2007 Mercedes-Benz GL450 - Car and Driver
About four years ago, Mercedes started working behind the scenes on a full-size sport-ute, the 2007 GL. That wasn't a surprising move considering the company had observed that about 25 percent of first-gen M-class owners were ditching their... In 1997, it practically got the mid-size luxury-SUV ball rolling with the M-class. And now that the mid-size segment is bursting with high-end choices, other automakers are adding full-size, mid-$50,000 models. Newer entries include Infiniti's QX56, around for just over two years, as well as the seven-passenger Audi Q7 that will launch in June, a month after the GL. Now, don't confuse the GL with the 26-year-old G-class (Geländewagen), originally... Some 60-to-70 percent of GL production (about 25,000 units) is slated to be sold in the U. S. As you may have guessed by now, the GL shares many parts with the R- and M-class SUVs - on the order of 70 to 80 percent. Although the GL is Mercedes' most spacious product, its 121. 1-inch wheelbase roughly splits the difference between those of the M- and R-classes. Source: www.caranddriver.com
