While a Rs 1.3 crore (ex-showroom, India) luxury SUV is a common sight in five-star hotel lobbies, and being valeted outside high-end restaurants, its real strength lies in shrinking distances – especially when it’s powered by a diesel engine. Our newest long termer, the Mercedes-Benz GLS 450d, proved to be the ultimate long-distance family car, as I found out on a Mumbai-Nagpur-Mumbai trip.
Before I could stretch its legs, though, I had to withstand the bings and bongs of the sensors going berserk in Mumbai traffic. It also revealed a critical flaw that I noticed within just one kilometre of driving – the ADAS. Designed to enhance safety, it’s a system that works well only in cities with some form of traffic discipline. Mumbai? The system gets a culture shock similar to what a staunch, rule-abiding German would. The emergency braking isn’t calibrated for jaywalkers, dangerously placed ‘warning’ cones and last-mile delivery riders. As a result, the slightest interruption causes the car to brake on the spot, which means the BEST bus driver trying to see how close he can get without bumping you might actually do so.
While you can manually shut the system off, you can’t do it once during delivery and be done with it. Each time you start the car, you need to go through the routine of shutting off some ADAS features. Thankfully, the next morning I would be leaving the chaos behind for the desolate – and ADAS-friendly – Samruddhi Expressway.
Five passengers with luggage for 10 is no problem for the GLS. I could flat-fold the third row using just a button and even lower the car (thanks to the air suspension) for easy loading.
With the boot packed to the roof and passengers latched in place, I made a beeline for the fuel pump. Being a modern diesel with an SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) system, it’s not only the diesel fuel level you need to check but also the DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) tank. Thankfully, the GLS has an ultra-informative instrument cluster that displays the level and how much range you can get on the current DEF quantity. I was in the clear.
The diesel tank gulped 90 litres at a pocket-pinching Rs 8,230, but the blow was softened when I saw the 1,250km range. I got onto the expressway, set cruise control to 118kph, engaged lane assist, and sank into the sumptuous ventilated seat. The GLS is unbelievably comfortable and has a plethora of adjustments to ensure your back gets full support. It doesn’t get a massage function, but the seat kinetics ensure the bolsters keep shifting at intervals, preventing your back from stiffening in one position. It just works.
The Burmester sound system is excellent, cabin insulation is top-notch, and the ride deserves all praise – especially on highways. Flat, composed and confident, it feels like the car is parked even while cruising at triple digits. However, the rose-tinted glasses weren’t strong enough to keep the sun’s heat out. The massive panoramic sunroof is great for starwatching, but when the biggest star is overhead, the sunshade simply doesn’t do enough to keep the heat out.
What does have enough, though, is the engine. The 3.0-litre diesel mill is refined, responsive, and packed with torque. Once I got off the expressway and onto a state highway, I took over from ADAS, and the diesel grunt made light work of overtakes.
We reached by sundown, and I was expecting the rear passengers to step out stretching and groaning, but that wasn’t the case. The pillowy ride, hushed cabin and comfy seats made the GLS the absolute favourite among all the cars they had ever travelled in.
The return leg wasn’t much different, and I still hadn’t refuelled since my first stop in Mumbai. I reached Nashik – over 1,000km later – and, anticipating Mumbai traffic, decided to top up again. By the time I reached home, the total trip stood at 1,170 km, with an efficiency of 13kpl and some range still to spare.
Sure, efficiency isn’t a top priority for a GLS owner, but it goes to show just how dominant a diesel SUV is on the highway. As I crawled through traffic on my way back to work, drowned in the parking sensor symphony and sulking at the thought that diesel SUVs will someday cease to exist, I spotted an official convoy of Boleros protecting someone important – in a GLS 450d.
So, it’s clear that even though the narrative is to phase out diesel, even those making that call don’t actually want it to go.
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Mercedes-Benz GLS 450d AMG Line test data |
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| Price (ex-showroom) | Rs 1.34 crore |
| Odometer | 16,021km |
| Economy | 13kpl (highway) |
| Maintenance costs | None |
| Faults | None |
