2022 Mercedes GLE400d

[cerb4.5lee]

RS Grant said:

Sorry to hear the start of ownership in the new car hasn’t been issue-free and a bit underwhelming for you and your wife Lee.

Did you consider the equivalent Audi Q-car? I assume given the X5 purchase that you’d be looking at a Q7 rather than Q5.

Or even a VW, I know the cost for a VW badge will put some people off but I think the new Touareg is a very sharp looking SUV in the correct spec.

Thanks Grant. We're not really big fans of Audi or VW to be honest(although personally I've always really liked the RS3/RS4/RS6 though). The Audi TTS didn't stand up well to the mileage that we did/do, so we wouldn't go to Audi again I don't think in fairness.

[cerb4.5lee]

RayDonovan said:

New Land Cruiser?

A good shout, and I think in an ideal world we'd go in the direction of something like the Range Rover Sport if their reliability record wasn't as bad as it is to be fair. However...neither the Merc or BMW are doing that well for us really either regarding that though!

[Tindersticks]

Is the interior the most important part?

[cerb4.5lee]

Tindersticks said:

Is the interior the most important part?

It is definitely one of the most important parts...yes. Neither of us are impressed with the interior in the X5 much at all really. I'm not fond of the interior in the M4 either, but I do like pretty much everything else about it though for example.

[Tindersticks]

Well as you haven’t had the best luck with the Merc I’d be looking at a RR.

[RayDonovan]

Tindersticks said:

Well as you haven’t had the best luck with the Merc I’d be looking at a RR.

[cerb4.5lee]

Tindersticks said:

Well as you haven’t had the best luck with the Merc I’d be looking at a RR.

I often think that myself to be honest. Plus if the RR was troublesome, I'm used to being in and out of the dealer fixing faults with the Merc anyway in fairness. The insurance was really high on the RRS in comparison to Merc/BMW last time I checked though.

[Tom4398cc]

I’m sure we all recognise this is a first world problem……….but nonetheless, it shouldn’t be this difficult to spend c.£60k to £90k on a reliable premium SUV in 2025. I hope a few of the manufacturers are reading this thread and taking note.

Good luck, whatever you decide.

[mdk1]

May I suggest a new LR Defender as a contender?

[cerb4.5lee]

mdk1 said:

May I suggest a new LR Defender as a contender?

They were actually on the table at one stage, plus they're really cheap to insure when I checked as well. I love the way they look for sure(especially the 3dr).

The interior in them is a bit Billy basic though, so my missus wrote them off because of that to be fair.

[RS Grant]

cerb4.5lee said:

RS Grant said:

Sorry to hear the start of ownership in the new car hasn’t been issue-free and a bit underwhelming for you and your wife Lee.

Did you consider the equivalent Audi Q-car? I assume given the X5 purchase that you’d be looking at a Q7 rather than Q5.

Or even a VW, I know the cost for a VW badge will put some people off but I think the new Touareg is a very sharp looking SUV in the correct spec.

Thanks Grant. We're not really big fans of Audi or VW to be honest(although personally I've always really liked the RS3/RS4/RS6 though). The Audi TTS didn't stand up well to the mileage that we did/do, so we wouldn't go to Audi again I don't think in fairness.

Yeah that's fair, everyone has different experiences and also the dealer network varies so greatly too.

For example I would never consider a Mercedes if I planned to dealer-service the car. Solely because while looking at cars for mum a few years ago, we were given absolutely terrible service at our local MB dealer and the Dealer Principal was so rude that it actually caused us to walk out, which is not something I've ever done before or since. Unfortunately every dealer within ~80 miles of us is under the same group umbrella, so it isn't something we could avoid by travelling further, which is a shame because there are a few Mercedes' which I really like.

[cerb4.5lee]

I filled the X5 up earlier, and I was properly impressed with the 802 miles it offered on the range. It actually has a smaller fuel tank than the GLE, so I wasn't expecting that to be honest. The best I ever saw in the GLE was around 730 miles if I remember correctly in comparison.

[PinkHouse]

cerb4.5lee said:

I filled the X5 up earlier, and I was properly impressed with the 802 miles it offered on the range. It actually has a smaller fuel tank than the GLE, so I wasn't expecting that to be honest. The best I ever saw in the GLE was around 730 miles if I remember correctly in comparison.

But with the latest Polestar 20 Long Range+ 200kW advance pack you coul get 200 miles of range in the winter so you're clearly missing out

[cerb4.5lee]

PinkHouse said:

cerb4.5lee said:

I filled the X5 up earlier, and I was properly impressed with the 802 miles it offered on the range. It actually has a smaller fuel tank than the GLE, so I wasn't expecting that to be honest. The best I ever saw in the GLE was around 730 miles if I remember correctly in comparison.

But with the latest Polestar 20 Long Range+ 200kW advance pack you coul get 200 miles of range in the winter so you're clearly missing out

From what I read, plenty of folk do do high mileage/long distance in electric to be fair. But it isn't something that we'd personally entertain though currently. The flexibility of not having to stop on long journeys just suits us, but we're all different though of course. An 800 mile range just makes me/us happy for some reason, and I wonder if electric cars will eventually offer that range as well one day?

[cerb4.5lee]

Wills2 said:

Good choice! Far better drive train in the 40d and I think you'll find as time goes on that the quality of everything inside is a step above the merc just not as shiny (but at least the magpies won't bother you anymore)

I spoke to my missus earlier bud about what you said here, and you were absolutely spot on for definite thanks.

She's well chuffed with the X5 now, and so am I too.

When I get around to it, I'll definitely start a thread on the X5 for sure. It just drives so much better than the Merc for us, and the way it rides the road is unbelievable in comparison to the Merc as well to be honest.

My missus even likes the interior now too, and usually she is properly critical when it comes to BMW interiors in fairness as well.

[matt21]

Great to hear, definitely seems to be a grower.

[jackcactii]

That's how it is with new Mercs, they're a bit shinier from the get go so they seem more impressive, but the substance is not as good after a longer period of time. At least that's my experience

X5 is one of the best products on the G platform. I still prefer the pre-facelift with the smaller iDrive display and it's also got higher quality materials, though.

[cerb4.5lee]

The X5 went in on Monday to have the front collision warning light error fixed, and the warning light had disappeared for a few days to be fair. However it has come back on again this afternoon while my missus is out in it though. This is like history repeating itself just like the Merc it seems!

Stuff like this happening definitely takes the edge of things I reckon, but I'll book it back in and see how we get on.

[cerb4.5lee]

I've finally started a new thread on the X5 for anyone who is interested, and I'll keep it updated about how I get on with it.

One thing I do much prefer in the GLE is how much more space/legroom there is in the rear seats(middle row) than the X5 in comparison. Both cars are roughly the same length I believe, but weirdly the GLE has loads more room though, and I'm not sure why. Rear leg room is properly tight in the X5 strangely in comparison.

New thread here...

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...