Mercedes GLS or BMW X7
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0:00 - Intro
BAD:
0:35 - Price
The Benz is usually a grand or two more than the BMW, but this new facelifted GLS increases in price by $6,000 from last year’s car
Which means it now starts at about 87/88k which is THOUSANDS more than the X7, which starts at about 82/3k
1:30 - 3rd row
But as we know, sometimes these 3 rows don’t really have super expansive third rows and that’s true with both the GLS and X7
They’re very similar size back here and it’s fairly tight
The GLS has a nice feature where the 2nd row wont crunch a car seat, but getting back here isn’t the easiest
You do get cupholders, a little storage cubby and a charger back here
But BMW offers a dedicated sunroof to third row passengers in the X7
2:14 - Fuel economy
The 450 gets a massaged version of the 3.0T I6 with the 48V EQ system which improves HP but also combined fuel economy (up 1) to 21 mpg combined - which isn’t bad on the face of it
The only problem then is that the BMW X7 is doing 21 mpg in the CITY
2:44 - Slow
And that’s with the X7 making the same 375 hp as the new 450 engine
Mercedes was able to eek out 13 more HP from last year’s motor to match the 375 hp in the X7
So they’re level on HP now, but the BMW packs about 30 more lbft of torque
Which results in the X7 getting to 60 almost a full second quicker than the X7, at least in some real-world testing
GOOD:
3:35 - Looks
This is a subjective piece, but to me the GLS looks significantly better than the X7 and its new facelift is a big part of that
4:16 - Driving Experience
Ok so the BMW X7 will drive made a LITTLE more sophisticated than the GLS and it’ll jump to 60 quicker
But i’m not buying a 3 row luxury SUV thinking about 0-60 times or sport mode
I want it to be easy to drive and comfortable
And that’s what this GLS is
5:30 - Interior design
They manage to make it feel fitted without being cramped
In the X7 I feel cramped for being in such a big SUV
Here the design is clean and expensive looking
While still injecting some ruggedness with things like the center grab handles
The leatherwork is nice
The alloys are good
And you’ve got new colors and trims for this year to further personalize your GLS
6:10 - Trunk space
And then the trunk, which is always a roll of the dice in these 3 row SUVs
But here on the GLS it’s pretty good!
With the third row up the GLS offers several cubic feet more space than the X7 and you can feel that
You have to put all the seat backs down for the BMW to come back at the GLS
6:44 - 2nd row
You get heated seats here as standard
you get power adjustments for your captains chairs
You can get heated armrests, super cool
3 different vents
Chargers
And weirdly two different size cupholders
7:21 - New tech
Your interior design may stay very familiar but one touch into the head unit and it’s very obviously been heavily updated
New graphics, new menus, better 360 cameras, AR navigation, and now wireless ACP and AA which is a welcome first
8:09 - Pizazz/Lux touches
First is the heard armrests front and back you can get
Super nice now that it’s starting to cool off here in WI
Heated and cooled cupholers
This isn’t something i’ve ever seen from an X7 - maybe the Alpina has it, but this is a super nice touch
Soft close doors - lot’s of luxury cars have these now but it’s always nice
8:58 - Towing
The GLS packs a VERY healthy 7716 lb towing capacity for the 450 here
For reference that’s more than the 7500 lbs you get in the X7
But it’s also more than the 7700 lbs max towing you get from the new Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon
9:27 - Conclusion