NYCGLK

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...c60/index.html

Thoughts?

As for me, styling was a deciding factor, as I dislike how all of the other cars look.
I also don't consider Audi to be in the same league as benz. After driving new A4, I felt like I was in VW. And the reliability of Audi is the whole other topic.

MtnMachine

After three test drives of GLK, I agree that GLK steering felt too light, but I will not know until I actually start driving my ordered GLK. I think steering feel, driver seat and visability are three of most important aspects of driving experience. Yes all performance issues are important, but can be ruined by any one of my top three.

Regarding Lexus RX: I owned one and I can only say, driver enthusiast not wanted. Reliable beyond Audi's dreams, great customer service, comfortable, but not a driving experience. Musac driving for the moneyed A to B crowd.

Regarding Audi. I have owned three Audi's since 1980, the latest being 2002 A6 wagon and no Audi in different decades compared to my BMW or Mercedes "first" car. Quality problems beyond abuse. Feel is just not BMW/MB league. IMHO

Regarding Volvo, interesting they did not mention turning radius, weight, or fuel consumption. Credit them for mentioning something minor like a car built on "safety" having worst stopping distance. Helllllo?

No comments about design. Too subjective. I like GLK best, but again, personal.

My soon to be delivered GLK will not be perfect, but it will meet my form, function, performance desires better than the others.

mr.mbenz

here's my 2 cents....

I am deciding between the RDX and GLK....

Honestly, I've been a Honda guy since highschool and must admit that the looks of the GLK is great if not better than the RDX. However, I am still a little skeptical about the German MB due to the fact that in all Consumer Reports it states poor repair history and also very low Customer Satisfaction across the board.
If you get a chance to look into today's current issue, you'll see that MB overall has a very low score. Who's at the top? Scion, Toyota, Honda (mainly the Japs).
So, could the reviewers be more biased for the Audi? in the MotorTrend issue? Possibly. If you read this article carefully, GLK did score high over the competiton, in braking, feel, height clearance, etc. Moreover, the GLK did not satisfy one particulars reviewer?
So...to sum it up...buy what your 'heart' tells you and not your mind. Your mind may get clogged with 'all kinds of stuff', whereas your 'heart' is truly the driving force.

If you can share your experience with MB especially the G-L-K, I would be grateful...

My 2 cents.....

NYCGLK

I wanted RDX when it came out, still think it's a good car FOR the price, but don't like getting 3 year old models. It also had a weird look from the back, but that's persoanl.

I love the way GLK drives and have to regrets. The issues pointed by others are non-existent for me. I don't care about how big rear seats and trunk are. Also this is an SUV so nobody should expect it to handle like a car. I drive in garages everyday and "light" steering has its use.

I did take a few sharp turns (slipping wheels and having traction control come on) and felt comfortable doing that. I have not driven too many cars to compare to, so don't know how much feel is different in other cars. I had '01 V6 camry solara with summer tires and thought that car handled really well. GLK is better and I feel more comfortable driving fast in it. Oh and GLK doesn't feel like its about to fall apart haha. The build quality is really good to me.

On reliability. I was on other forums, and read about guys who had a lot of problems with Acuras (TSX specifically).

GLK doesn't have anything new. Old engine, old transimission, and most of the parts from high volume C class. Of course there will be a few bad apples, but I'm hoping GLK will hold up well. On a side note MB is the most popular car in Russia because of its realibility. Compared to Audi and BMW it's on par with Lexus over there.

mr.mbenz

...quite interesting facts... you're right about "car falling apart". When I was in the showroom, the GLK closes smoothly like a glove. I have sat in the front seat, adjusted to my proper taste, (i'm 5' 11') and then sat in the rear. No problemo. Only getting out was a little tricky. However, going from a car to SUV or CUV takes a while to get used to. Just like any other products. It is said that the C class has greatly improved and as GLK being based on the C class, quality control is up. No wonder it is made in Germany rather in the US where MB had bad marks for their ML launch many years ago.

I will inquire about the service rates, and rate of changing the timing belt as this has a different material and noticed it would need to be maintained differently than competition.

After taking a test drive, another report will be coming. thanks NYCGLK for sharing your thoughts.... anyone else?

webada

blah, car review is like movie review, all very subjective. What makes those "editors" any more qualify to tell me what I like and don't like? If you want to talk about reliability, its not Toyota, BMW or Honda that ranks on top of JD Powers initial quality report, its Buick and Jaguar! That's right, Buick!
If you are worry about reliability, then you should not be looking at a first year model, a general rule of thumb. But if you look at how MB revamped C-class and their new commitment to reliability, then you can place a faith on GLK as I did.

so don't worry about what those reviews says... its so silly. You really need to test drive and test drive and test drive on all the cars that you are interested in and decide for yourself. Some things would matter more to you than others. Like the shifter position of 2010 RX bothers me so much.... obviously its not a concern of any RX owners nor its engineers.....

My decision to go with GLK vs RDX vs RX350 vs X3, is on a balance of quality, performance and price. X3 by far has the best drive, RX has the best interior quailty but GLK is jack of all trades, master of none.

Again, that's my opinion and based on my car owning experience which consists of BMW and nissan/toyota vehicles.

Good luck!

mr.mbenz

...very impactive feedback.... makes me more to consider G-L-K...

Baby G

Well at the end of the day its your call. I would say at least give it a shot and take it out for a test drive. To be frank I was very optimistic when I first saw the car. Before sigining I took the car for 3 test drives in different lightings, and conditions. After each test drive I liked it more and more, and proceed with the purchase.

As said above first year models might have issues, but with the Car sharing so many parts for the C, I dont think it will be bad. Every new car has some issues, on some their is a huge list, while on others it isn't as bad. Now Audi is a brand where their has been lots of issues with the brand label, but you will find some owners who absolutely love their cars and have not had issues in multiple models. There are others who have, and there view point is different.

Give it a test drive, take the GLK for a spin and see how you feel. You might like it, you might hate it, but its a call you will know, upon giving a chance.

Ryan A.

for me it was rather simple why i chose the glk:
1. i find the rx too big. i see it more as a m-class competitor than a glk competitor. also, i find the interior styling to be... ehhh... too futuristic, but not in a good way--as if it were a luxurious honda civic design.
2. the q5, though nice, was a "been there, done that" design. it looks like another jellybean mini-ute. the only thing that really sets it apart are the grille and the tail lights. what i do like about it is the big pano-roof. it's different than the glk's "split" roof.
3. the rdx is a four-cylinder. i find the idea of a four-cylinder premium suv to be contradictory even if it's a turbocharged one. at this price level, i expect smoothness from idle to redline. i have never driven a four-cylinder where i could not feel the vibrations of the engine. plus, i find the rdx to be lacking in the premium features (no power-folding mirrors, only 8-way power driver seat with 2 position memory and 4-way for the passenger, no pano-roof, i don't think it has a power trunk closer). basically, it wouldn't have been much of an upgrade from the loaded mazda6 gt i came from.
4. i'm just not a fan of volvo's styling theme.

and so far, i am very happy with the glk even with its poor fuel economy. i love the stereo, i love the looks, i love the nifty "very mercedes" quirks and touches (like the cruise control) and not once feel a sense of buyer's remorse.

TXGLK

Motor Trend says the steering is too light with no feel, but popular mechanics says otherwise. Actually the two reviews seem the opposite of each other. Everyone has their opinion and I guess the best way to tell is just go test drive for yourself. I fell in love with the GLk with the way it looks and drives.

For those interested in the popular mechanics review: http://www.popularmechanics.com/blog...s/4277012.html

mr.mbenz

keep'on writing and share your thoughts....
some have been very impressive and individual experiences are best

Ryan A.

i find the steering to actually be perfect. it IS lighter than most other cars i've driven, but i like that. i like the fact that i can control the car with just the tip of my index finger, or do a full u-turn with just two fingers. though on the highway, it could use a nice on-center feel, but i always watch the direction i go anyway, so i know when i'm going straight or not.

webada

those guys at MT probably bench 300lbs and eat the geeks at PM for breakfast...

NYCGLK

^^hahah

A couple of my observation about steering. I think it's light but not where I would complain. The matrix I used to drive had much stiffer steering, so what. It didn't feel/handle any better than GLK. Maybe there was some more road a feel, but much less confidence and more vibrations.

Also when I was test driving 3-series, that car had stiff steering. I wouldn't want to drive that car in indoor garages an parking lots as I do everyday, you really need to put some effort. Great at fast speed, but almost annoying at parking lot speeds.

On a side note when in going through slow turns GLK's steering wheel doesn't self center as fast and you have to turn it back to go straight. Also, I think E-class steering is way lighter than GLK's.

Good feedback, nice to hear where GLK compares to other cars.

jd808

I will agree the steering is lighter than I expected, but nothing too bad.
Honestly what sold me the most with this car vs the others (volvo xc60 and x3) we were considering was the cost and finance rate. 1.90% for a benz is hard to pass up.

Baby G

+1 on my test drive I found the E-Class streering extremely light...

asiandude

Here is my opinion on the steering...
During the test drive I felt that the steering feedback with the 20" wheels was rather bland...it had this isolated feel that I was not quite prepared for.
In perspective, the BMW3 series sedans also have a very 'numb' feel to their steering...
But I sure like the GLK design alot more than the 3 series sedans/wagons...so scratch the BMW off my list

webada

BMW numb? really? that's news to me... Are you referring to road feedback or steering? two different thing.

I agree GLK steering is light but I'm used to it now. I know i'm not getting a sports car/sedan nor a sports SUV so I'm content.

asiandude

Steering feel and feedback are kind of intermingled IMO.
The BMW's steering was heavy and lazy feeling...which IMo would lead to poorer feedback.
Compared to my '02 M Coupe and my '06 Mini GP...the current 3 series is a 'lazy' steering car. In fact, the C63 AMG is much better in the steering department.

webada

were you driving 3series with xdrive?

drove a 08 coupe, none of the lazy steering u r referring to.

asiandude

no...drove a 328i sedan and a 335i coupe...both felt heavy and lazy to me

NYCGLK

I'm sure 02 M and Mini have totally different steering feel from 3 series and def GLK. Let's not forget BMW is not trying to make 3 series handle like a lotus elise, it's still a luxury car and supposed to do two opposite things be sporty and comfy.

GLK is an SUV. It is supposed to be more comfy than sporty, and not gonna have the same road feel. It's blessing that it doesn't feel like a big heavy suv, never mind a sport sedan. It's all about the preference and the purpose of the car. For me, I don't have roads for sport sedans, that's why I went SUV route. Was I back in CT, I would be driving AWD 3 series.

Ballsofsteel

Check out this article - its from a benz lovers prospective - but there are alot of good valid points

https://pictures.dealer.com/sonicben...f72d067fca.pdf

mr.mbenz

thanks Ballsofsteel for sharing this vital information...
truly I can make my decision more clearly

NYCGLK

While this is nice highlight of features and I think GLK is better than the other two, this reivew is not a way to compare cars. It is so biased it's not even funny.

First we are comparing old (3 years?) and very old (5-6 years?) models. Second, many points are just silly and very subjective, and some are just not true (i.e there is not RDX is not CRV, not even close).

Bottom line this thing was made by MB dealer and it shows.