Mercedes-Benz GL 350 BlueTEC 4MATIC
>> Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Take the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class for example. With its imposing looks and size, three rows of seating and the Mercedes-Benz star on the hood, you wouldn’t expect it to cost less than 70 grand — and it doesn’t. But the discussion shouldn’t end there — and it won’t. Because having just completed a week-long test in a 2011 Mercedes-Benz GL 350 BlueTEC 4MATIC, we have much to discuss about it.
But first, a little back-story: The GL-Class debuted in 2007, based on a modified version of the unibody platform under the “smaller” M-Class. Like the ML, the GL-Class is produced at the automaker’s facility in Alabama. GL was ostensibly a replacement for the classic, body-on-frame G-Class SUV. But public pressure forced Mercedes-Benz to keep the venerable Geländewagen in the catalogue alongside the new GL. In 2009, a third engine was added to the GL line — the 3.0L V6 BlueTEC diesel — to compliment the 335-hp, 4.6L V8 and the 382-hp, 5.5L V8. A minor refreshing in 2010 gave it some new fascia, complete with bi-xenon headlamps and cool LED daytime running lights.
The M-Class gets reborn for 2012, so we might see an all-new GL in a year or two, but not just yet…
But first, a little back-story: The GL-Class debuted in 2007, based on a modified version of the unibody platform under the “smaller” M-Class. Like the ML, the GL-Class is produced at the automaker’s facility in Alabama. GL was ostensibly a replacement for the classic, body-on-frame G-Class SUV. But public pressure forced Mercedes-Benz to keep the venerable Geländewagen in the catalogue alongside the new GL. In 2009, a third engine was added to the GL line — the 3.0L V6 BlueTEC diesel — to compliment the 335-hp, 4.6L V8 and the 382-hp, 5.5L V8. A minor refreshing in 2010 gave it some new fascia, complete with bi-xenon headlamps and cool LED daytime running lights.
The M-Class gets reborn for 2012, so we might see an all-new GL in a year or two, but not just yet…
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