Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class vs Volvo XC40

What's the difference?

The GLS450d impresses as an entry-level grade, as it’s a more family-friendly allrounder than the specialised AMG and Maybach variants. Its combination of a torque-rich diesel 48V hybrid drivetrain, air-cushioned suspension and plush interior are as well suited to luxury urban travel as they are to grand touring, where its heavy towing and generous load-carrying capabilities can shine. Whether it’s worth around $200K drive-away, only those who shop at the top end of town can decide.

The Volvo XC40 Recharge Twin Motor is a cute small electric SUV that offers a decent specs list and a sweet urban driving experience. It’s not the nicest ride on a longer journey but it does have a decent range to be able to tackle one, if needed. I didn’t love the interior design but there’s lots the XC40 gets right.

This is an imposing vehicle in extravagant S-Class tradition, riding on an expansive 3135mm wheelbase and stretching more than 5.2 metres (5215mm) long and more than 2.0 metres (2030mm) wide with a turning circle that's nudging 13 metres.

However, it’s just under 1.8 metres (1798mm) tall, so there’s no clearance issues when accessing multi-storey carparks. And with its side-steps (or ‘running boards’ in nostalgic Benz speak) most adults can step rather than climb aboard, although passengers of shorter stature during our test noted that assist handles on the A and B pillars would be handy.

Central to its sophisticated chassis design is adaptive air suspension, which uses a pneumatic or ‘airbag’ form of springing with adaptive damping to continuously optimise ride comfort and handling response according to road conditions and driving dynamics (see Driving).

The GLS’s styling is clean and uncluttered with tasteful restraint evident in its chrome and satin-chrome highlights, yet it projects a majestic quality with its prominent four-louvre grille and elegantly spoked alloy wheels.

The spacious and sumptuous seven-seat interior is visually pleasing and practical, with a subtle blend of surface treatments, contrasting tones, lots of soft-touch surfaces and exposed stitching. This is combined (thankfully) with physical dials, switches and ‘piano key’ buttons to control numerous interior functions, in preference to distracting touchscreen prompts.

The XC40 Recharge sees some design changes from its fuel-based counterparts and that’s mainly seen in the front because you get a body-coloured panel instead of a standard grille. The 20-inch alloys feature a chunkier-looking design but the front still boasts the cool ‘Hammer of Thor’ headlights (which I'm rather fond of).

The interior is where the electric powertrain loses me because the fuel-based equivalent is so much nicer inside with its leather-accented upholstery and trims.

It's lovely that there has been a conscious effort to use recycled materials and non-leather upholstery throughout but I'm left with the strange-feeling that synthetic seats don’t reflect the grade or price level of this car. 

Other than the cool-looking topography inserts on the dash and front doors and the 9.0-inch vertical multimedia system, it’s pleasant but a little basic in the cabin. Which is shame because the exterior is cute as hell.

Although it has a hefty 2655kg kerb weight, our test vehicle’s 3420kg GVM rating provides a useful 765kg of load capacity, which should comfortably absorb the combined weight of up to seven occupants and light luggage. Or with the third row of seating folded, five occupants and heavier luggage.

It’s also rated to tow up to 3500kg of braked trailer and with its sizeable 6920kg GCM (or how much weight it can legally carry and tow at the same time) it can carry its maximum load while towing its maximum trailer weight.

So, that’s commendable practicality, given it would be well suited to owners that need to tow large caravans, boat trailers, horse floats etc in style without having to compromise much (if at all) on either passenger numbers or luggage capacity.

Driver and front passenger space and comfort is exceptional, as you’d expect. Storage includes a large glovebox plus a bottle holder and bin in each door. The front of the centre console has two USB-C ports, wireless phone charging and heated cupholders, while the rear of the console has a large storage box with a third USB-C port and padded lid that doubles as a comfy elbow rest.

Even tall passengers in the second row of seating enjoy spacious comfort, given I’m 186cm and with the driver’s seat set in my position I have ample knee clearance, foot room and head space.

However, the central passenger must contend with a transmission tunnel in the floor and shoulder room would be squeezy for three large adults, which is okay for short trips but a maximum of two would be ideal for longer journeys.

The rear of the centre console also treats second-row passengers to a pair of USB-C ports, adjustable air-vents and a control panel that allows independent climate adjustment.

There’s also a large bin/bottle holder in each door plus storage nets on each front seat backrest. The centre seat backrest folds flat to allow long items (skis etc) to slot between the outer backrests. And it also serves as a fold-down armrest, containing two cupholders and a lidded slimline compartment that’s ideal for hidden phone storage.

The third row is uncommonly spacious, even for tall people, with padded armrests on each side containing cup holders and twin USB-C ports.

The carpeted rear luggage area has four load-anchorage points, a first aid kit and 12v socket. With the third-row seats upright it offers 355 litres of load volume, which increases to 1350 litres with the third row folded and 2400 litres (or 2.4 cubic metres) with both the second and third rows folded.

Front passengers enjoy the most space and I have plenty of head- and legroom up front. It’s a really easy car to get in and out of and the individual storage is very good for the class. 

Front passengers enjoy a glove box, middle console with a removeable bin, two cupholders, utility tray and skinny drink bottle holders in the storage bins in the doors.

In the rear, passengers get map pockets on the backs of the front seats, two cupholders in the fold-down armrest and small storage bins in each door.

The synthetic leather-trimmed seats look neat and tidy but are very hard in the cushion, which makes them a tad uncomfortable on longer trips. The rear seats are much the same.

Charging options throughout the car are good with the front enjoying a 12-volt port, two USB-C sockets and a wireless charging pad to choose from. The rear also gets two USB-C ports and there's another 12-volt outlet in the boot.

The rest of the technology is easy to use once you spend some time with it. The 9.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system features built-in Google Maps, Assistant and Play Store apps, as well as, YouTube.

The 12.0-inch digital instrument panel isn’t customisable but I like the way it pulls through the satellite navigation screen and directions.  

Because of the dual-motor powertrain, your boot capacity drops to 419L from 452L for the single-motor variant. It is large enough for my grocery shop and random errands and you can fold the floor up to create a deep storage well for additional space. Fold the 60/40 split-folding rear seat and available space expands to 1295 litres.

I don’t like the hardened cargo liner, it feels and looks a little cheap, but I do like the powered tailgate. There’s also handy frunk storage of 31L, which is perfectly sized for any charging cables you will have.

There are two powertrain options in the XC40 family, a mild-hybrid or pure electric. The latter gets two variants and we’re in the top-spec Recharge Twin Motor, which is priced from $85,990, before on-road costs. This positions it in the middle of its nearest rivals but in its family line-up it’s a big $23K jump from its Ultimate B4 AWD combustion equivalent.

The standard features list for the XC40 is robust and there are some great premium features, like the electrically-adjustable and heated front seats with extendable under-thigh support and electric lumbar control.

A panoramic sunroof makes the cabin feel light and airy, the rear outboard seats have heat functions and the driver enjoys a heated steering wheel. You also get a premium 13-speaker Harman Kardon sound system in the Twin Motor.

Other premium features include pre-entry and after-park climate control (perfect for those super-hot days) and a hands-free powered tailgate.

Technology highlights include a complimentary four-year subscription for the built-in Google Assistant, Google Maps and Google Play Store which are accessed via the portrait-style 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen.

There's also access to apps like YouTube, which delighted my seven-year old and would be handy on any charging stints for some diversion. It's surprising there isn't wireless functionality for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto but they can be hooked up via cable.

The GLS450d comes standard with a 3.0-litre turbocharged inline six-cylinder diesel producing 270kW of power at 4000rpm and 750Nm of torque between 1350-2800rpm.

This is paired with a 48V mild-hybrid system comprising a 48-volt battery (charged by regenerative braking) and an integrated starter-generator which provides both seamless engine stop-start and up to 15kW/200Nm of extra power and torque during acceleration.

A nine-speed torque converter automatic provides the choice of manual shifting using the steering wheel-mounted paddles, along with several selectable drive modes.

The active all-wheel-drive system continuously adjusts the engine’s torque delivery between front and rear axles (and individual wheels as needed) to maintain optimum traction and handling.

The XC40 Recharge Twin Motor features two electric motors which are powered by a large 82kWh lithium-ion battery and produce a combined power output of 300kW and 670Nm of torque.

Which is downright fun because it can do a 0-100km/h sprint in just 4.8-seconds!

Mercedes-Benz claims official combined consumption of 7.8L/100km and the dash display was showing 9.0 when we stopped to refuel at the completion of our 368km test, which included the usual mix of suburban, city and highway driving with up to five passengers at times and light luggage.

Our own figure, calculated from fuel bowser and tripmeter readings, was close at 9.5 which is outstanding sub-10L/100km economy for such a substantial vehicle in mostly metropolitan use. Therefore, based on our own consumption figure, you could expect a real-world driving range of around 950km from its 90-litre diesel tank.

The official energy consumption figure is 19kWh/100km and I averaged 19.2kWh over a fair mix of urban and open-road driving. The energy consumption isn't bad but some rivals do sit closer to that 16.5kWh mark.

The official driving range is up to 485km for this model but I only ever saw a top range of 410km. That's not terribly surprising given I wasn't shy with the power use but there was a little bit of range anxiety on longer trips.

The XC40 Recharge Twin Motor has a Type 2 CCS charging port which means you can benefit from faster charging speeds. On an 11kW AC charger you can go from 0-100 per cent in eight hours but on a standard three-pin house plug socket expect that wait time to go up significantly.

On a DC fast charger expect to go from 10-80 per cent in as little as 33-minutes.

It’s an enjoyable vehicle to drive, with multiple power adjustments for the seat and steering wheel combined with a large left footrest which provide supreme driver comfort and support.

The powerful and responsive turbocharged six-cylinder diesel and nine-speed auto are well suited to this application. The engine’s ample torque provides spirited acceleration from standing starts, taking only six seconds to reach triple-digit speeds.

This drivetrain would be well suited to heavy towing duties, given the 48V mild-hybrid system can contribute an extra 200Nm (in addition to the engine’s 750Nm), which raises the total theoretical torque output to almost 1000Nm.

The active air suspension provides a wonderfully cushioned ride that floats over bumpy roads, while maintaining excellent handling response and surprising agility. These commendable chassis dynamics, combined with the powerful and responsive drivetrain, makes the vehicle feel smaller and lighter than its dimensions and kerb weight would suggest.

Overall, it’s difficult to fault from a driver’s perspective, with the only exception being the voice activation function. This is often triggered by words or phrases other than ‘Hey Mercedes’ resulting in regular interruption of conversations. This needs some fine tuning.

Like the Polestar 2 there’s no ignition button on the XC40. You shift into drive to ‘turn on’ and after you park, you simply get out to turn it off. It takes a little while to get used to but it’s a cool feature. 

The twin motors deliver a hefty kick and you never worry about not having ‘enough power’. In the city it’s zippy but on the open-road you also feel comfortable getting up to speed or overtaking because the power distribution is so well-balanced because it’s an AWD.

I customised my steering wheel ‘feel’ to firm and it makes the handling crisp and direct. You feel like you’re in total control whenever you have to tackle be it tight streets or small car parks.

The blind-spot visibility is compromised by how wide the B and C-pillars are and I find that I'm relying a lot more on the blind-spot monitoring system to compensate.

The XC40 loses a few points for me in terms of ride comfort. As mentioned, the seats aren't terribly comfortable but the suspension is hard enough that you notice every bump, as well.

Road noise is also quite pronounced and it doesn’t sound refined when you drive at higher speeds, which is a shame. The flip-side, though, is that you don’t notice those things as much on short, urban trips.

The standard regen braking isn’t customisable and you don’t notice it until you switch over to a 'one-pedal' function. I found this function uncomfortable to use as it’s very aggressive and creates a jerky driving experience. 

Because of its 4440mm length and tiny 11m turning circle, you won’t struggle in a car park! The 360-degree view camera system and front and rear parking sensors make it easy to navigate a tight spot.

This is a joy to park. It’s so easy.

The XC40 has a long safety features list but a standout is the Volvo designed 'Side Impact Protection System' (SIPS) that reinforces the car's steel framework at the sides and disperses energy in a side collision.

Other standard features include full LED external lights, daytime running lights, adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring, driver attention alert, forward collision warning, lane departure alert, lane keeping aid, intelligent seatbelt reminders, traffic sign recognition, 360-degree camera system, front and rear parking sensors.

The XC40 has a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating from testing done in 2018. It has seven airbags, including a driver's knee bag and features high individual scoring for adult and child occupant protection at 97 per cent and 84 per cent, respectively. 

The XC40 has AEB with car, pedestrian and cyclist detection and is operational from 4.0-210km/h. It's usual to see that top speed sit closer to 180km/h, so that's very good.

A cool feature for any parents out there is the second key which you can program to limit stereo volume levels and set a maximum speed allowance. It's even coloured bright orange so there are no chances of a sneaky switcheroo!

There are ISOFIX child-seat mounts on the rear outboard seats and three top-tether anchor points for any families out there but two seats will fit best.

The GLS comes with a five-years/unlimited km warranty (better than BMW and Lexus) and five years of roadside assistance. Scheduled servicing is every 12 months/25,000km whichever occurs first.

Mercedes-Benz offers capped-price pre-paid servicing packages with three, four or five-year terms. For example, the total upfront cost of the minimum three-year term is $4090, or an average of $1363 per service.

The ongoing costs are pretty solid with the XC40 coming with a usual five-year/ unlimited warranty term but the drive battery is covered for eight years/160,000km.

You can pre-purchase a five-year/150,000km servicing program for a flat $3000 or an average of $600 per service, which is a bit expensive for the class. Servicing intervals are great at every two-years or 30,000km, whichever occurs first.

You get complimentary roadside assistance for five-years through Assist Australia and if you meet certain criteria, you can extend that by a further three years, which is handy.