Commenting on the launch occasion, Roland Folger, Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India said, “Mercedes-Benz has the most comprehensive luxury SUV portfolio in the country”.
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This is the first time a petrol engine option is being offered in the GLE (previously M Class).
On the significance of the petrol GLE 400, he said: “With a growing penchant for SUVs among customers, we believe the introduction of the petrol version will further bolster our presence in the luxury SUV segment”.
Mercedes Benz, the company hit the most by the Delhi diesel ban intends to tackle the problem by having a petrol engine option on all cars in its portfolio. Mercedes-Benz said it planned to complete the petrol product portfolio by September, 2016. The engine is paired to Merc’s 7G-TRONIC Plus automatic gearbox as standard, which sends power to all four wheels via the 4MATIC system. The SUV comes with a top speed of 247 km/h.
You also get the “dynamic select” control system which alters the behaviour of the engine, transmission, steering and suspension, based on the driving scenario, with five selectable modes available i.e. “Comfort”, “Sport”, “Slippery”, “Individual” and “Off-road”. The cabin comes with the best-in-leather upholstery as well as goodies like 8-inch media display, Apple CarPlay, COMAND Online with New Generation Telematics and 830 Watt Harman Kardon surround sound system.
In terms of safety, the GLE 400 comes with Crosswind Assist, Attention Assist, Active Parking Assist and Brake Assist, and 6 airbags. The petrol variant has been added for the first time and it will come in as a CBU.
The SUV segment has been the fastest growing for the company over the past two years, according to a statement.
The German automaker has taken this step to address the changing market sentiments and the inclination of customer demands towards petrol variants.
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The GLE SUV now has four variants in India – GLE 250d, GLE 350d, GLE 400 and the AMG GLE 450 Coupe.
