the years. Main thing was, it's too flashy, safety and convenience features for such a big trip. If not for those, I would have been fine with the ride. There is also no option for a trailer hitch from the factory for a Urus at least on the Performante from what I remember.

 

I agree with you, not an audi fan at all either, but I would recommend giving BMW a shot, they've surpassed MB in quality recently. The X5 M60i surpasses your towing requirement, but I would HIGHLY recommend the ALPINA XB7. It's a different beast and drives beautifully while maintaining a sport character when needed.

 

I have a 21' AMG GLE 63S SUV and a 22' Urus and found similar findings.

The Urus is better than the AMG when it comes to:
1.prestige (300k price tag)
2.exterior styling
3.transmission (ZF)
4. exhaust (akrapovic)
5. 0-100 performance

Thats where the advantages end, interior wise it's too much Audi, having had a Q7 before you can't shake that feeling.

The steering wheel in the AMG feels much more premium than the Urus (too much plastic and Audi)

MBUX is night and day better

Burmester High End 3D Soundsystem (4.5k) is significantly better than the B&O in Urus which is nearly 8K

AMG engine note is deeper and richer than Urus

AMG doesn't use fake engine noise piped in through speakers (Urus Corsa mode drove me crazy till I pulled the fuse for the fake engine noise)

Massage seats, heating, and ventilation is night and day better in the AMG

Safety features, LCA, Self-Parking, etc all significantly better in the AMG

Voice assistant incredibly useful in AMG (2 phones, read text messages, dictate text messages, make phone calls, route guidance, etc)

AMG still has buttons (double touch screen is a big minus for me)

More interior room in the AMG

I would take the AMG hands down any day, similar performance but much better as a daily for comfort/features.

The Urus you're really flexing the exterior and the pricing but for personal enjoyment and features the AMG is just better all around, the fact that it's half the price is crazy.

 

I have a VIN and it will be here in the next week or so. Will post pics. Anyone know if there is a difference betweem MY 2025 and MY 2026? Can't find anything definitive.

 

Ordered it October 30th (2026 GLE 63S AMG) and it came in late Friday (Feb. 20, 2026). I picked it up yesterday, Saturday (Feb. 21, 2026). Wasted no time and got up early and went for a drive to Zion National Park this morning.

This is my second GLE 63. Ironically I traded my first one (2021 GLE 63 Coupe) for the UP. To me this is a better car all the way around compared to the Urus especially for the price. The GLE with every option (except CCM brakes) was 150K my UP was 330K. There is now way the UP is worth twice as much as this car with 30K leftover. I can see maybe $230K for the UP but not 330K. UP is 100K overpriced in my opinion. You're paying for the badge. Then to add insult to injury you have to hear the "Audi" comparison. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed my 18 months and 10k miles I put on the UP. It was time to move on is all.

 

Not as flashy is an understatement lol - definitely more prudent as a daily. The Urus is still on my short list...