MERCEDES-BENZ ML350 Review

With ML The Third, Mercedes has managed to offer the expected level of comfort, but not much more. We'll start with the air suspension: it's great to be able to play with the ride height and be able to make full use of the vehicle's on and off road abilities, but the cushions will leave a few things to be desired when you meet certain types of roads, with the best example being a fidgety ride over surfaces that have been affected by the years of use.

The story is the same with the seats. We were treated with ones that offered enough electric adjustments and Designo perforated leather, as well as a heating function, but these fall a bit short when compared to those of a Range Rover, for example, as they feel a tad too firm.

However, there are a lot of elements that work in a brilliant way to convince you to not step out of the car, such as the top-level soundproofing and the tweaking of the 7G -Tronic Plus gearbox

The engineers have adapted the transmission for this model and so it offers a smooth transition between gears, one that allows rear passengers to sleep, if they want to, for example.

If there's one element that really impresses for this chapter, it's the interior space, as the ML really makes excellent use of its now-larger dimensions.

Mercedes did a great job at concealing the metallic eruptions around the car in plush materials that can be enjoyed with more than one sense, but we still can't help but wonder what's under the fine leather, where the tech bits are hidden.

For the third generation of the SUV, the German engineers went back to the drawing board, where they came across a forgotten tech drawing of the predecessor's chassis. Thus, they started the project not from scratch, but by using this. They did some serious work on the chassis, some even more serious work on the suspension and thus the 2012 model was born.

The V6 oil burner is one of the strongest in its segment, allowing the driver's right foot to control 258 hp at 3,500 rpm and 620 Nm (457 lb-ft), which arrive as ear;y as 1,600 rpm. It is mated to a 7G-Tronic Plus automatic gearbox that has been specifically tweaked for this model.

Unfortunately, our test car wasn't fitted with the on & off road package, a goodie that offers six driving modes. In this standard configuration, the throttle response feels a bit late, as if the car was permanently kept in some sort of winter mode.

In reality, the V6 engine manages to do a good job at carrying the vehicle onto its top speed, but you just don't feel this.

One of the tech goodies that we enjoyed the most is Active Curve, which uses the stabilizer bars as toys for keeping the handling child happy, while the vehicle's non-fully disengageable electronic nannies manage to tame even the wildest of drivers.

As for the air suspension, this does a great job at turning one vehicle into two different performers, but, especially in combination with the optional 20-inch AMG rims, doesn't manage to pass all the road irregularity tests with A+ grades.

The new ML is also a jack of all electronic trades, and Mercedes assures us that it's not a master of none - the car is fitted with all sorts of gadgets that aim to make life easier for both the driver and the passengers.

The ML knows how important education is on a resume, so the vehicle went to some of the best schools in history and is ready to put all that knowledge to use in the benefit of the humans that ride inside it.

From the list of standard classes, we'll mention the Attention Assist, which doesn't get you a date with a beautiful woman, as a previous Mercedes commercial suggests, but makes sure that you get to the one you arranged in one piece, detecting driver fatigue, the LED daytime running lights, the steering wheel column-mounted gear shifter, a feature that will annoy most Europeans and the DSR, which assist you while going downhill.

Diving into the optional subjects for our test drive car, we'll highlight the Distronic Plus - Mercedes' adaptive cruise control system which is perfectly calibrated, as we found out on the highway, the two-piece panoramic sunroof, which brings even more natural light into a cabin that's already flooded with it, the lane departure warning system, privacy glass (a must, considering the generous size of the windows).

We'll go on with the ECO start-stop function, the adaptive braking lights, the extended Designo leather finish, which rivals the best in the industry, as well as the electric-powered and heated front seats (both come with memory). We've saved the Command infotainment system for last, and we have to explain that this now has a new display, which has migrated to the top of the dashboard.

However, there are certain features that weren't present on our test car, but must be added in order to fully enjoy the vehicle, with the list, albeit short, being led by the rear view camera.

As you've noticed, we've mentioned some of the car's safety features in this chapter and we'll go on by telling you the 2012 ML is one of the safest cars tested by Euro NCAP so far.

The German SUV earned a five-star Euro NCAP rating, with a score of 96 percent for the protection of adult occupants, 75 percent for that of children and 60 percent for the pedestrian protection. Like we said in the previous chapter of our test drive, it is one of the safest cars tested by the Euro NCAP.

The vehicle passed all impact test with flying colors, with the only one that resulted in an "adequate" rating rather than a "good" one being the side pole impact, where the aforementioned rating was offered for the driver's chest.

As for the child protection, Mercedes-Benz offers an automatic child seat protection, but Euro NCAP didn't reward this due to the fact that the "front passenger airbag can be disabled only by child restraints equipped with Mercedes Benz's automatic sensor system". However, if the owner uses the right child restraint, the vehicle offers good protection.

Moving to the pedestrian protection, the list of safety features includes an active bonnet, that raises when an impact with a pedestrian is detected, offering lower chances for the human body to hit the hard structures underneath.

This offered good protection in all the areas likely to be struck by the head of adult. However, this protection rating was seriously lowered when talking about children and the protection offered by the front edge of the bonnet to pedestrians was poor.

We have to mention that the ML has been set up in a way that makes it extremely safe to drive, with the 4Matic all-wheel drive system and the Active Curve (active stabilizer bars) working to keep the car on the road. As a conclusion of our test drive, we can tell you that the vehicle doesn't inspire you to push it hard, but can sustain high speed driving.

The conclusion that can be drawn when taking a look at the new ML can be used to define the car from many points of view: while the details are fresh and bring improvements, the car follows the guidelines of its predecessor pretty close.

For the exterior design, this means that we've got a very conservative approach, albeit with "creme de la creme" details, especially if you opt for the AMG styling package.

The interior is the area where the vehicle has evolved the most and our test drive car, with its optional Designo extended leather finish and panoramic sunroof, offered accommodation worthy of a five-star rating.

The ML has now gone to even more tech and gadget schools, with the car making full use of modern technology to give the driver special powers and the passengers a good time. We recommend ordering the optional on & off road driving package (we didn't have it on out test vehicle).

The 3.0-liter diesel and the 7G-Tronic Plus gearbox make a great pair on the ML, offering a setup that's perfectly fit for the relaxed-only but confident drive this car invites you to.

If we could become members of the company's executive board for one day, we would send the engineers to take another look at the comfort offered by the air suspension, as well as the throttle response for vehicles not fitted with the aforementioned on & off road system.

However, the ML won't manage to please all customers - if you're the type that seeks thrills when driving, and we're not necessarily referring to extreme maneuvers here - you'll have to look elsewhere: while the car can sustain full throttle driving, both on and off the road, it won't be happy to do so and will send you a clear "calm down" message.

An interesting conclusion arrives when comparing the car, which was priced at EUR84,000 or USD 110,460 in our case, not to its premium rivals, such as the BMW X5, but the more modest VW Touareg, which the ML only manages to beat in terms of cabin feeling and brand image. We also have to mention that the ML comes with a strong American flavor, which can be felt in multiple areas of the car.

The decision to choose a ML over the competition reminds us of the title of a Led Zeppelin album: "The Song Remains the Same". Just like in the case of the previous generation, if you want to go for an all-conservative approach and have no place for driving emotions in your life, this is a good option.