Drove a 2006 ML350...

Bavarian · #1 12-15-2005, 12:36 AM

Well ladies and gents, I was up near the northern part of the city this afternoon. I was running errands, and also picked up a new rear wiper blade.

Well there is a Benz dealer right near that BMW dealer up there (BMW Autohaus).

Anyway I went in there, and decided to give the new ML-Class a shot. They sadly only had an ML350 for a demo. Alas, why not? Even with the ML350, I could probably see if it still rides like the old one.

Impression 1 = there is HUGE body roll. Just when I closed the door of the SUV, the whole thing shook. When you make a turn, the front end dips in - kinda scary!

Impression 2 = the body feels like it's only connected to the suspension via a spring. The whole body of the SUV shudders when you go over a bump. It's like those Lincoln Town Cars with the air suspension that are used for airport limos. You go over an imperfection, and the damn thing is still bobbing up and down, left, right for the next 10 seconds.
Impression 3 = you still can't get a friggin' ski sack on these cars?! Yes, that's true! A ski sack is still NOT an option. Upon asking the salesman about it, he said that the folding seats will do the job. I told him that I also have 60/40 folding seats, but that trick won't work if you have rear passengers. He quickly stated that I could buy a ski rack for the roof rails. I informed him that I didn't wanna get my skis stolen while eating lunch and being parked. He then told me I should buy one of those bix ski/snowboard boxes and mount it on the roof. I told him that I would look like an Antonov-225 carrying the Buran, and I wouldn't clear the 6-foot limit of any parking lot like that.
Impression 4 = no xenons?! no rain-sensing wipers?! Benz wants the same starting price ($60000) as the X5 3.0i yet I don't even get some complimentary xenons? No. I was informed that was a $1945 option. Oh, and no standard front heated seats either. What about the rear ones? Not even an option. Rain-sensing wipers? $220 please. Upholstery? Not even leatherette - I am offered CLOTH!
Impression 5 = OK, this thing has much more power than the X5 3.0i. It's got 268hp, and it's shifting through 7-speeds! Somehow, I found its 8.4-second run to 100 to be slow for the stats of this vehicle. I mean, the X5, with only a 3L engine, and nearly 50hp less still manages an 8.8 run. If given a larger engine with more hp and torque, plus a 7-speed tranny, so that you can stay at higher RPMs for longer, I would have expected a low-8 run at least!
Impression 6 = OK let's hear something positive. Well the demo I drove had the HK Logic 7. That is nearly the same thing BMW puts in the 3, 5 and 7. Much better than the stock audio on the X5. I've also heard the DSP in the X5, and I have to hand the crown to the ML in that department. Sorry.
Impression 7 = Legroom. This thing has 5 inches more in the rear, 1 more in the front, and the plastic around the A/C controls doesn't cut into your knee like in the X5. I appreciate the space. Did I mention the cargo area looks twice as large?

The X5 is an aging machine, but even this new-gen ML falls short again. I can't wait to see how that gap will broaden when the new X5 comes.