Motor Trend: Mercedes GL450 vs Land Rover LR3 vs Cadillac Escalade

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Poverty

Poverty

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1st Place
2007 Mercedes-Benz GL450

Capable, comfortable, and enthusiastic, the GL450 makes an impressive, albeit pricey statement about the current state of teh SUV art. Note to product planners: It's time to make leather standard.

0-60 - 6.4
0-100 - 17.3
passing, 45-65 mph - 3.4
quarter mile - 14.8 sec @ 93.1 mph
braking 60-0 - 125 feet
600 foot slalom - 57.1 mph avg
Base price - $55,675
Tested price - $68,075
EPA city/highway economy - 14/18 mpg

2nd Place
2006 Land Rover LR3 HSE

An off-road legend that plays on pavement as well as any go-anywhere SUV can, it continues to prove that good things can indeed come in small packages. Needs a bit more muscle to match up the pair.

0-60 - 6.5
0-100 - N/A
passing, 45-65 mph - 5.2
quarter mile - 16.7 sec @ 82.1 mph
braking 60-0 - 121 feet
600 foot slalom - 50.1 mph avg - electronicly limited
Base price - $53,700
Tested price - $56,175
EPA city/highway economy - 14/18 mpg

3rd Place
2007 Caddilac Escalade AWD

The Blinginator returns in an even bigger and better way, but its head-turning presence can't offset some questionable packaging compromises for buyers who demand practicality over profile..

0-60 - 6.4
0-100 - 17.4
passing, 45-65 - mph 3.3
quarter mile - 14.9 sec @ 94 mph
braking 60-0 - 130 feet
600 foot slalom - 57.1 mph avg
Base price - $57,280
Tested price - $66,110
EPA city/highway economy - 13/19 mpg

From the end of the article.

Depending on where your priorities lie for choosing an SUV that opens on the far side of $50K, any one of these three could well be a proper fit. For this confrontation, we put sophisticated on-road skills, three rows of useable seats, and lots of real-world utility on the front line, and came to an inevitable but far from overwhelming conclusion. Were off-road prowess to be more heavily weighted, the LR3 would've made a solid play for victory. Even in this face-off, it remains a paradigm of superb packaging that also offers an attractive mix of flexibility, comfort, and outstanding value.

Raising its visual profile, build quality, and sophistication beyond that of its successful forebear, the new Escalade also served notice that it'll remain an impact player, and one with even broader market appeal. In the end, its less-than-stellar interior space solutions left us feeling that bigger isn't always better.

That brings us to the equally new GL450. With its highly evolved powertrain, impressive dynamic envelope, and interior packaging capable of going head to head with anything that's available on the market, this new Mercedes-Benz simply worked its way to the top of the score sheets with a winning personality and all-around perfomance that more than offset any of its minor shortcomings.

As for the ability of any of these primo lifestylers to cope with the endless upward spiral of gasoline prices, (at almost four bucks a gallon), well, that's a story for another time.
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I would dare to say that this comparison was "stolen" from the Cadillac, as it is still the top Luxury SUV sold in the US market today.

That said, Cadillac has managed to shift what the Escalade is meant to do, from a multi-purpose and quite capable SUV off road, to a pavement-only SUV that will maybe see a dirt road once or twice in it's life.

Not to say that the GL450 or LR3 is a bad choise, but the Escalade still has twice the presence as those two. Maybe if the Land Rover was traded for the Range Rover Sport, this would have been a more even comparison (size, etc), but I still would have chosen the Escalade.

...If only VW still sold the V10 TDI Touareg in the US...
 
If I was to buy one tomorrow Id buy the escalade. If I was to buy one in twenty years it would be the mercedes. Wouldnt buy the land rover unless I was a farmer.


Gonna start posting more reviews over the following month as the automotive forum gets a bit slow sometimes.
 
I'm disgusted, I thought the Cadillac would come in 5th place! Give me the Merc with those kind of numbers. I'd still rather own the new Audi...god I'm such an Audi fanboy. I'm the German version of YSS. :sly:
 
If you read my post, I said that I would have taken the Land Rover Range Rover Sport over the Escalade, but of the three, the Cadillac is the best choise. If you read the article in that issue of Motor Trend, it was tough to decide exactly what was going on, as on one hand they were looking to find the best SUV to fit the bling-quotient, and then they wanted to find the best SUV for practicallity?

I may be a "GM Fanboy," but I can call the market as I see it, can't I? Of the three, I would prefer the Escalade, so whats you're point? I didn't say that I wouldn't want a GL450 (as it is quite a nice, and rather capable truck), and the LR3 is again one of my favorites (but in terms of size, it is not comparible to the Escalade).

...Just because I don't like every damn thing that comes out of Japan like you Master_Yoda doesn't mean that I'm insane. It means that I can see the market as it is, look for decently priced and equipped models, and go for what I like. Hence the reasons why I like GM and VAG products.

-----

Back on the luxury SUV topic...

How has the Q7 fared in the press? I seem to recall Motor Trend not caring much for it, and I can't remember how well it was accepted into Car and Driver's arms. Top Gear mentions it on and off, sometimes positively, other times negatively.

...But I'd still prefer a Touraeg over a Q7 myself, as it is cheaper, and better looking (IMO). The only "problem" is that I lose out on two seats, but to me, that isn't a HUGE deal. Then there is of course the Volvo XC90 and it's new V8 from the old SHO, and given it's safety and capability, it still rings in as a good buy, despite the fact that most of the competition is due for a revamp.

But, all of those afformentioned SUVs still are not in the same size class as the Escalade. As noted before, the Escalade is still "King of Bling" in that category, but I'd probably prefer a Range Rover or Range Rover Sport by the end of the day.
 
Poverty
1st Place
2007 Mercedes-Benz GL450

Capable, comfortable, and enthusiastic, the GL450 makes an impressive, albeit pricey statement about the current state of teh SUV art. Note to product planners: It's time to make leather standard.
Click to expand...

erm, MB tex is a very durable material and ages far better than any leather. my cars (1990 mecedes 300E) 16 year old interior looks brand new if i clean it and wipe it down. no maintenance.

you cant say that for any other interior from any other maker from that model year.
 
YSSMAN
How has the Q7 fared in the press? I seem to recall Motor Trend not caring much for it, and I can't remember how well it was accepted into Car and Driver's arms. Top Gear mentions it on and off, sometimes positively, other times negatively.

...But I'd still prefer a Touraeg over a Q7 myself, as it is cheaper, and better looking (IMO). The only "problem" is that I lose out on two seats, but to me, that isn't a HUGE deal. Then there is of course the Volvo XC90 and it's new V8 from the old SHO, and given it's safety and capability, it still rings in as a good buy, despite the fact that most of the competition is due for a revamp.
Click to expand...

I would probably choose a Touraeg if I could stuff more options in it and end up with the same price as a Q7. But I like the look of all of the Audis at the moment...that's one car company that just doesn't have an ugly model.

Oh and as for Volvo--I love the XC90. It's quite possibly the best SUV on planet earth right now. It's safe as hell, super reliable, and is quite good looking. I'd be very interested in one of these with a beefy V8 and a sport suspension. 👍 Hmm, Volvo XC90R. Has a nice ring to it. :sly:
 
Out of the three in Australia I would take the Escalade no doubt, the numbers look real good from the Escalade plus we have plenty of Merc's and Land rovers.
 
Dang 14.8 anda 14.9 by a GL450 and an Escalade? Them bricks are getting faster and faster these days....Does the Escalade really need all that HP?
 
403 BHP? Why the hell not? The previous-generation Escalade got by with 345 BHP, but when matched to the anincent 4L80E automatic, things were slow-ish compared to their competition. But with a big 6.2L V8 with tons of horsepower and torque matched to the all-new 6L80E automatic, and you've got a powertrain that is going to make that monster truck move at a rather quick pace...
 
well that is just stupid.
i would much rather go with the LR3. it is the one with actual capability, besides are you going to spend the massive amound of money on the mb when you can spend less for a car that you wont mind getting dirty and has the capability to do so?
 
...Because most Americans are obsessed with their image and never take their SUV's off-road. Maybe the occasional dirt road, but even that is a stretch.

So why not go for something with more Bling than the competition?
 

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