Photo: Mercedes-Benz
The second generation of the Mercedes-Benz GLE - or the first, depending on what you consider the 2015 M-Class facelift rebranded with the new name to be – is here, and with it a host of new technologies.
One such tech is the E-ACTIVE Body Control, a new generation of the ABC system that underpins the S-Class. It is a fully active suspension that will allow the GLE to control spring and damping forces individually at each wheel.
That means each of the wheels can move up or down individually, allowing the German SUV to basically rock itself out of whatever sticky situation the driver gets it into.
Mercedes says the system allows the GLE’s occupants to experience practically no centrifugal force while cornering. This is because the GLE will lean into the bends, and will do so in three stages.
The quick response time of the E-ACTIVE Body Control suspension to the changing road conditions is ensured with the use of a road scanning camera that detects undulations in the road.
Getting its info from the camera, the suspension responds in advance, thus substantially compensating any bump felt in the cabin.
A new off-road function called free-driving will allow individual wheel adjustment to be made from inside the car, with the help of touchscreen of the media display.
This can be of particular use on tricky off-road courses, where the driver needs to lower or rise the vehicle – or a part of it – to navigate tricky terrain, or when one wheel is stuck or a spring fully contracted.
As a bonus, E-ACTIVE Body Control has a 48 V operating voltage, meaning that in certain conditions the suspension is capable of recuperating energy. Compared to the previous Magic Body Control deployed in the S-Class, for instance, the use of a 48 V voltage accounts for a reduction by half of the energy needed for operation.
The system will be offered as an option for GLE engine variants with six and more cylinders. Two other suspensions will also be offered, both new: steel and AIRMATIC.
That means each of the wheels can move up or down individually, allowing the German SUV to basically rock itself out of whatever sticky situation the driver gets it into.
Mercedes says the system allows the GLE’s occupants to experience practically no centrifugal force while cornering. This is because the GLE will lean into the bends, and will do so in three stages.
The quick response time of the E-ACTIVE Body Control suspension to the changing road conditions is ensured with the use of a road scanning camera that detects undulations in the road.
Getting its info from the camera, the suspension responds in advance, thus substantially compensating any bump felt in the cabin.
A new off-road function called free-driving will allow individual wheel adjustment to be made from inside the car, with the help of touchscreen of the media display.
This can be of particular use on tricky off-road courses, where the driver needs to lower or rise the vehicle – or a part of it – to navigate tricky terrain, or when one wheel is stuck or a spring fully contracted.
As a bonus, E-ACTIVE Body Control has a 48 V operating voltage, meaning that in certain conditions the suspension is capable of recuperating energy. Compared to the previous Magic Body Control deployed in the S-Class, for instance, the use of a 48 V voltage accounts for a reduction by half of the energy needed for operation.
The system will be offered as an option for GLE engine variants with six and more cylinders. Two other suspensions will also be offered, both new: steel and AIRMATIC.
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