Baby G

Congrats time to change signature eh...

GLK4MATIC

I purchased my GLK in March and have put 8000 miles on it. I am enjoying the way the motor seems to run better and better as time passes. 2 things that I don't like are the gas mileage and the way the door handles are starting to squeak. Besides that everything seems to be fine to me, even though I thrash on it quite often.

webada

door handle squeaking is a big problem.... try going uphill and downhill, the handle will be squeeze and make plastic sounds.... especially in cold weather. Today in NYC was hot, and I left my car outside for a while. The plastic heated up and no longer squeaks.... very disappointed... my 10 yr old bmw has less cabin nosie then this.

chilledbenz

If you have been a frequent visitor of this site you will have noticed something odd about the GLK. It apparently doesn't have very many problems! I found this site when I ordered my 08 C class, I went to the C board and it was post after post of problems. Everything ranging from minor, to major and if you go there now there are still posts about problems that MB still hasn't fixed. This goes for all new MB products and for any new car really regardless of make or model. So its a pleasant surprise to see so few complaints on the GLK, there were only a handful when it first launched and now there hasn't been anything for quite awhile.

NYCGLK

oh man sorry to hear that, have you asked dealer about it. I'm close to 1k after a mix of some tough hills, highways and local, destroyed NJ roads still feel like driving a tank (esp. after econ car) know on wood. I hope these noise won't start popping out soon.

e430

I hope this has nothing do with fact that most of non 4Matic C-class is assembled in South Africa for US market versus ALL the GLK for Canada & US is assembled in Germany.

I may be old fashion but I want my German engineer car or truck to be assembled in Germany.

chilledbenz

No, point of assembly apparently has nothing to do with reliability. Mine was made in Germany (w204 C300 4matic) and I still had a semi major problem. It's good to see the GLK breaking that trend, hope the new E is just as solid as I might be replacing my lineup with a new E and a GLK in a couple years.

webada

maybe i'm ****, but the noise is actually very faint. you would have to turn off the stereo and listen for it. Regardless, it should not have been there. Also, I garage my car but if I left the GLK out on a sunnyday, no noise. This indicates plastic expansion when heated and resulting in tighter fit.. going to call dealer and see what's up.

Kyousuke

So is the gas mileage really bad for a car this size? The Lexus RX, being a bigger car and heavier car, actually has better gas mileage than the GLK...

NYCGLK

If you are concerned about gas mileage there is Honda CR-V, Hybrid Highlander and 4 cyl. rav4, or even better prius and insight.

I've been getting about 17 mpg in a mix of highway/local. Highway is usually at 80mph, and I like to floor it here and there from a stop. Not sure what difference 2-3 mpg would really make compared to Lexus. I came from a 4 cyl econ. car that uses regular gas, so now I'm putting about 7 more gallons of more expensive gas and it only costs extra 20 bux per fill-up. If this makes a difference for somebody then they should not be looking into buying a luxury car.

On paper GLK might not have good mileage but that's because the engine is tuned to deliver max. torque at low rpms and the transmission likes to stay in gear when rolling down the hill (sometimes you have to either give it a little gas to shift into neutral to pick up some speed), so this is why it get slightly worse mileage than RX. If you drive RX and GLK agressively I'm sure the mileage will be the same. For example My V6 solara (rated 20-28) used to be not much worse than 4 cyl Matrix (rated 24-32) because I ended up flooring matrix all the time to get up to speed.

As I've mentioned before, what's annoying is the small gas tank ( 200-250 range in mixed driving is not cool)

jpjolo

Yep.... mileage wise it really depends on driving habits. I like to floor it once in a while too but have done a few experiments to see how I go mileage wise. Right now, normally I go 19-21 mpg to and from work but when hypermiling - have gone 22-25. Wouldn't recommend hypermiling during normal traffic or rush hour unless you want to be a pain in the *** on the road. Learned some good points from it though but generally can't do it unless driving to work which is usually at 4:30am and there's nobody on the road.

Generally no complaints... no squeaking, peeling or tearing yet. A couple of nicks on the bumper and chips on the glass but that's unavoidable in Jersey.

I agree with the gas tank though. Could have added a few more gallons in capacity.

Razorback

I've had mine for about 2 weeks now and I'm very pleased. I was fortunate enough to customize one that our local dealer had scheduled for production. Here's what I got:

• 2WD (4WD not really necessary where I live, slightly better mileage)
• Mars Red
• Premium 1 (sunroof is a must have for us)
• Navi
• Heated Seats
• iPod integration

I've been impressed with the ride and the way it drives. It's more comfortable than my C Coupe and drives similarly. The only thing I don't like about how it drives is that the steering doesn't self-center as well as I would like. The turning circle is amazing for a crossover/SUV. At the SAM'S Club the other day I was able to park in a spot angled the other way with no problem.

I was surprised to find that COMMAND includes the features I thought were exclusive to the multimedia package. The standard audio system blows away the Bose system in my C class.

The Navigation system is frustrating sometimes as previously mentioned. Maybe I need to read the manual, but I can't figure out how to locate a POI near my current location or destination. It always searches the entire database.

One thing that bothers me is that the lumbar support seems to slowly find its way back to the default position after being adjusted.

I was disappointed to notice that the inside door handles are plastic rather than metal like the ones on m C class.

The stated mileage numbers of 16/23 seem to be accurate. In town it ranges from about 15 to 19 depending on conditions.

After more than 200 miles, no squeaks or rattles to report. Overall, I'm very pleased.

NYCGLK

to search for POI you have to pick "my current location" line after you hit POI, this way it'll show the POI's around you.

Barry626

Yes u are correct but you cannot type in what your looking for like "Best Buy".
Only gives you default list like Airport, Restaurant, shopping center, etc etc.

Barry626

MPG gets better & better!
I have 2900 miles & drive in "Sport" mode.
I drive mostly city & now getting close to 18 & 24 highway.
Most SUV's get nowhere near 18 city so I'm thrilled so far!!

NYCGLK

Pick the category first and then it'll give you names.

I did search of POI then picked bank, and it gave me list of banks in order from closest to farthest, then I just picked Citi, as that's the bank I was looking for.

MtnMachine

Took delivery of 350 GLK, Steel Gray, P1, lighting pack, MM Pack, Appearance Pack, heated seats, hitch, Almond/black/wood interior three days ago.

Granted, I live in SoCal, but I have not heard squeaks, etc mentioned here. My wifes new BMW X5 4.8 has plastic handles behind leather. After three days, my concerns are not only gone, but GLK exceeds my expectations. If you have driven MBs over the last 20 yrs, you know the feeling of a real Benz over dips and you know the seats and ride. The GLK is classic Benz for better and worse. I love it.

Regarding mine and others concerns, I have the following owner observations:

Light steering, BMW X5 a bit too firm, GLk a bit too light, but just as close to perfect as the BMW X5, (best of best).

Regarding soft or long brake travel, I love it. BMW X5 is too quick to grab and unsettle vehicle, GLK comes on softly, but stopping numbers tell the "good" story.

Regarding back seat room, if you are over 6ft/2inch with tall people in the back, it will be tight, not an issue for us.

Regarding Nav/Audio system, much friendlier than BMW and I love option to still hit one touch buttons vs "command knob". Look, I am in my late 50s and I see this system as friendly and easy to use. System always prompts you and or shows you options.

Regarding driving experience, this car is so Benz. Shift points in c or s are so right on and so receptive to throtle pedal control. Cornering is amazing for a tall frame vehicle. BMW X5 4.8 shift points feel awkward at times.

I am not going through all the creature comfort benefits, but I love the the sun roof screen look day and night. I am surprised those that have talked about "cheap" interior materials have not noticed the great textures in dash materials that do not show in pictures and look very high quality and great design. Touch and feel of all controls is top notch.

Car feels more substantial than it looks, and is very quick.

OK, so what am I not sure about or critical of? Car MM pack is not perfect, but better than other high end cars I have experienced. I am still looking for things that do not meet my expectations. Only three days in.

They must be there.

jroach

Bought a used GLK for my daughter...5200 miles, white/black, appearance package, UMI, pano. I'm not new to MB but I did feel that the car will fall short of my MB expectation.

This car is replacing her 2002 c230k with the pano roof and appearance package (cloth seats, basic AM/FM, etc). The c230 was one of my favorite cars: 130k miles, no real issue...ok, the pano roof breaks every few years and I the supercharger had to be replaced (under warranty). Even though the c230 was a milk toast version it had the basic MB value: good handling, reliable, and built well. I haven't delivered the car to her yet so I've spent the last week getting to know the GLK better (thanks to a few on this board for help with working the Nav). Maybe it will take a little time to get past some of the differences from my current/previous MB's these are my initial impressions:

- The garage door remote is a feature and not standard (part of a package)
- More plastic than I ever wanted to see in a Benz
- Floor mats are thinner
- Holding down the CLR button to get the Nav Screen to appear seems a bit odd (I know this is a UMI oddity)
- Gas Mileage...I get better mileage from our E Wagon with the same engine
- Passenger side rear view mirror doesn't point down in reverse (like all my cars do)
- No cabin air filter
- no REST feature

Some of these might be rectified/found after I do more research but it makes me wonder about the MB direction. For $30k its not a bad car...still has the basic handling and safety features I was looking for and if it lasts eight years I'll be happy but as I start to look at replacing our E class wagon I'm wondering if I should consider something else: Audi, BMW?
Maybe everybody is doing the same?

MilesBFree

I think it was NYCGLK in another thread pointed out that if you have the passenger side mirror selected it will tilt down when you put the car in reverse.

i.e.- select the mirror as if you were adjusting it and leave it on that button (don't switch back to the driver's side).

The manual also says that if you have the Memory function it will remember how you have this adjusted too.

For a better / more thorough explanation, the manual covers this on page 85.

MilesBFree

The manual discusses the cabin filter and under what conditions it may need to be replaced (see page 118 of the manual).

Just to make sure, I did a quick search to see if I could find anywhere that sells the filters, and found a few listed.


On Rest mode, some of the reviews I have read state that the GLK has it. There is no button specifically for this in the GLK, (we also used to have a C230K, which did).

But the dealer explained that if the climate controls are set to Auto, it will continue to run the HVAC fan for 30 minutes after the car is switched off, but he was a little vague as to whether or not the AC also continued to run. This sounds more or less like what I understand Rest mode to do on the cars that have a button for it.


Contributes to better gas mileage

jroach

Thanks for the pointers MilesBFree.

I had looked in the manual but it doesn't say anything about the filter feature, Passenger side mirror or REST. Like you said...the Mirror feature must be a part of the convenience package and tied to the seat memory. The filter feature had been a button with the AC controls. I think there might be two levels of filtration on the older or higher level MB's.... super dooper filtration then regular filtration.....or they leave it on all the time and it no longer requires a special button. The dealers explanation about REST sounds good to me. I can live w/o these features but they had become a part of our driving habits over the years so when they disappear you wonder.... cut backs or features not ordered. The mirror feature is definitely something not ordered and maybe we will see some other comments about the REST and filter features.

Brings up another point about how these cars are ordered. This was my first used MB and when browsing cars.com or autotrader I found very few cars with the features I wanted. I was wondering who configures the cars? Dealer or does MB. My requirement was for White on black with navigation. Most of the cars that were white on beige and those that had black interior did not have Nav. I will likely draw some fire from those with a beige interior but it doesn't work for me. I saw this across other MB models as well. I'm thinking the dealer looks at what he sold and does a bell curve of features and colors based on past experience but if that database was polluted with colors/features that were either forced upon him or picked by the guy who thinks Uggs are a dress shoe then the first run at a new model year might be skewed.

MilesBFree

Ours too.

When we were shopping, we found that the new ones on dealer lots typically had one of two pretty standard configs, one with premium, multimedia, and usually appearance packages, and one config w/o.

We looked at ordering but the lead time was extremely long since the car was still fairly new and there was big demand, so like 6 months or more. So we got one that had everything we wanted except the keyless go, which I am still ever so slightly bummed about not having. (The dealer added the rear seat entertainment package at cost, no labor.)

IIRC the dealer said we were right between production runs and so there would be a month or two delay until they started the next one. Also, he said that M-B has a build schedule that includes customer cars and dealer cars. Dealer cars are the ones they order for their lots, and the customer cars are what individual people/families order. The dealer can swap one of their slots for a customer order, but where my dealer was at at that time, they had already done this for a couple of other customers and didn't have another slot for months, then you add the transport time etc., it was another few weeks at least.

My guess is a lot of the earlier cars that are coming up for sale now were ones the dealers ordered at the beginning.

jroach

MilesBFree, I am with you on the keyless go. My wife loves the feature and I love not carrying the key.

Who orders the color combo's: dealer or does MB say "here is what we have, let me know what you want". I saw a black and beige, red and beige, silver and beige.... ok, maybe it is ok in the hot summer days but I'm for form over function (smile).

MilesBFree

The dealer gets to pick the color (and other options) for the cars they have allotted in the build schedule. They do exactly what you would do if you walked into the showroom and told them you wanted to order one to your specs (according to my dealer).

As you said, the dealer probably looks at what sells in their experience and what they will expect to sell in that part of the country. e.g.- in the North the dealers will order all of theirs with heated seats. Lighter colors in the South and fewer black interiors / more beige.

pho75

I just got the EVO from Sprint. It will put any OEM navigation to shame. Real time traffic, POIs, street speech, whatever the heck you desire... and it's all free. Save yourself a few grand and get that sweet 3d TV, bicycle, iPad, or Caribbean cruise you've been thinking about.