A Price Value Improvement for Mercedes
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SEE ALSO:Compare M-B Models - Mercedes-Benz Buyers Guide
Special to The Auto Channel
By Marty
Bernstein
AIADA Contributing
Editor
But that’s exactly what Mercedes announced
recently during a media reveal of the vastly updated and improved GL550 and
ML550 SUVs in
The New GL Class

New this year, the GL is the first
seven-passenger, full-size SUV with a unibody chassis and distinctive
styling. The GL has sweeping front fenders, dramatic shoulder lines and a
sharply angled windshield. The GL-Class also features four-wheel
independent suspension and height-adjustable Airmatic suspension for added
comfort and handling.
The new GL comes equipped with 21-inch AMG
styled wheels fitted with all-season tires, a three-bar front grille with
the famous star logo, running boards, four cool looking rectangular exhaust
pipes, and chrome roof rails, side molding and load
sill.
Inside, the GL is fitted with real wood trim,
8-way power front seats that are very comfortable, award winning
cup-holders (honest) and a stationary rear sunroof over the third-row
seats. Even during a hot
For those who need large storage, the GL’s
two third-row seats can be stowed electrically at the push of a button,
either separately or together, providing a large flat cargo floor. And with
the second row seats stowed, there’s a lot more room for cargo.
The ML Class
SUV

Combining rugged looking with stylish and
luxurious might also be considered a contradiction, but the ML carries it
off very well, both outside and inside. Mercedes
calls it AMG styling, but by any term it works.
Parked or moving, front, side or back, it looks
good from every viewing perspective. Every ML is equipped with all-season
tires, running boards, seven-speed automatic transmission, full time
four-wheel drive and traction control.
Inside, the amenities continue with seating that
is both comfortable and feels secure, and a good looking instrument panel
with easy-to-read dials and gauges. The location cruise-control lever is
still over the turn-signal, a preference for some. The front cup holders
(award winning, remember?) could be cooled – and wouldn’t that
be nice on a long road trip.
Steering and handling over the winding roads
– through some of most beautiful scenery I’ve ever seen –
was responsive and provided a secure, safe, stick-to-the-road feeling, even
in Idaho’s high twisty roads with sheer drops.
And that’s coming from a minor victim of acrophobia –
the fear of heights – especially those without guard rails.
New Power
Plants
Both the ML 550 and the GL 550 feature a new V8,
5.5-liter power plant that has 382 horsepower and a very efficient 391
pounds of torque, which gives that nice boost of power when you need
it.
Built in
The ML and GL class SUVs are produced at the
Mercedes-Benz factory in