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Invoice: $40,920 - $80,910
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2008 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
2008 Mercedes-Benz M-Class Test Drive
Shocking SUV Speed for the Whole Family
The Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG provides blistering straight-line speed and a comfortable interior but is hampered by a rough ride and appallingly low fuel economy.
For the majority of buyers, the ML350 SUV gets around quite smartly with its 268-horsepower V6 engine. Its $44,825 base price isn't too painful, and it's even tolerable at the pump, with fuel economy rated at 15 miles per gallon city/20 mpg highway. The diesel-powered ML320 CDI, for $1,000 more, boosts mileage to 18/24 mpg. (It delivered the highest tested fuel economy we’ve ever seen in a midsize SUV, at a combined 24 mpg over a week’s worth of driving.)
Moving up in the M-Class line, the $53,575 ML550 features a 5.5-liter V8 with 382 horsepower, and a fuel economy rating of 13/18 mpg. Nothing too unusual here — a lot of SUVs throw around numbers like these. It's still playing in reality’s ballpark.
That brings us to the exceptional ML63 AMG, an $87,825, 503-horsepower blast over reality’s center-field fence. We’re not sure why anyone would drive this deluxe monster truck, but whoever it is, they may be going too fast for us to ask them. Then again, there’s always the gas station: The AMG’s abysmal fuel economy of 11 mpg city/14 mpg highway will ensure regular stops to quench the beast's thirst. Our week-long test returned 13 mpg on required premium fuel, meaning that in one year a typical owner will spend twice as much on fuel as someone filling up the diesel-powered M-Class.
Exterior
Current M-Class models, the second-generation of the designed-in-Germany, built-in-Alabama SUV, have a wedge-like, tastefully conservative shape. But on its own, that basic shape won’t do for an AMG Mercedes so the
ML63 gets a special grille, thick fender flares, tinted brake lights, and chunky front and rear bumpers. Then there are polished 20-inch five-spoke wheels, stainless-steel running boards, and a sport exhaust with a quartet of chrome pipes to complete the aggressive look.
Behind the handsome wheels, perceptive onlookers will notice AMG brake calipers and enormous brake rotors that deliver amazing stopping power — but more on those later.
Potential buyers should be aware that even with the standard all-wheel drive, those 20-inch high-performance tires aren’t suited to even mild off-roading, and forget about snow and ice. Driven in messy winter conditions, the ML63 worked hard to maintain traction, often engaging its stability control system to keep things in check. Owners in wintry climes will want to consider a second set of snow tires, or at minimum, all-season tires, for that time of year.
Power-folding mirrors come in handy for street parking or tight spots; a power liftgate is also standard.
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