enbyan

My wife needs a new car and we are looking at smaller SUVs. She's deciding between a certified 2014 GLK350 with 10k miles for ~$34k and an Acura RDX for $36k. The GLK obviously is a lot more fun to drive but is smaller and has fewer options (no backup cam etc.). She is coming from a really old 2000 Nissan so anything is a huge upgrade.

I am a bit suspicious of the $34500 price for the GLK - that is only $3500 over Galves pricing which would be the absolute lowest I'd hope to get after a hard and bitter negotiation (Galves price + $3000 CPO cost + $500 dealer profit), but it's listed at that price on the website! Other 2014 GLK350s with similar mileage are listed at a few thousand $ higher. I thought it might be a lemon return but it seems like most 2014 GLKs that have problems are the 250 diesel and not the 350, and it is certified.

The RDX would be the more sensible choice, but the GLK seems like it would be more fun

Anyone have any insight or thoughts? Would appreciate any advice. Thank you!

sblvro

If price is the deciding factor, why not get a CRV instead? RDX may be cheaper because it wasn't a popular model.

formerjeepguy

I considered the RDX as well. I would go for the AWD version, but I don't care for the FWD. I opted to trade my GLK250 for a RWD GLK350.

I had a 2014 GLK250 that I traded because of extremely premature DPF failure. The dealer replaced the DPF but didn't try to find out why it failed at 17k. Now that GLK is sitting on the dealer lot as a CPO. They also like to clean up the loaners, call them "executive driven" and put them out as CPO. After learning this I would say that you need to be just as careful of CPO as any other used car. Check the carfax and pass if it has had anything other than routine maintenance done on it.

A 2014 with 10k miles on it smell like a dealer loaner car.

enbyan

Thank you. It was indeed a loaner but we ended up using that price to get another similar loaner 2014 that was listed at $38.8 for the same price. Carfax and service records were clean (just had the A done and nothing else) and my wife really liked the drive so we decided to get it. She was kinda blah on the RDX.

Ive read about a lot more problems on the diesel 250s so knock on wood that the 350 will hold up better.

Inyoury

My wife test drove the RDX SH-AWD and the MDX SH-AWD ultimately the GLK350 won. She said "the GLK feels more planted to the road and feels smooth and stable in any road."

Sure the size is a little different, but how often is your wife going to need the slight difference in size between the GLK and RDX? As for the options, you can get the rear camera aftermarket. Other than that, the vehicle has so few blind spots I don't think a backup cam is really needed.

I for one don't think their is a comparison between the RDX and GLK, maybe a little comparable to the MDX, but is a much bigger SUV.

sblvro

Dealers usually sell the loaners when it gets 2000 to 4000 miles. Anything higher than that is probably a lease return.

formerjeepguy

A one year lease?

My last loaner was a 2015 with 7k on it.

MichaelGTA

For me, (I bought a GLK 250 diesel, so the fuel economy justified the difference between the two).
The RDX was nice, but road feel was boring compared to GLK.

thenew3

Not necessarily. My local dealers keep loaners in the fleet for 1 year regardless of mileage. I've seen them sell loaners with as low as 4k miles to as high as 20k miles.

I've gotten loaners from them with as little as 9 miles to as high as 19k miles.

Had a GLK350 loaner for a couple weeks when my E went in for service and was waiting for a part. it had about 9k miles on it.

Wife loved it and now we are shopping for a 2015 GLK350 to replace her aging car.

We found many dealers in CA (central coast and bay area) are selling 2014 and 2015 GLK350 CPO for more than a new one with same equipment.
So we'll likely buy new since it will actually cost less.

Cwdawson

We have the 2014 GLK 250 and love it, the only issue to date was the adblue fault which was fixed the same day and no more issues. Not sure whether that counts as "A lot" more problems. We do only have 30K on ours so far so barely broken in for a diesel. Our neighbour has a GLK 350 that is currently in for a transmission replacement, but that is just luck of the draw as its the same transmission for both. Ive heard lots of complaints about the stop/start system on the 350 that may end up being a weak link but time will tell. Both are great vehicles and should last a long time I'm sure you will enjoy it....

bop11

take a look at the Acura RDX Forums such as
http://www.acuraforums.com/forum/rdx-43/
http://www.acuraforum.net/acura-foru...splay.php?f=16
No one replies to questions. Are the cars that good or is the buyer a different sort of individual? When you consider the actual amount of GLKs sold and the number of problems showing up on this board , it is not very significant. Unless, of course, it is your problem. But there seems to be many enthusiast on this board that know a lot about vehicles and especially Merc's. And they are interested in their vehicles and therefore your vehicle.
All you need to do is determine what kind of auto enthusiast you are and buy accordingly.

Inyoury

Greatly put!

I have one thing to add. No matter how good any vehicle is, forums will have members who are very enthusiastic and pay attention to every detail (problems in many cases). So they join to find out as much about their vehicles and resolve any problem if any.

If you look at Tesla forums, there are a host of problems and issues the owners express even thought the tesla was/is considered best car ever built but consumer reports. The enthusiasts you rightly pointed out can help each other in many ways. That's the reason I joined this forum. My wife could care less about her car as long as it gets her from point A to point B. But I care if her car gets her and my children safely as possible.

Thanks for your great comment!

Maher1

I've recently bought a 2014 GLK 350 with 18K. Dealer Loaner, corporate fleet, whatever it was, Like new, and got a really good deal. I love it! Driven it for a couple of months now and it's great, smooth ride, amazing handling! a little small, but luxurious, amazing cabin, nice options, cool Moon-roof, and above all, the looks! I'm an an aesthetic type of a guy and call me crazy, but usually that's my deciding factor, looks and design above practicality! and this car is beautiful, Pebble Grey metallic, Sahara beige and Mocha interior just gorgeous!
In any case, I don't know much about the Acura RDX, but people tend to forget how a Mercedes drives! that's enough right there. There's a reason why your wife liked the GLK right off the bat and thought "Blah" about the other :-)

bop11

Maher1, good luck with the GLK. I did about the same thing back in 2011 with a 2010. 85,000 miles now and just tires and brakes. On 150 mile highway trips, I still get 23-24 mpg. This is probably less than the new ones get with direct injection but still good for a vehicle this age and size. 17-18 on the 7 miles to and from work. Hauled well over the suggested limit on the roof rack, 4, 4x8x5/8 plywood, 10, 2x10's etc and the thing has been a work horse. Big enough to haul a Honda 5 HP outboard, with the inflatable dinghy and a weeks worth of groceries.

Maher1

bop11, good to know, glad you like your GLK! mine does about the same millage (18) in the city going to work. Haven't tested the long distance HWY millage yet. I like all the little details and options like, the way the double roof screens open in opposite directions, the convenient lighting, automatic mirror dimming, compass, the "hold" option when stopped at an incline and you can take foot off the brake without rolling back! the right view mirror tilts down when in reverse to see the curb when trying to park, and tilts back when you move forward! power and USB outlets, The E and S modes are great! the controls are pretty well thought of as well. and you can save a lot of things in memory for 3 different drivers. a lot conveniences in addition a smooth and powerful V6, Love it!
Looking forward to getting Carplay where I can see my iphone apps and all on the car screen!

Inyoury

To my knowledge CarPlay won't be available on older models... Did you hear Mercedes is going to update the software for older models?
Thanks

mjhawkins2346

The driving experience is totally different. The RDX is a FWD vehicle with Honda dynamics. Not bad but a different feel. The GLK is a RWD vehicle with Mercedes/German driving dynamics.
Both cars are reliable and a lot of fun to drive but very different in feel. It depends on what you like. I went from an Acura TL (admittedly not a crossover but definitely a Honda) to the GLK. I found the TL bland and the GLK a good drivers car but YMMV.
I would do some pretty serious test drives.

Maher1

Inyoury,
According to Apple, you can add Carplay to your car with any of these aftermarket systems:
Alpine, Kenwood, and Pioneer, and is compatible with iPhone models 5 and up.

Inyoury

For the aftermarket systems yes. I thought you were talking about updating the software for the GLK so it could support car play. Also sometimes what apple puts on their website isn't always correct. They claimed my iPhone 6 will support true hands free voice command to my 2016 Audi A6. But that's not true at all. Only the MS windows phone can. Android OS won't either.

Why not get an iPad mini and mount it on the dash? It would certainly be easier and cleaner look; it might be even cheaper? I don't know how it would look if you try to replace the existing system with an aftermarket one. Would you have to cut and repair all the nice finish?

Maher1

No, no software news on that, perhaps eventually. Not sure how they would install an aftermarket system, I imagine they have a way without destroying the dash ;-). probably would keep the same screen and just switch the system. Oh well, I'm not about to do it.
Not sure what you mean by "true hands free voice command", I thought that's what we have.