Pace and comfort

What we like:

Comfort bias chassis that soothes even the worst road surfaces. Explosive straightline acceleration from the twin turbo V6.

What we dislike:

Lack of any real resistance from the steering.

The 2,915mm wheelbase means rear passengers aren’t short on space. Both headroom and legroom are excellent. Width wise the car is generous too meaning passengers sitting three abreast will be just as comfortable. The centre transmission tunnel although raised slightly doesn’t intrude much on the centre passenger’s legroom.

The lack of a third row of seats leaves plenty for the boot. And the ML400 has a cavernous one at 690 litres. With no sill to speak of, loading heavy cargo is much easier here. Fold the rear seats down and it expands to 2,010 litres with a completely flat loading bay that will swallow enough IKEA flat packed furniture for a bedroom.

While most SUVs have walked a fine compromise between comfort and performance, Mercedes-Benz have chosen to dominate the other spectrum and planted its feet firmly in offering a luxurious and comfortable experience with the M-Class. Not only will the ML400 get you to wherever you want to go FAST, you’ll be comfortable too.

Credits: Story and Photos by Benjamin G. Kline