When attending a vehicle launch, the chance to drive the AMG derivative of a new Mercedes-Benz range is usually the choice move. This time, however, hindsight proved otherwise. I was at the South African introduction of the GLE Coupé and with colleague Gareth Dean having driven the lesser-powered GLE450 AMG Coupé in Munich (read that review here), I figured I may as well have a blast in the flagship of the range.
My driving partner and I – the editor of another SA motoring magazine – opted for the GLE63 S model (with its 430 kW 5,5-litre V8 and low-profile 22-inch tyres), and looked forward to hearing its raspy exhaust note along the highways and mountain passes of the Garden Route.
Assumption, as they say, is the mother of all screw-ups (although it’s usually expressed the in more colourful language than that). This truism would apply here as well. We were not heading for the asphalt. Instead, the first 20 km of the launch route would take us through some fairly rutted and – thanks to the previous day’s downpour – muddy forest trails.
We were definitely in the wrong car.
It can go off road, not that you would
Mercedes-Benz SA had mapped part of our test route through the beautiful indigenous Knysna forest no doubt to showcase what a capable off-roader this SUV coupé crossover was. And it was. Despite its road-biased tyres and two-and-a-half ton bulk, the GLE63 S managed to tiptoe its way through everything. Everything, that is, except one steep, muddy descent.
We were at the back of the convoy and as we crested the little hill, it was clear everyone below us had stopped. Not travelling more than 15 km/h, my partner applied the brakes and… not much happened.
The slope was slathered in a layer of black, soapy mud. It may as well have been grease. The AMG’s steering and ABS battled in vain, but could do nothing to stop the big, heavy, and very expensive vehicle from slowly sliding down toward seven more big, heavy, and very expensive vehicles. It was only thanks to the vigilance of the car in front that moved out the way, and a small but vital piece of grip found by our front tyres, that enabled us to veer slightly right into the forest to miss everyone.
No doubt the gods of off-roading had a bit of a chuckle at the situation and perhaps they were right. Yes, the GLE Coupé was capable of dealing with this stuff… but surely no-one lucky enough to ever own one of these will ever take it on a route as challenging as that.
Far more at home on the hard stuff
Happily our satnav indicated a tarred road was only a couple of kilometres further on and for the rest of the journey we were able to experience the Mercedes-AMG GLE63 S Coupé for what it really is… a remarkably quick performance vehicle. It will accelerate from 0-100 km/h in a claimed 4,2 seconds – a time that, to put it into perspective, matches that of the 2013 Mercedes-Benz C63S Black Series. As an aside – we won’t be getting the standard GLE63 Coupé in our market, only the “S” variant.
While scanning international reports on the GLE Coupé, I noticed that the newcomer’s on-road manners have come in for some stick when scribes compared it with those of its natural rival, the BMW X6 – some even went as far as to call it a bit of a pudding. I’d disagree with that sentiment. Yes, there is slightly more body roll in the GLE, but the ride is superb. Even when wearing 285/40 ZR22 front and 325/35 ZR22 rear rubber the ride feels comfortable and pliant, yet there’s still plenty of body control available.
We put it to the test with a quick blast down the Grootrivier Pass into Natures Valley, where this tight and twisty ribbon of tar would test just how well the configurations of the Benz’s suspension and 7-speed automatic transmission were suited to handling all the fast-driving action. Both performed impressively and, though not a double-clutch arrangement, the GLE’s ‘box responds quickly to inputs from the paddle shifts. The underpinnings facilitate swift but steady progress, though exuberant driving does highlight a hard-to-ignore characteristic of these big sports SUVs: while their big motors provide mountains of punch out of slow speed corners, those lofty torque outputs also disguise just how heavy these vehicles are. Come in to a corner too hot and the momentum of all this mass will catch you out.
Summary
Yes, the GLE63 S Coupé is an exercise in excess and the relevance of vehicles of this ilk is often questioned. BMW, however, has sold enough X6s around the globe for its archrival Mercedes-Benz to want a slice of the action too, so I guess that answers that.
Perhaps a better question to ask is which AMG version of the GLE Coupé you should get. As Gareth explains in his driving impression, with the Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 AMG Coupé, Mercedes-Benz has introduced their new “AMG lite” range in SA (think Audi “S” and BMW “M Performance” lines) and at R1 876 111, the full-blown Mercedes-AMG GLE63 S Coupé is some R765 000 more than this GLE450 sibling.
Is it worth it? I’d have to say not. I had the opportunity to spend another 100 km in the highly entertaining GLE450 AMG Coupé and, with its 270 kW 3,0-litre turbopetrol V6, it’s more than powerful enough. My advice would be that if this car is on your shopping list, the GLE 450 AMG Coupé is definitely the sweetspot in the range.
