Mercedes-Benz GLS Surpasses The S-class On The Tech It Offers

The third-generation GLS surpasses the S-Class on the tech it offers, and that is the biggest compliment it can earn

- Rohit Paradkar

This year, MercedesBenz India is all set to replace its range-topping luxury SUVs, the GLE and the GLS, with all-new models. We drove the GLE in Texas last November, and this month we visited Utah to have a go at the third-generation GLS with both its India-bound engines present for us to drive.

Why the US?

For starters, Mercedes-Benz produces the GLE and the GLS in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in the United States and therefore it is logistically easier for the carmaker to give us an early sampler of what is coming. Secondly, Utah is known for its rocky terrain, some wide highways, stunning mountain roads, scarce traffic, and of course, its motorsport affinity. It’s a pity that after landing in the Salt Lake City, we didn’t drive the new GLS on the rocky trails of Moab or on the horizonblurring straights of the Bonneville Salt Flats. But even if we did, the new GLS could easily lift itself and crawl over the trails, or blast down the salty straights without breaking a sweat.

The magic of active suspension

Like the GLE, the GLS too features the Electronic Active Body Control, or E-ABC, which gives this mammoth the ability to dance. Not a pretty sight, yes, but it’s a pretty good feature to have. With the E-ABC, the GLS has the ability to actually lift either of its four corners by an additional 60mm, when instructed! This ability comes courtesy a 48V electronic system, which allows the individually controlled air-springs to make several damping changes and alter ride at either or all four wheels. Regular air-suspension or adaptive dampers simply can’t act or react as quickly.