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SUVs have changed. For the first time ever, we didn't have a single body-on-frame example in our annual SUV of the Year competition. Remember, when Bob Lutz and Stephen Ross cooked up the Ford Explorer -- the vehicle most responsible for cupiding America's still-raging love affair with the SUV -- it was little more than an enclosed, four-door Ranger. For our 2013 competition, the overwhelming majority of the competitors were car-based. However, there was one vehicle that wasn't, and in the words of Frank Markus, "did more of what we expect an SUV to do." That vehicle is the 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL.
The flavor didn't matter. From the fuel-sipping, diesel-powered GL350 to the "how can this be the weaker of the two V-8s?" GL450 to the "3-ton objects should not move this quickly" 429-hp GL550, Mercedes has built an SUV that's better than the rest. Not just in its competitive class: The new, second-generation GL is the best new SUV on the market period, and the winner of our prize.
Going into our weeklong test, some of us (hi, Mom!) suspected that the massive Mercedes would be the one to beat. After all, the very closely related ML finished second to the Range Rover Evoque last year, and we've always liked the three-row GL more than its two-row sibling. Little did we realize just how badly the GL would bully the other 10 competitors. At the end of our testing, we'd narrowed the field down to three potential winners: the GL, the Ford Escape, and the Nissan Pathfinder. But in truth, it was no contest.
(Source: Motor Trend)
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