Is there a GL forum anywhere?
Discussion
Hi
I am strangely attracted to a credit crunch priced GL
Especially a bargain V8
(Relatively speaking)
The thing is Id love to find out some more info for example how they cope with being a family car, how they fit in Sainsbury's spaces, how reliable they are, whether owners have any issues and most importantly what deals folk have negotiated recently
Please note I am absolutely not buying new and I am totally not paying anything like what they moved for 6 months ago at 1-2 years old
Are there any forums/fora I havent found via Google please?
Does anyone here run one?
Cheers
I run a GL 320 cdi with all the toys.
They are loooong. Make sure you get the parking sensors front and rear, you WILL use them.
The engines a peach. Refined, frugal (26ish mpg around town and shortish journeys) into the 30's on long runs.
Rear electric folding seats are fantastic. Can be folded 50/50 split into the floor by boot buttons, plus extra buttons behind the 2nd row seats. Access to 3rd row is easy and plenty of room for 2 6ft adults in great comfort (we regularly lob the grandparents in the 3rd row with 3 kids spread out across the 2nd row.)
Deals-a-plenty at the moment i'd guess. We picked ours up 4 months old sub 3k miles over a year ago for mid 30's (these are upper £50's new with all the toys).
Cabin is a v nice place to be, stitched leather dash, H. Kardon stereo, phone pre-wiring, dual zone climate front and back, electric boot closure and opening (a godsend).
Not serviced yet BUT cant imagine major expense bar the usual items.
3 suspension settings, sat-nav system is fantastic.
Very relaxing drive, auto 6 box is very refined, cruises quietly and comfortably at 85-90 leptons, accelaration is adequate (if i recall 0-60 around 10 secs), overtaking is effortless with the turbo in kick-down mode.
We bought silver with black leather (how original) i guess this and black on black are the ones to go for.
We traded out of a Cayenne S (needed the room) and the Merc seems a little less fragile than the Porkers build quality and interior fit. We considered A7's and Disco 3's and drove all of them back to back (all 3.0 oil-burners). The Audi's 3rd row was tiny and only for occasional use, plus when we specced it up it became too pricey with all of the gizmos,so dismissed straight away. Liked the Disco, but it didnt seem as refined as the Merc, build quality seemed bettter than previous LR's, but still not on par with the Mercs.
They are like S-classes on stilts, with a small extention on the back!
Happy hunting....
They are loooong. Make sure you get the parking sensors front and rear, you WILL use them.
The engines a peach. Refined, frugal (26ish mpg around town and shortish journeys) into the 30's on long runs.
Rear electric folding seats are fantastic. Can be folded 50/50 split into the floor by boot buttons, plus extra buttons behind the 2nd row seats. Access to 3rd row is easy and plenty of room for 2 6ft adults in great comfort (we regularly lob the grandparents in the 3rd row with 3 kids spread out across the 2nd row.)
Deals-a-plenty at the moment i'd guess. We picked ours up 4 months old sub 3k miles over a year ago for mid 30's (these are upper £50's new with all the toys).
Cabin is a v nice place to be, stitched leather dash, H. Kardon stereo, phone pre-wiring, dual zone climate front and back, electric boot closure and opening (a godsend).
Not serviced yet BUT cant imagine major expense bar the usual items.
3 suspension settings, sat-nav system is fantastic.
Very relaxing drive, auto 6 box is very refined, cruises quietly and comfortably at 85-90 leptons, accelaration is adequate (if i recall 0-60 around 10 secs), overtaking is effortless with the turbo in kick-down mode.
We bought silver with black leather (how original) i guess this and black on black are the ones to go for.
We traded out of a Cayenne S (needed the room) and the Merc seems a little less fragile than the Porkers build quality and interior fit. We considered A7's and Disco 3's and drove all of them back to back (all 3.0 oil-burners). The Audi's 3rd row was tiny and only for occasional use, plus when we specced it up it became too pricey with all of the gizmos,so dismissed straight away. Liked the Disco, but it didnt seem as refined as the Merc, build quality seemed bettter than previous LR's, but still not on par with the Mercs.
They are like S-classes on stilts, with a small extention on the back!
Happy hunting....
Thanks for the post
Was the advertised price close to that which you bought it for?
And if not how hard did you haggle and how much did you get?
Cheers
Im still at the tyre kicking phase and cant decide exactly which car to go and drive to be honest
Some are advertised at fair prices, others just stupid
Its useful to know if those on at ££££ are expected to sell at that price or that its just a start
eg BMW wont discount 6/12 month old X5s but Q7 prices tumble readily and RR Sports are actually on at fair askings before the haggling
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/gl-class/
We have an ML320 CDI (little brother of the GL) excellant comfortable luxury vehicle. PDC front and reaer shrinks it down A LOT a must have.
We have an ML320 CDI (little brother of the GL) excellant comfortable luxury vehicle. PDC front and reaer shrinks it down A LOT a must have.
ukdavvy12 said:
Was the advertised price close to that which you bought it for?
No. Nowhere near.
And if not how hard did you haggle and how much did you get?
I offered 22% below sticker price (with a Cayenne in px) to two different MB dealers, for essentially the same spec/age car. Taking out the px, i dealt at approx. 20% below sticker price. (Keep in mind the car was only approx. 4 months old and had already dropped something like 15%!).
You should pick up something very very cheap at this time of year.
No. Nowhere near.
And if not how hard did you haggle and how much did you get?
I offered 22% below sticker price (with a Cayenne in px) to two different MB dealers, for essentially the same spec/age car. Taking out the px, i dealt at approx. 20% below sticker price. (Keep in mind the car was only approx. 4 months old and had already dropped something like 15%!).
You should pick up something very very cheap at this time of year.
Hmm interesting post cinque - many thanks
Your dealer certainly seems keener to deal than most
I have been talking to MB Baskingstoke about a 2y old 420D
They are available at brokers for 59k (Im not that stupid) or 50 for 6 month old examples
(List is actually about 65 amazingly)
Basingstoke want 39k and wont budge which seems a lot for a 2y old one vs 59k in the current climate
Any other comments welcome
Cheers
I've had a GL 420cdi for the last 6 months from new, but only because of the deal at the time. Black/Black 20"alloys/privacy glass - £65,000 new, £13,000 discount, £7,500 deposit then remainder on 4.2% APR. In 18 months time Mercedes are contracted to buy it back at £35,000. In the current climate as a private sale I don't believe I would get much more than £35k now. I'm sure in 2 years time Mercedes will be quite upset knowing they have to take the car back at 35k.
The engine is quite amazing but in the 4,500 miles to date I have never seen over 20mpg. To date my average fuel comsumption is 16.9 mpg (mostly to/from work 10 miles). With a 100 litre tank it costs £14 more to fill up than the petrol GL500 (about 14/15mpg?). So cost to run is probably identical, yet the GL500 has even more toys and is even faster.
Mind you, have you ever seen a GL500 for sale?
The GL is a great car, solid 4 star rating from Autocar. The only real negative is the sat nav - putting in where you want to go is a real pain. You can only put the first 4 digits of a post code in, then you have to select area, then road, letter by letter - and only if the road is in the database. After using a Tom Tom for a few years, it really is the slowest to input and most awkward sat nav I've come across. Once location is selected it's fine though it doesn't have a 3d view.
Let us know how you get on, large 4x4's will continue to drop like stones for quite a while yet, so no need to rush in. Good luck!
The engine is quite amazing but in the 4,500 miles to date I have never seen over 20mpg. To date my average fuel comsumption is 16.9 mpg (mostly to/from work 10 miles). With a 100 litre tank it costs £14 more to fill up than the petrol GL500 (about 14/15mpg?). So cost to run is probably identical, yet the GL500 has even more toys and is even faster.
Mind you, have you ever seen a GL500 for sale?
The GL is a great car, solid 4 star rating from Autocar. The only real negative is the sat nav - putting in where you want to go is a real pain. You can only put the first 4 digits of a post code in, then you have to select area, then road, letter by letter - and only if the road is in the database. After using a Tom Tom for a few years, it really is the slowest to input and most awkward sat nav I've come across. Once location is selected it's fine though it doesn't have a 3d view.
Let us know how you get on, large 4x4's will continue to drop like stones for quite a while yet, so no need to rush in. Good luck!
I have just picked up a GL500 for my boss, I drove from London to Aberdeen and was getting 24MPG most of the way and it fell to 18 when I was nipping on.
It has factory sat/nav but no CD player or ipod connection other than the jack plug in the glove box
pretty poor for such a high spec car.
Excellent otherwise.
It has factory sat/nav but no CD player or ipod connection other than the jack plug in the glove box
pretty poor for such a high spec car.Excellent otherwise.
Had my GL420 for 18months now, and have done 31000 miles. Trade in value probably 2-3pence, but as I don't intend to sell it it doesn't matter! Big discount when new, so I'm not unhappy.
Tyres, 20" Michelin, Mercedes Original spec cost £260 each, last 20,000 miles.
I get about 24mpg on the trip computer on average, but I do mostly long journeys. Worst is about 15 mpg in town when cold, best is about 27mpg, when you are able to rumble along uninterrupted at about 70-75. NB: You need to be doing 60+ for the beast to be in top gear, so it's actually more economical at 70 than 60..... But surely, you didn't buy it for its fuel economy, did you??? You bought it because it is king of the jungle, not a common car like a Range Rover or an X5 'toy'! S Class on stilts, in fact.
Two warranty problems. A recall for a 'crankshaft position sensor', and a rear shocker replaced under warranty. Otherwise, it's great.
Tyres, 20" Michelin, Mercedes Original spec cost £260 each, last 20,000 miles.
I get about 24mpg on the trip computer on average, but I do mostly long journeys. Worst is about 15 mpg in town when cold, best is about 27mpg, when you are able to rumble along uninterrupted at about 70-75. NB: You need to be doing 60+ for the beast to be in top gear, so it's actually more economical at 70 than 60..... But surely, you didn't buy it for its fuel economy, did you??? You bought it because it is king of the jungle, not a common car like a Range Rover or an X5 'toy'! S Class on stilts, in fact.
Two warranty problems. A recall for a 'crankshaft position sensor', and a rear shocker replaced under warranty. Otherwise, it's great.
mercGLowner said:
There is also another recall for an airmatic pump. I didnt know about it until they told me when the crankshaft position sensor was changed.
Funny you should mention that - I was told of this yesterday.Not sure it is a recall though .... just something to be changed when the car is next in.
steve_amv8 said:
mercGLowner said:
There is also another recall for an airmatic pump. I didnt know about it until they told me when the crankshaft position sensor was changed.
Funny you should mention that - I was told of this yesterday.Not sure it is a recall though .... just something to be changed when the car is next in.
A friend has recently swapped his 420 for a brand new 320
The 420 is more economical surprisingly (18 vs 16), and it has some more mid-range shove. The 320 is definatly quieter though, so its horses for courses at the end of the day. The car as a whole though is absoloutly brilliant - Handles incredibly well for something of its size, plenty of standard kit, masses of space inside, very quiet at the motorway cruise, and I think it looks good.
Go for it
The 420 is more economical surprisingly (18 vs 16), and it has some more mid-range shove. The 320 is definatly quieter though, so its horses for courses at the end of the day. The car as a whole though is absoloutly brilliant - Handles incredibly well for something of its size, plenty of standard kit, masses of space inside, very quiet at the motorway cruise, and I think it looks good.
Go for it
mister.t said:
A friend has recently swapped his 420 for a brand new 320
The 420 is more economical surprisingly (18 vs 16), and it has some more mid-range shove. The 320 is definatly quieter though, so its horses for courses at the end of the day. The car as a whole though is absoloutly brilliant - Handles incredibly well for something of its size, plenty of standard kit, masses of space inside, very quiet at the motorway cruise, and I think it looks good.
Go for it
16mpg?! The 420 is more economical surprisingly (18 vs 16), and it has some more mid-range shove. The 320 is definatly quieter though, so its horses for courses at the end of the day. The car as a whole though is absoloutly brilliant - Handles incredibly well for something of its size, plenty of standard kit, masses of space inside, very quiet at the motorway cruise, and I think it looks good.
Go for it
I manage an average on 26mpg in mine and not far short of 30mpg on long motorway journeys!
steve_amv8 said:
16mpg?!
I manage an average on 26mpg in mine and not far short of 30mpg on long motorway journeys!
Mostly lane driving around here, and fairly short journeys at that (<5 miles normally) and he doesnt really hang about once it has warmed up!I manage an average on 26mpg in mine and not far short of 30mpg on long motorway journeys!
It can hit 27mpg quite easily on the motorway, but its those short journeys and the lane driving that kills that.
mister.t said:
steve_amv8 said:
16mpg?!
I manage an average on 26mpg in mine and not far short of 30mpg on long motorway journeys!
Mostly lane driving around here, and fairly short journeys at that (<5 miles normally) and he doesnt really hang about once it has warmed up!I manage an average on 26mpg in mine and not far short of 30mpg on long motorway journeys!
It can hit 27mpg quite easily on the motorway, but its those short journeys and the lane driving that kills that.
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