As an owner of two previous MB's, I can' say that the reliability will necessarily be any better, although the ML in general has been pretty good. My 2004 E Class was very problematic and just felt like it was going to fall apart about 2.5 years in. The ML fared much better. My general thought from my experience and what I have seen in the forums, is that with a German car, you may get lucky and have no problems, or you may get those that are extremely problematic. It seems to be pure luck of the draw.