2022 Mercedes-Benz GLS Reviews, Pricing & Specs
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The three-row Mercedes-Benz GLS sits at the top of the automaker’s luxury SUV range in both size and status.
The SUV that’s now known as the GLS was launched for the 2007 model year as the GL-Class, when Mercedes decided it needed a bigger, more luxurious SUV to sit above the M-Class in its lineup. The GL-Class and M-Class were rebadged the Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class and GLE-Class, respectively, in 2014 when Mercedes introduced a new naming scheme across its lineup.
The current version of the GLS was introduced for the 2020 model year, and represents the model’s third generation. It’s aimed at other full-size luxury SUVs, including the BMW X7, Cadillac Escalade, Infiniti QX80, Land Rover Range Rover, Lincoln Navigator, and Lexus LX.
Four models are available in Canada: the base six-cylinder GLS 450 4Matic, the GLS 580 4Matic, the AMG GLS 63 4Matic+, and the Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 4Matic. Availability is currently limited, and specifications for the 2022 model year are not available. However, they are expected to be very close to those listed for 2021, which were used as reference for the information provided here. We tested a U.S.-specification 2022 GLS 450 for this review.
In base GLS 450 form, that makes for a more subtle, less flashy look than the chrome-laden Cadillac Escalade, Land Rover Range Rover, or Lincoln Navigator. Mercedes was also confident enough to avoid a gaudy grille like protruding proboscises of the BMW X7 or Lexus LX.
However, buyers have the option for a bit more visual drama. The AMG GLS 63 performance model gets flared wheel arches, a more muscular grille and front bumper, prominent rectangular exhaust tips, and in Canada, AMG-specific 22-inch wheels. The Maybach version gets chrome everywhere, including the grille, window trim, and front-bumper mesh. It also gets a more traditional-looking hood ornament and power running boards, and is available with massive 23-inch wheels.
Similarly, the Maybach model is available with added luxuries like reclining rear seats, while the AMG version gets a more performance-oriented interior, with stainless steel trim and heavily bolstered Nappa leather seats. The Mercedes Air Balance Package perfume spritzer is also on the options list.
Our test car had a fairly basic interior by GLS standards, but it still looked pretty nice. It didn’t have reclining seats, but the (non-Nappa) leather upholstery, panoramic roof, and ambient lighting made the interior feel properly luxurious. We also liked some of the details, such as the intricate speaker grilles for the audio system, and the use of rectangular air vents, a more rugged touch in line with an SUV interior.
As with most other Mercedes models, the GLS also gets a digital instrument cluster and infotainment touchscreen housed together under one piece of glass. But we think this is the best integration of this hardware so far, thanks to an upright dashboard that frames the screens nicely.
Overall, the GLS 450’s interior felt appropriate for a luxury SUV. While perhaps too subdued for the nouveau riche (especially with our test car’s all-black trim), it felt high quality without being fragile. We could easily imagine ourselves surveying a country estate from behind the GLS’s three-spoke steering wheel.
The GLS 450 has a 3.0-litre turbocharged inline six-cylinder engine and nine-speed automatic transmission, assisted by the Mercedes EQ Boost mild-hybrid system. The gasoline engine produces 362 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque, and an electric motor can add 21 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque in short bursts. The electric motor also serves as the starter, allowing for a more aggressive engine start/stop system, and powers most accessories, reducing the engine’s workload.
Mercedes is also expected to resume production of the GLS 580 4Matic, AMG GLS 63, and Maybach GLS 600 4Matic, all of which uses a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, which produces up to 603 hp in the high-performance AMG version. All GLS models get standard 4Matic all-wheel drive (AWD), with a performance-tuned drivetrain for the Mercedes-AMG GLS 63.
We didn’t miss the V8 at all. The six-cylinder engine provided more than enough muscle to move this big SUV, and the electric assist was blended in nicely. Like the BMW X7 and the latest Range Rover, the GLS 450 also uses an inline-6 rather than the more common V6. Owing to better balance, inline-sixes are inherently smoother than V6 engines, making them a perfect fit for luxury vehicles.
However, we were left wishing for a bit more luxury-car refinement from the suspension. The GLS gets standard air suspension, which can raise and lower the ride height and negate impacts from even the gnarliest potholes. But our test car exhibited poor body control, bouncing over bumps and leaning disconcertingly in corners. We weren’t expecting a sports car, but this was simply too much motion to be truly comfortable.
Mercedes quotes a 3,500-kilogram (7,700-pound) maximum towing capacity for the GLS 450. That should provide plenty of capability, but some other big luxury SUVs offer more. The Lexus LX, for example can tow up to 3,630 kilograms (8,000 pounds), while the Lincoln Navigator has a 3,765-kilogram (8,300-pound) towing capacity in certain configurations.
The GLS comes standard in a seven-seat configuration with a 60/40 split-folding second-row bench seat and two third-row seats. An optional six-seat version ditches the second-row bench for individual captain’s chairs.
Second-row seats can slide forward and fold for access to the third row, while the standard bench seat can slide fore and aft as one piece, increasing legroom by 8.6 centimetres, according to Mercedes. Thanks to a fairly long wheelbase, second-row legroom is the best among full-size luxury SUVs, and the GLS is competitive in other measurements.
The GLS offers 355 litres of cargo space with all seats in place, and 2,400 litres with the second and third rows folded. As these specs show, leaving the rear seats in place really eats into cargo space, but that’s the case with all three-row vehicles. Cargo space expands to 1,209 litres with the third row folded, but that increases to 1,379 litres if you slide the second-row seats all the way forward.
Cargo space is a bit behind the larger Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator, which use platforms from full-size pickup trucks. Mercedes makes loading and unloading cargo easy, though, with one-touch power-folding second-row and third-row seats and a power tailgate. The GLS’s air suspension can also lower, which makes it easier to get things into the cargo area.
Overall, the GLS is well equipped to move people and stuff, but we did find a few small ergonomic issues. We liked the way the touchscreen/instrument cluster display combination looked, but the touchscreen was too far away to reach easily. The centre console had grab handles with no obvious purpose. And while Mercedes included clever two-piece sun visors with forward and side-facing elements, they weren’t big enough to actually block the sun.
The standard Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) infotainment system includes a 12.3-inch touchscreen, 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity, navigation, SiriusXM satellite radio, and natural-language voice recognition. A 13-speaker Burmester audio system and a head-up display are optional.
Mercedes gives users lots of choices, including voice recognition, a touchpad controller, small touchpads on the steering wheel, and the touchscreen itself. We found the voice recognition system, which responds to the prompt “Hey Mercedes,” to be the easiest. The Mercedes system understands normal speech better than most, and it means you don’t have to take your eyes off the road or your hands off the wheel.
It also means avoiding the cumbersome touchpad controller. Designed primarily for scrolling through menus, we found it to be too sensitive to use easily. It was much more difficult than the rotary controllers used by some other automakers for similar tasks.
Both the touchscreen and instrument cluster had good-looking graphics. The augmented-reality navigation feature available in the latest S-Class sedan, which projects arrows showing you where to turn, is standard in the GLS. Bizarrely, the embedded navigation system also suggested a route that would have added an hour to a trip for no apparent reason. We haven’t encountered this problem in other Mercedes vehicles, but it certainly drained our confidence in the GLS navigation system.
Standard safety features include forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, a driver-attention monitor, automatic high beams, blind-spot monitoring (which can also warn if it’s unsafe to open a door when parked), Crosswind Assist (corrects for wind buffeting), lane-keep assist, parking assist, Trailer Stability Assist, and Pre Safe, which tightens the seat belts, closes the windows and sunroof, and adjusts seats in anticipation of a rollover. The audio system also emits a “pink noise” engineered to protect the ears from loud noises during a collision.
Despite that long list of features, Mercedes still leaves a lot on the table. You’ll have to pay extra for a surround-view camera system, adaptive cruise control, and Mercedes’s more advanced driver-assistance features. Some of these optional features include Active Steering Assist automated lane centring, Evasive Steering Assist, Active Lane Change Assist, Active Blind Spot Assist (which pulls the car back into its lane if another vehicle is detected), and Active Emergency Stop Assist (slows the car to a stop if the driver becomes unresponsive).
Crash-test ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) weren’t available at the time of publication.
Natural Resources Canada fuel consumption ratings for the Mercedes-Benz GLS 450 4Matic are 11.5 litres per 100 kilometres combined (12.8 city, 10.0 highway). Despite the mild-hybrid system, this is still a big, heavy, boxy vehicle, so these fairly poor fuel economy ratings aren’t too surprising. You’re not going to do any better with other large SUVs.
Ratings for the V8 models aren’t available because Mercedes initially withheld them from the North American market for 2022. For reference, the 2021 GLS 580 4Matic was rated at 13.0 L/100 km combined, while the AMG and Maybach versions were both rated at 14.8 L/100 km combined.
Mercedes offers a four-year, 80,000-kilometre, basic warranty and four-year, 80,000-kilometre, powertrain warranty.
Pricing starts at $101,900, not including a mandatory destination charge, which varies across Canada by market. Our test car had a few options that cost extra in Canada, including leather upholstery, heated/cooled front seats, a head-up display, five-zone climate control, soft-close doors, and a 360-degree camera. That would bring the as-tested MSRP to $111,190.
The GLS 450 does come fairly well-equipped. Most of the optional features listed above don’t fundamentally change the driving experience; more relevant features like AWD and air suspension are standard. However, Mercedes also makes buyers pay extra for some key features—such as leather seating and adaptive cruise control—that should be standard on a flagship SUV.
Overall, though, the GLS is a solid luxury SUV. It’s not as pretentious as the somewhat gimmicky BMW X7, and has more manageable packaging than the behemoth Cadillac Escalade, Infiniti QX80, and Lincoln Navigator. However, new versions of the Lexus LX and Range Rover are hitting showrooms, both with greater off-road capability than the GLS and a big dose of luxury. So, Mercedes may soon have to fight to keep its place in the full-size luxury SUV pecking order.
Note: Images show a US model.
