A decade ago, the Mercedes-Benz launched its first ever hybrid electric vehicle in the form of the midsize ML450 SUV. Few of those ML450 hybrids were ever built and it quietly faded away after just a few years on the market. These days, the midsize utility from Stuttgart is known as GLE and there is again a variant that combines internal combustion and electric propulsion, the GLE550e.
The original ML450 hybrid came about as a result of a four-way partnership between Mercedes-Benz, General Motors, BMW and its erstwhile merger partner Chrysler to develop a version of the Allison two-mode hybrid system for light duty vehicles. A combination of high cost and bad timing with a launch right at the height of the financial meltdown doomed that hybrid system. Only GM ever sold any notable volumes of its variants in full-size pickups and SUVs.
For the GLE, Mercedes-Benz is using an in-house developed hybrid system that is slowly finding its way in multiple model lines. This time around, the system has more electrical power and a significantly larger lithium ion battery with a plug that can provide some electric only driving. The combined output of the 85-kW motor and 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 is capped at 436-hp and 479 lb-ft fed to all four wheels through a seven-speed automatic transmission.
While the ML got a facelift and new branding a couple of years ago, the current third-generation of Mercedes’ midsize utility has been around in much the same form since 2011. The platform is actually one of the last vestiges of the DaimlerChrysler relationship having been largely locked in before the 2006 divorce. That means it actually shares a lot of DNA with the current generation Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee although you wouldn’t know it to look at these three. As one of the oldest vehicles in the Mercedes-Benz lineup, it still bears the hallmarks of the prior generation design language. It’s not bad, but it is showing its age.
The GLE’s age is actually more apparent on the inside where the dashboard still features a discrete central display and plenty of buttons on the center stack. There are rotary knobs for the audio volume and climate controls. However, touching the screen doesn’t bring any response which is actually just fine with me, although my wife did try to tap it several times to try to pause audio playback while we were driving. The elements displayed on the screen are managed by the central COMAND controller on the console.
Despite the relatively old look of the GLE cabin compared to the latest E and S class and the new MBUX infotainment launched this year on the A-Class, it’s not a completely obsolete system. The interface of the stock Mercedes infotainment wasn’t great when it launched the better part of a decade ago, but the GLE does include support for both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The voice recognition of the factory system is about as good as any older Mercedes-Benz or other vehicles developed in the prior decade, which is to say not great.
Getting Android Auto started on the GLE took a bit of digging into the menus, but once I found the right sub-menu, it worked well. Despite the absence of a touchscreen, the COMAND controller works well with the Android interface, twisting takes you between the controls that would be otherwise be touch targets, a pull down brings you to the bottom menu while a push forward triggers the Google Assistant for voice.
As you would expect of a modern Mercedes-Benz, the materials and execution in the cabin are impeccable and I’m particularly fond of the open-pore wood trim on the dashboard and doors. The seats are comfortable and like many higher end Mercedes models, this one features a built in massage which came in handy after three hours in a coach class seat. They don’t have the multiple massage patterns of the last E and S class sedans I drove, but they were definitely appreciated nonetheless.
What makes this particular GLE special however is the powertrain. When the tailgate is open, it’s immediately apparent that the cargo floor sits several inches above bumper height. That’s all to accommodate the 8.7-kWh of lithium ion battery. There is still plenty of room for several carry-on suitcases but the lift is a bit taller. The charging port is in an unusual location on the right corner of the rear bumper. During my four days in Boulder, I never did manage to find a charger or outlet in the hotel garage although did manage to put about half a charge back into the battery during an extended run back down Flagstaff road into the city.
The combined output of the powertrain was more than adequate for any normal driving although with the 5,500-lb curb weight, the GLE’s quoted 5.3-sec 0-60-mph time isn’t going to blow off any Tesla Model X’s. Driving up into the mountains, accelerating was never an issue, but I would have much preferred my Miata’s nimbleness on the switchbacks.
With its ample mass, the GLE550e doesn’t get a whole lot of range on electrons alone. With a full charge, the EPA says it can do about 10 miles with a bit of the engine blended in or up to about 8 miles if you put it in EV-only mode. I found that to be about right and driving back down the mountain roads into Boulder with a light touch on the brake pedal to trigger some regenerative braking, I got back to almost 50% charge over 7 miles. The battery will easily support silent, emissions-free jaunts around town, but it gets depleted quickly at highway speeds. Once that happens, like any other plug-in hybrid you’re back to conventional hybrid operation. In the GLE550e, that yielded about 28.5 mpg overall during our trip.
As is typical with with premium German vehicles, injudicious use of the option list can rapidly escalate the price. The base price of the GLE550e is $66,700 but as tested, this one came to just shy of $80,000 delivered. $5,000 of that was for the premium package that consists mainly of driver assist features like lane keeping, adaptive cruise control, and blindspot monitoring along with a host of other add-ons. Those oh so nice massaging seats? Another $1,100.
Now that Mercedes-Benz has opted to stop selling diesel vehicles in North America, plug-in hybrids like this GLE provide the best fuel efficiency you’ll get from the three-pointed star for now. The next generation variant will probably have an all-electric equivalent under the new EQ sub-brand. The combination of the trend toward weight reduction and Mercedes’ new 48V mild hybrid that debuts this year in the CLS will probably yield a new utility that matches the overall fuel efficiency of this plug-in hybrid without the limited electric only capability. Even a PHEV version of the next model will probably offer more electric range and overall efficiency.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/samabuelsamid/2018/04/20/before-mercedes-benz-gets-eq-there-is-the-plug-in-hybrid-gle550e/
2018-04-20T12:07:00+00:00