Used 2011 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class Consumer Reviews
Follow Up to My 2016 Review
To recap, I purchased a ‘11 GL450 almost 5 years ago for $27k with 77k miles. The car now has 147k miles and I can say it’s been a stellar car. The utility of 7 seats and plenty of cargo room speaks for itself. The economy has also been acceptable, consistently returning 18mpg. Materials have stood up quite nicely to the daily abuse of a growing family. Maintenance costs have been minimal and reliability has been stellar. Outside of replacing brakes and regular oil changes, the only repair has been a suspension airbag. The original plan was to run the GL to 200k miles and if the last 70k miles are any indication, we may go much longer! Considering our great experience, we will be taking a very close look at a new GLS when the time comes.
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Better have a warranty
I have owned this car since new. It has been a love hate relationship. The fuel economy is very good for a full size, 3 row, all wheel drive vehicle. I have found the ride and handling and body rigidity to be sub par. Reliability has been below average with an engine leak at 50,000 miles that required the transmission to be dropped and cost $3,000. One of the air bladders in the suspension went out at 55,000 miles which cost $1000. An emission sensor went out at 60,000 miles which cost $2,000. Fuel filter recall occurred twice. You will get to know your service adviser well. That has been my experience with my other European luxury cars. I like the character and comfort of the car over the Asian makes. Given the lack of personality with the Asian equivalents I may try domestic next because the warranty will be out soon. The extended warranty definitely paid for itself. Addendum Watch out for poor resale value. Thanks to VW (diesel gate scandal) as well as Mercedes long term cost of ownership, when I went to trade in my Blue tec diesel for a new BMW X5 5 months ago I was offered $20,000 for a vehicle in perfect working order (other than needing new tires), having all the maintenance records,very good cosmetic shape (garaged throughout its life) with 65,000 miles on the odometer. It lost $53,000 dollars in value over 5 1/2 years. Poor resale is a trend with all Mercedes. They are so expensive to maintain and repair as they get older. Mercedes please get rid of the unnecessary complexity (ie air bladder suspension) which makes maintaining these vehicles past warranty difficult. By the way I bought an BMW X-5 diesel (was on special due to VW again) and its drive train is unbelievably better than the Mercedes diesel. It is the first diesel vehicle I have owned (and that is many) that I cannot tell its a diesel. Getting 28-30 mpg in suburban driving in the BMW with AWD. I no longer own the GL. I can say that my neighbor has traded in his 2015 GL after 2 years due to multiple visits to the dealership for mechanical issues. This vehicles are more complicated than they need to be.
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- GL550 4MATIC 4dr SUVMSRP: $12,900222 mi away
- GL450 4MATIC 4dr SUVMSRP: $8,995241 mi away
- GL450 4MATIC 4dr SUVMSRP: $9,896257 mi away
Amazing Car
At first I thought transferring from an Escalade to a 550 would be dumb, but i am wrong. The fold flat third row is a charm and it handles way better. Way more roomy third row. The only thing I miss is the heated and cooled cup holders.
Worst car I ever had, never again!!!
Stay away from Mercedes gl. This is a disaster car. I bought this car with minimal milage on it, after 50, 000, it started to fall apart. I had the following problems in 6 months: oil leak, sound stopped working, right mirror stopped working, rear suspensions made an explosion sound while I was driving, and many other problems. My mother in law had one and had many problems with it, but I thought she was just unlucky so I bought one, what a disaster. I was afraid driving anywhere because i was worried it was gonna break any time. I was ready to give it away for free because repairs were soooo expensive. The day I sold it (25000 dollars less), I felt so relieved. Stay away from this car.
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Great riding vehicle, keep your checkbook close by
If you are looking for a stylish, spacious, comfortable SUV with good highway mileage, this would be it! It took me six months to find this vehicle with the diesel engine and particular bells and whistles. We typically range between 24-28 mpg when we are on the highway using the cruise control, which happens to be one of the easiest cruise controls I have ever used, great design. My wife still thinks she is dreaming as the owner of this SUV and loves it more than any other car she has owned. Great space for sports equipment and plenty of passengers (the 9 yr. old loves his own back seat section with panorama moonroof). Now....the downsides! This vehicle was MB serviced by the previous two owners as if it was one of the family. Warranty up to 70,000 miles, when we bought it, and still runs like a top. On our 2nd long trip, only two weeks after buying it, the heating element for the AdBlu feature (Blutec) needed replacement, $1700 out the gate as the MB would not allow us to extend the warranty at the time of the repair, but the dealer gave us a small break on the price and tried to accommodate the situation. Servicing to do the brakes and for MB parts is not a cheap venture no matter what mechanic you use. Next issue was the air suspension, which we were warned about before purchasing. Front, driver side was "sagging" due to this malfunctioning and that part was $650 with labor we were about $1,000 with a very fair mechanic. I am sure the other side will go out at some point through normal wear and tear. Without the center knob to control the electronic components (phone, Nav., radio, etc.) like my other MB, this makes it very awkward to control and enter addresses. Very poor design on this component. Long and the short of it, we will bear through the expenses, diesel is cheaper for now, 20% more fuel efficient than gas, we expect to go many miles on this engine, good lines on the design and most importantly, the wife still loves it.
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