Ford Everest vs Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class

What's the difference?

The Ford Everest has always been an impressive 4WD wagon, with useful day-to-day driveability and real off-road capability.

As standard, it has a lot going for it. It’s quiet and refined on-road, very capable off-road and it’s packed with features.

The 2.0-litre single-turbo Active is a solid entry-point into the Everest line-up and, though it lacks the polish of its higher-spec stablemates and doesn’t yield the kind of improvement in fuel economy you might have hoped for, it makes a strong case as a touring vehicle with plenty of aftermarket-build potential.

If you can get past the relatively steep asking price, the design appeals to you, and its slightly last-gen ergonomics work for you, then there’s a lot to like about the GLE. It’s a big, capable and comfortable cruiser, but given there are cheaper and more efficient options around, it would be a decision of the heart rather than the head.

In terms of design, the Everest’s exterior and interior remain largely unchanged although some minor trim elements have been made darker in colour, and there are some new alloy wheel designs and exterior paint options on higher-spec variants.

Otherwise the Everest retains its chunky presence and recognisable profile. At 4914mm long (without the tow receiver installed), 2207mm wide (with its wing mirrors out), and 1876mm high, the Everest is not an insubstantial 4WD wagon but it manages to avoid being showy about it.

The cabin is a clear, well-laid out space and in design terms it errs more towards function than fashion – more about that soon.

Inside and out, the Everest is familiar in a good way and outshines many of its rivals.

The GLE hasn’t changed massively since 2019, but sleeker lights and some tweaks around the face have helped it age relatively gracefully. As much as a 2.4-tonne SUV can be graceful.

There are still references to the original ML-Class the GLE succeeded, like the ‘coupe’ shape of the C-pillar that betrays the true SUV shape of the GLE.

The reshaped front-end has less black plastic on show, and its grille stays true to the pre-facelift design.

Inside, it’s just the steering wheel that’s new, everything else holds up well in terms of a design that’s also practical, though some would say it looks outdated given the many physical controls.

The Active, being the entry-level Everest, has a well-laid out cabin and, as mentioned earlier, it errs more towards function than fashion.

If you’ve spent any time in an Everest cabin you’ll know.

Being the base variant the Active misses out on leather everything – though the seats are 'leather accented' – and most other things I would consider frippery are absent, but you do get all the things you actually need in a car.

Of note here is the fact the Active is a five-seater as standard but can be optioned up with seven seats; our test vehicle having the extra two-seat option.

There are plenty of storage spaces throughout the cabin (cupholders everywhere you’d expect, as well as map pockets and bottle holders in the doors) and charging points (USB-A, USB-C and 12-volt ports) and everything is easy to find, access and use.

The large portrait-style touchscreen takes pride of place upfront and can be used to control pretty much everything onboard, except your obnoxious teenagers.

All seats are comfortable, with that level of comfort – as well as space – dropping marginally as you move from the front seats to the second row and on to the less-spacious back row.

All rows have adjustable air vents. The second row has ISOFIX child-seat anchors in the two outboard seats, and three top-tether points. The third row has two top-tether points.

In terms of cargo space, with all seven seats in use, there is a claimed 259 litres. With the third row stowed away, there is 898 litres, and with the second and third row stowed away, there is a listed 1823L of room for your luggage.

Payload is 855kg in the Active and that’s the MY2026.50 Everest line-up’s biggest payload.

The GLE is very easy to use because of those physical controls.

Save for the trackpad in the centre console that can be used like a laptop’s control mat - it’s a little fiddly - everything is easy to locate and adjust and the controls feel nice. The switches along the climate control row all feel nice and clicky, buttons in the centre console are big and obvious, and even the steering wheel’s haptic buttons are laid out sensibly.

The touchscreen’s software has been updated since launch during the facelift and it’s easy to navigate, but wireless Android Auto or Apple CarPlay are a good workaround.

The front seats, as well as being comfortable, are adjustable to an impressive degree for finding your driving position and there’s plenty of room and light to make the cockpit feel airy.

Storage isn’t at a premium, there’s plenty of space in door cards, the central storage bin, and the cupholders and phone charger can be hidden away.

Behind the front row, rear seat space is ample, though if you opt for seven seats the second row can be moved to accommodate a third row of passengers when needed.

In our test car, that isn’t the case, so the GLE’s cavernous 630 litres of boot storage is available. The second row can split 40/20/40, which is convenient for loading long items while four passengers are present.

Oh, but under the boot floor, despite some extra room for bits and pieces, no spare tyre. Big marks down for a car that absolutely has the space for one.

It’s not a strong start for the GLE. Our top-spec (non-AMG) GLE 450d 4Matic variant starts from $154,900, before on-road costs, while our test car has $3800 of option boxes ticked.

So, $158,700 before on-roads as-tested, the GLE is this borderline prohibitively expensive for what it offers.

If the car you’re after must be diesel, the options are still many in terms of rivals… especially if you’d like to save a few dollars.

Moving on from the big Mazdas and VW Touaregs to the proper premium badges, and there’s the $136,815 Audi Q7 50 TDI (if we exclude the $120,530 base Q7 TDI) or the BMW X5 30d for $138,600. Even a Range Rover Sport D300 comes in under the GLE at $159,481.

For a seven-ish year old luxury SUV, the GLE does a decent job of hiding its age in some ways, but there are gaps.

The twin 12.3-inch screens for multimedia and driver display have aged well, plus there’s electrically adjustable leather front seats with heating, though the leather in our new test car needs some softening up. Perhaps over time.

The new steering wheel comes thanks to newer models in Merc’s line-up, though haptic controls can be accidentally bumped (as opposed to buttons).

Wireless phone charging, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, a head-up display, a huge sunroof, LED interior lighting, adaptive high beam headlights, a power tailgate and surround-view parking cameras are all standard.

Optionally, there’s a set of 21-inch wheels as pictured on our test car. They’re $2400 and you’d probably be better off with standard 20-inch wheels for the extra comfort.

The illuminated running boards are a $1400 option, and they’re also probably not necessary. But I’m not your mum, go for it if you want.

Oh, and you can also have the GLE in seven-seat form, but our test car is a luxuriously spacious five-seater.

The big news here is that the single-turbo has replaced the twin-turbo and power and torque figures are down as a result.

The new engine – developed to improve fuel economy – produces 125kW at 3500rpm and 405Nm at 1750-2500rpm, compared to the 154kW and 500Nm that the outgoing Ford 'Bi-Turbo' engine produces.

There’s no discernible difference in the two engines in general daily driving, although there is some lag under foot with initial acceleration.

The 10-speed automatic transmission is now standard across the Everest range.

The Active’s 4WD system offers 2WD, 4WD high-range, and 4WD low-range – it does not have '4Auto', which means you can’t drive this vehicle in 4WD on high-traction surfaces, as you can in some higher-spec variants.

Selectable Drive Modes – including Normal, Eco, Tow / Haul, Slippery, Mud / Ruts, and Sand – all adjust engine outputs, throttle, transmission, braking, traction and stability controls to best suit the driving conditions.

The Active misses out on the Rock/Crawl drive mode that the higher-grade Tremor V6 gets, but it does have a rear diff lock.

The GLE 450d’s 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder diesel engine is turbocharged, with a healthy 270kW and a brawny 750Nm to its name. That torque peaks all the way from 1350rpm to 2800rpm, by the way. Handy.

A nine-speed automatic transmission sends drive to all four wheels ('4Matic' in Merc-talk), while a 48-volt ‘mild-hybrid' system ('EQ Boost' in Merc-talk) means take-offs and shifts are aided by a bit of electric power.

Mercedes says the GLE can dispatch the 0-100km/h sprint in just 5.6 seconds, and that feels about right.

Official fuel consumption for the combined (urban/extra-urban) cycle is 7.1L/100km and our fuel consumption on this test was 8.9L/100km.

The Everest has an 80-litre fuel tank so, going by those figures, you could reasonably expect a driving range of about 900km out of a full tank.

Worth noting this Everest will need an AdBlue top-up (18.5-litre tank) every few thousand kilometres.

Mercedes claims a 7.4L/100km combined cycle (urban/extra-urban) fuel consumption figure for the big lug, but achieving that and making the most of its large 85-litre tank is a challenge.

We averaged 8.7L/100km on test but the trip computer showed as low as 8.0L/100km at one point. Get the GLE on the highway and fuel use plummets.

Theoretically you should be able to get about 1150km from a single tank, but realistically we wouldn’t plan trips any longer than 900km between fuel stations. 

Still impressive, given that’s about the distance between Melbourne and Sydney, or Sydney and Brisbane. Roughly.

The Everest hasn't lost a step on road. It’s still very refined and very comfortable.

It is a large 4WD wagon, but never feels too cumbersome to manoeuvre, mostly due to its well-weighted steering.

The front seats are manually adjustable, as is the reach- and rake-adjustable steering wheel, so as a driver you can precisely dial-in your preferred position.

Though the engine loses out on some power and torque, you don't notice that during general driving, although there is a bit of lag under the right foot from pressure down to take off, but it's merely noticeable at times, not terrible.

Otherwise, this single-turbo engine is as capable as its twin-turbo predecessor of delivering smooth and sustained power and torque at low and high speeds.

Good news is the 10-speed auto works well here. And in even more good news the Active gets a proper auto shifter not Ford's 'e-Shifter', which is kind of an overgrown toggle switch.

As mentioned, the Everest offers a smooth and refined drive for myriad reasons, other than the engine and auto.

The suspension set-up, including coil springs all-round, helps smooth out road- or track-surface bumps, resulting in sure-footed ride and handling.

And well managed NVH (noise, vibration, harshness) levels mean it’s quiet in the cabin, with the intrusion of few noises other than low-level wind-rush around the sizeable wing mirrors.

There is one crucial difference between the Everest Active and some higher-spec variants. This base-spec vehicle misses out on 4Auto, which allows vehicles equipped with it to be driven in what is essentially 4H even on sealed surfaces without any risk of transmission wind-up. And that affords vehicle occupants a little more safety and security in, for example, the rain when the road or track surface may be slippery.

As for 4WDing, well… the Everest has always had ample potential as an off-road touring platform and, in Active spec, it loses none of the range’s efficacy on rough terrain, but does away with some of the frills and keeps the functionality.

The Everest has always been an impressive off-roader, whether it's been powered by a 2.0-litre twin-turbo or a V6 – and this 2.0-litre single-turbo engine is perfectly adequate. It gives you the ability to truck along through light to moderate off-roading and even on the fringe of more difficult 4WDing.

There is plenty of low-down torque on tap here, and the driver-assist tech and 4WD mechanicals are an effective combination.

The Active’s off-road- and touring-related drive modes – including Tow/Haul and Slippery – tweak throttle response, transmission, and traction controls to match the task and the prevailing driving conditions. It has a locking rear differential for when the terrain requires it.

The Everest has a listed length of 4914mm (with a 2900mm wheelbase), a width of 2015mm, and a height of 1876mm. It has a turning circle of 11.8m and an official kerb weight is 2245kg.

So, while it feels highly manoeuvrable, even on narrow overgrown tracks, it still requires the driver’s full and sustained attention.

Approach angle is 30.4 degrees, departure angle is 25.3 degrees, and ramp break-over is 22.2 degrees. The Everest has a long wheelbase so its undercarriage is vulnerable to hitting the ground on more severe terrain, so to avoid belly-scraping and sidestep run-ins with rocks, tree stumps or exposed tree roots, keep that in mind. Ford has put solid steel underbody protection on all 4×4 variants, so the vehicle is able to cop a knock or two.

The standard Active gets bush-suitable 18-inch alloys and all-season tyres, although 18-inchers on Goodyear Wrangler Territory (255/65R18) all-terrain tyres are an option, as per our test vehicle.

Off-road angles could be boosted with a mild lift and, while the tyres are good enough, you could always opt for more aggressive light-truck construction all-terrains with gnarlier tread and shoulder block bite.

The Everest is rated to tow a 750kg unbraked trailer, and 3500kg braked. Gross vehicle mass (GVM) is 3100kg and GCM (gross combined mass) is 6250kg.

A trip in the GLE feels like a welcome step back in time. Sure, coming in close to five metres long and two-and-a-half tonnes means it’s not a nimble steer, but the GLE strikes a nice balance of comfort and tactility that’s getting rarer.

None of it feels particularly sharp in terms of inputs or feedback, but it’s easy and predictable to a point where even winding back-roads are effortless to flow through.

The big diesel engine feels almost lazy, but it’s just so effortless in getting things moving as it strives to sit close to idle whenever possible. Because of that, there’s little noise from the engine bay even under reasonable acceleration, and the powertrain is helped by that 48-volt system which makes stop-starts from the lights super-smooth.

The mild-hybrid also helps smooth out power delivery, to the point where the only time the GLE feels clunky is the occasional lag when shifting from Drive to Reverse or vice versa.

The test car’s suspension isn’t the optional airbag set-up, but the non-adaptive steel does fine in terms of comfort and soaking up harsh surfaces. And even the big 21-inch wheels aren’t too bad over sharp bumps.

With smaller wheels (more tyre cushioning) and the air suspension, it feels like the GLE would ride gorgeously.

Its body control is predictable on smooth roads, and if you’re careful you steer the hefty SUV through tight, winding roads easily, but consistently rough surfaces can make the GLE feel unsettled for a short period of time.

There’s an overall softness to it that means gentle off-roading is possible, and the tyres are thick enough to make it comfortable. You won’t find yourself being tossed around on a flat enough gravel road.

There’s a lot under the skin in the GLE in terms of safety, and it doesn’t always make itself known. This is a compliment.

The GLE scored a maximum five stars in its ANCAP assessment in 2019, and though the criteria has changed significantly since then, it feels like it should still score well.

The GLE doesn’t intervene unless it needs to, but the ability is there for the big Merc to avoid incidents and employ many means to protect passengers and pedestrians alike.

A warning for the driver and a gentle seatbelt tension comes in before the car slams on the brakes, though if no action is taken before an expected collision the GLE will drop its AEB anchors.

There are nine airbags if it all goes pear-shaped, plus some well-tuned adaptive cruise control with lane keep assist and departure alert, there’s traffic sign recognition with that, too.

Blind spot warnings, front- and rear cross-traffic alert, front and rear parking sensors and driver monitoring are joined by Mercedes’ plethora of other little safety features that minimise impact and damage in a crash.

The Everest is covered by a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and comes with 12 months of roadside assistance, which is extended every time your Everest is serviced at a Ford dealership for up to seven years.

Service is scheduled for every 12 months or 15,000km and costs a reasonable $399 per workshop visit.

Ford Australia has more than 180 dealerships around the country.

Servicing isn’t cheap at Mercedes, even in the context of this market segment. A three-year service plan for the GLE costs $4045, while five years is $8055. That’s $1348 or $1611 per service respectively. The later services in those five years will of course be much more expensive and bring the average up.

Intervals are every 12 months or 25,000km, but Mercedes’ five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty means anything major that goes wrong in that time should be covered - always read the fine print.

The brand’s Australian website lists 67 Mercedes-Benz dealers that can service your car.