Think of the 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLS as the S-Class of SUVs, and you'll understand its position in the automaker's lineup. Except for the legendary G-Class and electric EQS SUV, the GLS lineup features Mercedes' most expensive sport/utility vehicles.
Photo: Ron Sessions
Four iterations of this large, three-row SUV are available. They include the GLS 450 with a six-cylinder engine and three V8-powered brutes, including the plush GLS 580, performance-oriented AMG GLS 63, and opulent Maybach GLS 600. In addition, depending on the model, the GLS offers Premium, Exclusive, and Pinnacle trim packages.
Prices for the 2024 Mercedes GLS are as follows, including the $1,150 destination charge and standard 4Matic all-wheel drive (AWD):
This year, the 2024 GLS received several updates. They include:
Previously, JD Power reviewed the limited-production, performance-focused 2021 Mercedes-AMG GLS 63. This review concentrates on the GLS's updates for 2024 and how they potentially impact the SUV's overall consumer appeal.
The Mercedes-Benz GLS competes in the Large Premium SUV market segment. According to data collected from verified new-vehicle buyers for the JD Power 2023 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, Mercedes-Benz GLS owners rated their SUV in 10 primary categories.
Listed below in descending order, you'll find their preferences, from their favorite thing about the GLS to their least favorite:
In the 2023 APEAL Study, the GLS ranks third out of five Large Premium SUV models.
In the following sections, our independent expert analyzes a 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLS 580 equipped with Pinnacle trim and the following optional equipment highlights:
There were additional options of lesser significance, and they brought the test vehicle's price to $128,280, including the $1,150 destination charge.
Photo: Ron Sessions
To the untrained eye, the 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLS looks much the same as it has for the last four model years.
However, all versions get a larger, more imposing grille and a chunkier front bumper design with prominent air inlets. Combined with the GLS's tall hood and squared-off shoulders, the changes give it a look that caters to traditional large SUV buyers. They also distance the GLS from the aerodynamically shaped electric EQS SUV.
At the rear, the 2024 GLS has a new LED light-bar taillight design with embedded horizontal blocks. Mercedes also increased the standard wheel sizes for 2024, and the tested GLS 580 now comes with standard 22-inch wheels.
Inside, there's a new steering wheel design and a choice of new leather colors and wood trims. The GLS continues to offer six or seven-passenger seating, depending on your choice between a second-row bench seat or captain's chairs.
In the luxury space, more power is always good. So Mercedes has enhanced the GLS 580's twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 for the 2024 model year, bumping output from 483 to 510 horsepower and torque from 510 to 538 pound-feet.
As before, the GLS 580's V8 uses a performance-oriented, 48-volt mild-hybrid system to help conserve fuel. A lithium-ion battery powers accessories such as the air-conditioning compressor and engine coolant pump and ensures smooth transitions when the fuel-saving stop/start system restarts the engine after pausing it at a stoplight.
Meanwhile, an integrated starter/generator embedded into the powertrain supplies an additional 21 horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque, which means the V8 doesn't need to work as hard when accelerating the SUV from a stop.
As a result of this light-electrified drivetrain, the GLS 580 boasts lively acceleration and can scoot from zero to 60 mph in a manufacturer-estimated 4.7 seconds. Unfortunately, despite the mild-hybrid technology, the GLS 580's EPA-estimated fuel economy rating in combined driving is a lackluster 16 mpg. However, my observed fuel economy over 115 miles of combined city and highway driving was a decent 18 mpg.
Photo: Ron Sessions
Not that you would take your brand-new six-figure luxury SUV off-road where it might get scratches and stone dings, but it's nice to know that it has the chops to do so.
Exclusively available for the GLS 580, an optional Off-Road package equips the SUV with an Off-Road driving mode that adds an extra 1.2 inches of ground clearance via the standard height-adjustable air suspension. The package also includes steel underbody skid plates to protect the pricey drivetrain bits underneath.
A standard surround-view camera system is also new for 2024. It includes a "transparent hood" view the driver can access on the center infotainment screen when selecting the Off-Road mode. Using the system's front camera, the technology displays a virtual view under the bumper, which is handy for spotting ruts or rocks the driver may want to avoid.
Mercedes also now offers an optional Trailer Maneuvering Assist system for 2024. It automatically calculates and displays the path of the GLS and the trailer when backing up and pulling forward. The SUV's maximum tow rating remains an impressive 7,716 pounds, although I've never encountered a GLS towing a trailer.
One-Touch Carwash mode is a nifty feature you can activate via the infotainment screen. Doing so folds in the side mirrors, closes the sunroof, activates the front-view camera, and raises the suspension to better clean the wheel wells. In addition, it temporarily deactivates the rain-sensing wipers and rear wiper so they don't get caught up in the car wash's rotary brushes.
Carwash mode also activates the automatic climate control system's air recirculation setting. In addition, the GLS now has individually adjustable climate zones catering to the comfort of passengers in all three rows of seats.
The MBUX infotainment system updates include new wireless versions of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and a new look for the 12.3-inch touchscreen display, with seven different color themes corresponding to the interior's ambient lighting system. In addition, Mercedes claims the 2024 MBUX system offers 50 percent greater processing power than previous iterations. Based on my time in the GLS 580, the MBUX response time and input accuracy are impressive.
Along with a new steering wheel design, the 2024 GLS gets touch-sensing fingertip steering wheel controls for infotainment, driving assistance, and the configurable digital instrumentation panel.
Unfortunately, they represent a step backward, as the virtual buttons are tiny and don't offer a tactile response to inputs. For example, I had to tap the steering wheel's stereo volume control numerous times until I achieved the desired adjustment. Gratefully, the GLS retains a physical volume control and audio power on/off switch on the center console.
Though a Mercedes GLS 580 isn't quite as quick as an electric EQS 580 SUV, the difference is so slight that it doesn't matter. And while the GLS 580's twin-turbo V8 demonstrates an appetite for fossil fuel, the engine emits a melodic soundtrack the electric alternative simply can't match. You can also top off the GLS in minutes at any gas station.
In addition, the creamy, seamless shifts from the nine-speed automatic transmission add an extra layer of satisfaction with the GLS 580's gas-fueled powertrain. With the traction of the standard 4Matic AWD and grip from the sticky summer performance tires, the GLS 580 proved phenomenally rewarding when accelerating and diving around corners and curves.
The GLS 580 has a standard sport brake package with perforated front discs for improved heat dissipation. However, in stop-and-go driving, the heavy brake pedal pressure required to haul the 5,820-pound SUV to a stop surprised me, especially when encountering a traffic light changing from yellow to red.
Despite the optional 23-inch wheels on the test vehicle, the standard Airmatic air suspension and variable adaptive damping system performed well to filter out road impacts. However, there is some side-to-side head toss on relatively smooth roads. Selecting Sport mode reduces this motion.
True to its luxury mission, the GLS 580 is supremely quiet inside, particularly on the highway. And that's a great environment to try out the big SUV's standard massaging front seats with adjustable side bolsters.
Photo: Ron Sessions
Unabashedly large and in charge, the mildly updated 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLS continues offering sumptuous comfort, hushed ride, powerful gas engines, safety and infotainment technology, and luxury features premium full-size SUV buyers crave.
It's also slightly smaller, more maneuverable, and easier to tuck into a garage than competitors such as the Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator. But, there are a few rivals more like the GLS than those two traditional full-size SUVs. They include the BMW X7, Infiniti QX80, Land Rover Range Rover, and Lexus LX 600.
While the competitive set is formidable, I think the updated 2024 GLS has what it takes to remain competitive and entice buyers into a Mercedes-Benz showroom.
Ron Sessions is a seasoned vehicle evaluator with over three decades of experience. He has penned hundreds of road tests for automotive and consumer websites, enthusiast magazines, newsletters, technical journals, and newspapers.
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