2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE-class: What You Used to Call the M-class - Car and Driver (blog)
The third generation of the Mercedes-Benz M-class is selling with great success, even though those in the auto-design community are largely in agreement that it represents an aesthetic step backward from the 2006–2011 model. Yes, the M-class will henceforth be known as the GLE-class. Chief designer Gorden Wagener's troops have restyled the entire front of the car, which now resembles an oversize GLA-class instead of a second-generation Hyundai Santa Fe. The side view remains essentially the same, but the taillights are... The GLE300d uses a 2. 1-liter four-cylinder turbo-diesel that cranks out 201 horsepower and a healthy 369 lb-ft of torque. The entry-level gasoline engine is found in the GLE350, the only model that can be ordered with rear-wheel drive instead of all-wheel drive. The naturally aspirated 3. 5-liter V-6 produces 302 horsepower and 273 lb-ft. Above that, Benz offers the more powerful yet more efficient GLE400, which is fitted with the same 329-hp, 354-lb-ft 3. 0-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 found in the new C-class. The big news is the GLE550e, a plug-in hybrid that combines the GLE400's V-6 with a 114-hp electric motor for a total system output of 436 horsepower. Source: www.caranddriver.com
