Test drive Mercedes Benz GL-class X164 2006-2009 SUV
Gulliver
The largest SUV Mercedes-Benz celebrated the New Year on the streets of Moscow under the battle of chimes and the cannonade of festive fireworks. The capital of Russia liked the German Gulliver. It remains to find out if the Russians will meet GL with bread and salt?
New Year can be celebrated either at home in a circle of loved ones, or at a noisy party among friends, or at a working post. This time I managed to combine everything under one roof. The role of the house was played by the new Mercedes-Benz GL 450, which in all respects pulls on a decent apartment with a leather set, TV and a huge loggia. A close man was sitting nearby, and friends were noisy in the back rows. I myself performed a responsible editorial task conducted a test drive of the new Mercedes-Benz SUV. It seems that nature has finally decided to take revenge on people. At one time, humanity was too carried away by cars, and when it was time to change his mind, some decided that gigantic SUVs with fuel appetite, like a ship tugboat, will save the world from an environmental disaster. I think everyone guessed that it was fiery greetings to American manufacturers. After all, the Fashion for SUVs The merit of the United States. And now, having breathed out the exhaust gases from numerous V8, the heavens presented us with a surprise of the New Year without snow. Those 0.5 cm of snow sediment on the night with
On December 31, on January 1, they were a real mockery. Snowboarders and skiers should have been most happy with this year, they had several months to prepare equipment and warm -ups before removing their sports supplies back to the closet. The plus temperature and rains in the midst of the calendar winter mean only one thing: it is time for us to think about our future, because, it seems to me, heavy rains in Moscow on the eve of the old New Year and a half -departed Peter is only a hint of a real alignment of forces in the duel. Does this mean that the time has come in a massive order to transplant to hybrid cars? Perhaps, but the good old ICE is still early to write off. Look at this black Mercedes-Benz SUV. With its size, it resembles the underwater part of the iceberg and acts on the surrounding drivers in the same way as a huge piece of impenetrable ice on the captain of a modest fishing vessel. Mercedes-Benz ML and Gelandewagen warrior look next to GL teenagers. Even the Audi Q7 and Range Rover, which you can get to the driver’s place only by grabbing the wheel and pulling up, less. The GL length extends by 5088 mm, in the width of 1920 mm, in a height of 1840 mm. These numbers look convincing, but the real picture makes an even greater impression. Even when GL stands in
loneliness and there is nothing to compare with it, only one thing comes to mind: this is a big man! And if a truly gigantic Infiniti QX56 can compete with GL in the length and width, then, turning the air suspension controller to three clicks to the right, you will be out of competition: 307 mm above the road level Land Cruiser could only dream of such a road clearance! The first level is enough for a confident ride around the city, but if desired, GL will be able to get to where not every tractor will return from. Now, having imagined 2355 kg of firmly knocked metal, the time has come to blame Mercedes-Benz for environmental damage to our nature. But not this time. The new 4.7 V8 engine meets EURO 4, so it’s better to move the green protest to the gates of another automaker. In addition, having 340 hp. Under the hood, GL 450 was only a little more voracious than the average business class sedan with V6. This Mercedes-Benz declares the technical perfection of the new GL, and it remains for us to figure out why the Mercedes-Benz dealers ask for 92,400 euros.
Until recently, the largest SUV Mercedes-Benz was Gelandewagen. The frame, brutal and completely incomparable on off -road, he honestly served in the German army, after which he was transferred to the civil service as a symbol of success and superiority on public roads. But, in truth, riding on asphalt is not his horse. Therefore, the new GL was first mistaken for the successor of Gelandewagen. Judging by the dimensions and the standard package for confident off-road driving, GL is really suitable for the sons of Mercedes-Benz G-class, but the new car has a carrier body, pneumoballons in the suspension and delicate skin on the seats. Gelandewagen was originally different: a strict and fearless commander of the infantry division, capable of crazy feats according to a verified plan and under reliable cover from the flanks, and this remained today. And GL was born after looking at a successful ML, marketers decided that there should be a lot of good car. More! It was created not for exploits, but to increase sales on 
the North America market, so the main thing in it is the comfort and safety of those sitting in the cabin. That is why, climbing one of the seven places, you are surprised to recall the recent time when Mercedes-Benz had quality problems. This car is assembled for glory. Caring for your comfort begins with the first contact with the car. The Keyless-Go system recognizes the owner of the magic key as soon as it holds out a hand to the door handle. The locks are unlocking, the internal and external lighting of the car is activated, and now you are putting your leg on a massive bandwagon and the next moment you find yourself behind the helm of the Stuttgart liner. It seems I have already said that iron did not regret the GL? So, if you look back from the driver’s place, the usefulness of the invention of parking sensors will become obvious. GL luggage compartment has a record volume among classmates of 1240 liters. Moreover, as in the Audi Q7, two additional seats are installed here not only for children, but also for adults! Thanks to a high roof and a long wheelbase, two adult men of medium height and complexion will comfortably accommodate. This is good news for security agencies,
because now in the car, two fighters will fit in the car. And if additional chairs are not needed, with the help of an electric drive they can be folded, and the floor of the luggage compartment will remain even. With the third row, passengers of the second can adjust the back of the chair along the angle of inclination. In addition, three -stage seats and air conditioning are provided for the rear passengers. True, we have the right to expect more knees from a car of such an impressive size. But the driver and the front passenger of the expanse. The soft chair carefully takes into its arms and offers all possible adjustments, heating and blowing. The steering wheel is also regulated in two planes, and in our version it is also heated. The front panel is pleasant in appearance both to the touch with the skin, and in order to release a place for two voluminous boxes, the automatic gear selector was transferred to the steering column. Such a solution 
already used in the new Mercedes-Benz S-class and the BMW seven. But if on the steering column of the 7th series there was a place for two full-fledged steering wheel switches, then Mercedes has light control, wiper and washer are concentrated on one lever. You do not get used to it right away, but when you get used to it, you can’t identify the ergonomic advantages of this solution for a long time. The abundance of buttons on the radio is also doubtful: to choose a radio station, you have to be distracted from the road. But the rest is one hundred percent concentrated Mercedes. The laconic panel of devices with clear indications both day and night. Great climate control, high-quality decoration materials and a sea of \u200b\u200bspace. That would only be more inquired. But aluminum as it is. 
But the main discovery is the quality of driving. Comfort in this car was erected to Absolute. In any air suspension mode, exchange rate stability even at high speeds is beyond praise. Choose Comfort mode, and GL will stretch along the road like an iron with a teflon coating on a silk blouse. True, it is better to give the rear passengers on a paper package, because they will swing them like during a walk. In Normal mode, the suspension becomes more collected, but the buildup still continues. And in the Sport GL mode, it is lucky in the manner of some hot hatchback: the suspension informs those sitting in the salon about the slightest bumps of the road that notice 20-inch wheels, the rolls in corners are reduced, and the reactive force on the steering wheel becomes more organic. The sports regime is great for active driving, which, by the way, does not resist the engine. The new eight Mercedes-Benz produces 340 hp. and 460 nm, which at first glance is not so much 
for such a giant. But if you press the gas pedal on the floor, GL 450 will demonstrate incredible agility. From a place to a hundred for 7.6 C, this means that during acceleration you will press you into a chair. The sound of the engine is also good, but its juicy, thoroughbred horn is heard only at high speeds. Dynamic riding is possible GL 450 until more than two tons of equipped mass is exhausted to the limit to the limit. Then the turns become frighteningly fast, and the road is too narrow. In addition, the sniffing from the row in a row GL looks at least unsolvable. Whether it is a matter of falling apart in an armchair, squeeze your left leg, lean on the armrest and with the dignity appropriate to the large black Mercedes, observe high -speed traffic rules. That's just a 7-speed automatic continues to live the past transmission up to 5000 rpm, and when it wakes up, it switches with a noticeable jerk. But while you get used to it, the electronic mind manages to adapt the transmission to a more calm ride style.
GL 450 in every possible way suppress external sources of irritation. The noise from the road, motor and surrounding transport is almost invisible. You sit high, a long hood in front of your eyes, a powerful rear in the rear view mirror, and warm and calm in your heart. It is warm, because the heating and the stove is around, but it's calm so, after all, while driving Mercedes-Benz. And again, the smoothness of the course is one alarming road. And why in the capital of our glorious Russia they are so tuberous? As if someone specially leads them in a certain at night in a pre -capitalist look. Pothole on the pothole. It would seem that he, an SUV, will become? But no, the suspension shows dissatisfaction, grinds and groans, and if you catch the hatch of the wheel, then it knocks out the steering wheel from your hands. Gelandewagen does not allow itself this, and ML swallows irregularities with greater hunting. But we did not move from asphalt roads of public, we did not use all possible locks and did not check geometric cross -country ability. We met in the GL 450 New Year. We made their way to the city center, listened to the congratulations of the main power of the pre -war, opened a large -format hatch and gave a volley of bottles with sparkling. So we drove into the New Year, but how you will meet him, so, they say, you will spend. In Mercedes and without snow.
Technical characteristics of Mercedes-Benz GL 450
Dimensions, mm 5088x1920x1840
Base, mm 3075
Front/back, mm 1645/1650
Diameter of the turn, m 12.1
Equipped mass, kg 2355/2430
Benzine engine type V8
Working volume, cubic meter. cm 4663
Max. Power, L.S./rpm 340/6000
Max. moment, nm/rpm 460/27005000
The transmission is automatic 7-band
Tires 245/45 R17
The permanent drive is complete
Max. Speed, km/h 235
Acceleration time 0-100 km, with 7.6
Fuel consumption (average), l/100 km 13.3
Tank volume, l 100
Stanislav Goncharenko
Photo by the author
A source: Avtopanorama magazine
