I have a GLS550, 2015, coming off lease. Have on order a 2017 GLE550e hybrid. Scheduled build date 7/29/16. Also have a 2016 S550e hybrid, with the same engine/trans combo, less the 4WD, so I’m familiar with the set up and love it. People ask what good is a 17 mile range. That’s not how it works. Sure there are days when we just go around town and are 100% on pure electric. But in 10 tanks of gas we have never averaged less than 50% of the tank on pure electric, which % is monitored from "start" and "reset" just like gas mileage on all the MB models. The only time we were less than 50% was an 800 mile trip to San Francisco, where it was about 40%, and the gas mileage was about 28, and we averaged about 80 mph+, and just maybe we accidentally hit tripple digits just for a second😇 . Even at 80 mph when cruising in a line of cars on a flat or slight downhill grade, the motor would shut off and be on electric only for miles. Our best tank around town was 605 miles on 14.5 gallons for about 41.7 mpg, with lots of around town electric only mileage. Our minimum is about 35+. Last tank was 39.9. I LOVE THIS 5100 pound CAR. We are having fun watching a days drive at 70mpg. Or 99.9 when the motor never started at all. I’m looking forward to the new GLE to give similar results, same drive train, a hundred pounds more, and 4WD. I drove the first one the dealer got in recently, a 2016, and it felt peppier than the S550e, even though the weight is similar. Gearing maybe? GLE550e uses the same twin turbo 329hp as the GLE400, plus the electric, but quicker zero to 60 at 5.2 vs 6.0 seconds. Tesla electric feel at start, especially on E-Mode, which is Electric ONLY. Move over Rosberg and Hamilton on your similar F1 hybrids! UPDATE. MY 2017 GLE550e hybrid was built on 7/29/16. My lease was up so I turned my GLS550 back and made cars plans until mine arrived. 2 days later I got the dreaded update on my GLE. It was already prepped to ship from Alabama to CA but the whole 550e line was put on hold. I'm told it was because of the VW fiasco. It's supposedly making some or all "alternative fuel" vehicles perform a new/revised fuel mileage test, and the manufacturer to reprint the window stickers. Meanwhile I'm driving a friends "beater" pickup getting 12 mpg. I asked WHEN, and the dealer said 10 days to 2 years! Ha Ha! His best guess is "September”. I’ll post updates.
New GLE550e hybrid on its way. OOPS!
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HI,
I have my Hybrid for half a year now. Worth waiting for. Indeed the electric engine lowers the average fuel consumption. I have now after 11.000 miles an average of: 22mpg (10,6ltr-100km because I live in Europe). I live close to my work so drive many miles on Electric. Indeed the Hybrid is a car to use in the neighbourhood to get advantage of the Electric engines. But when overhauling the speed increase is amazing. Nice to have the extra power. My gle is with pneumatic suspension and a lot of other extras. One of the best cruising cars I drove. The sensors and radars keep very good control over the distance and lane on highway and in the city. On the highway you can use cruise control and take your hands of the steering wheel. It drives with corners and keeps your lane. Superb. The best is that the power steering helps you in the corners keeping your lane. After longer drives you are almost not tired. I would say even rested and unstressed.
I have my Hybrid for half a year now. Worth waiting for. Indeed the electric engine lowers the average fuel consumption. I have now after 11.000 miles an average of: 22mpg (10,6ltr-100km because I live in Europe). I live close to my work so drive many miles on Electric. Indeed the Hybrid is a car to use in the neighbourhood to get advantage of the Electric engines. But when overhauling the speed increase is amazing. Nice to have the extra power. My gle is with pneumatic suspension and a lot of other extras. One of the best cruising cars I drove. The sensors and radars keep very good control over the distance and lane on highway and in the city. On the highway you can use cruise control and take your hands of the steering wheel. It drives with corners and keeps your lane. Superb. The best is that the power steering helps you in the corners keeping your lane. After longer drives you are almost not tired. I would say even rested and unstressed.
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Where, oh where is my little lost car ;√(
I ordered two (2) identical (every option available) 2017 GLE 550e's in May of 2016. Told that the build date was the middle of Aug. Delivery of one car in late Aug and the second in early Sept. In Sept I was told that they would be delivered in early Oct. Most current estimate of delivery date is around the 20th of Oct. Got the same story from Pensky in San Diego that this was the fault of VW. Why then is this not affecting the delivery of any other hybrids in North America? Why has there been no official announcement from MBUSA about this delay? Why won't they or can't they tell me who or what regulatory agency is responsible for this delay so I can at least confirm their story. The amazing thing about this is the drivetrain in the 2016 and the 2017 is identical. Love to hear from someone at MBUSA who would be willing to tell me what is actually going on because I have become very skeptical of this current cover story.
I have had several calls to customer support and they stated they have checked with the production manager and have no information that they can share with a customer on why their cars are being delayed. Something is fishy.
UPDATE. MY 2017 GLE550e hybrid was built on 7/29/16. My lease was up so I turned my GLS550 back and made cars plans until mine arrived. 2 days later I got the dreaded update on my GLE. It was already prepped to ship from Alabama to CA but the whole 550e line was put on hold. I'm told it was because of the VW fiasco. It's supposedly making some or all "alternative fuel" vehicles perform a new/revised fuel mileage test, and the manufacturer to reprint the window stickers. Meanwhile I'm driving a friends "beater" pickup getting 12 mpg. I asked WHEN, and the dealer said 10 days to 2 years! Ha Ha! His best guess is "September”. I’ll post updates.[/QUOTE]
I ordered two (2) identical (every option available) 2017 GLE 550e's in May of 2016. Told that the build date was the middle of Aug. Delivery of one car in late Aug and the second in early Sept. In Sept I was told that they would be delivered in early Oct. Most current estimate of delivery date is around the 20th of Oct. Got the same story from Pensky in San Diego that this was the fault of VW. Why then is this not affecting the delivery of any other hybrids in North America? Why has there been no official announcement from MBUSA about this delay? Why won't they or can't they tell me who or what regulatory agency is responsible for this delay so I can at least confirm their story. The amazing thing about this is the drivetrain in the 2016 and the 2017 is identical. Love to hear from someone at MBUSA who would be willing to tell me what is actually going on because I have become very skeptical of this current cover story.
I have had several calls to customer support and they stated they have checked with the production manager and have no information that they can share with a customer on why their cars are being delayed. Something is fishy.
UPDATE. MY 2017 GLE550e hybrid was built on 7/29/16. My lease was up so I turned my GLS550 back and made cars plans until mine arrived. 2 days later I got the dreaded update on my GLE. It was already prepped to ship from Alabama to CA but the whole 550e line was put on hold. I'm told it was because of the VW fiasco. It's supposedly making some or all "alternative fuel" vehicles perform a new/revised fuel mileage test, and the manufacturer to reprint the window stickers. Meanwhile I'm driving a friends "beater" pickup getting 12 mpg. I asked WHEN, and the dealer said 10 days to 2 years! Ha Ha! His best guess is "September”. I’ll post updates.[/QUOTE]
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UPDAT in the post above was a quote from a previous post by KRUZMISL. I included it because he is having similar problems or at least getting the same story.
Chances are it won't be as long this time around since they have had good time to ramp up production and they always built models they know will sell which already takes care of a lot of potential owners.
I'm still waiting for my GLE550e that was finished and has been sitting in Alabama since, 7/19. The dealer told me 2 weeks ago, that all the MB electrics, like the S550e, are also being held at shipping, and that my car, and all the others were picked up and trucked back to the factory, where they stayed for 2 days. They were then trucked back to the shipping, check back in, and labeled "ready to ship", They still are there in that condition as of this morning. He thinks that whatever work they needed done, was completed, otherwise why the expensive exercise. He believes that they now need the "correct" window sticker, which they can't be sold without, which gives the mileage rating of the revised driving test. Thanks VW. Thanks EPA.
Not fun at all and usually official documents like that have to pass through a lot of individuals before we see what we usually see.
Hopefully in the end they give you something as a way to say sorry since that kind of wait in an industry like this an a high end product like this just isn't acceptable. But of course that depends if you want something out of it, not everyone does, some are far more patient and tolerant than me
Hopefully in the end they give you something as a way to say sorry since that kind of wait in an industry like this an a high end product like this just isn't acceptable. But of course that depends if you want something out of it, not everyone does, some are far more patient and tolerant than me
Tried looking for myself with no luck, unfortunately owners in this segment don't report numbers as often as those in lower segments. But a realistic expectation is for real world MPG's to stick within a range of 10% of the MPG's reported on paper.
What will help too is looking at MB models running a similar setup, that will give you an idea of a trend happening within the brand. Hopefully that helps.
What will help too is looking at MB models running a similar setup, that will give you an idea of a trend happening within the brand. Hopefully that helps.
Depends on usage. Currently mostly a daily commuter. About 16 miles each way (~50+ minutes in the brutal Miami traffic). I have a free charging station at work so it's all electric each way. Most comfortable way to have to sit in bumper to bumper! Highway traffic is high 20s if i drive to conserve and do a lot of cruising. Probably around 23mpg if aggressive (80+). Not saying i've driven over the speed limit of course but it is a Porsche I've only had it two months and so far the combined readout is:
Travel Time: 160hrs
Distance: 3,154mi
AveSpeed: 21mph (did i mention the brutal traffic?)
MPG: 35.6mpg
I've only had it two months and so far the combined readout is:Travel Time: 160hrs
Distance: 3,154mi
AveSpeed: 21mph (did i mention the brutal traffic?)
MPG: 35.6mpg
Finally got my 2017 GLE550e December 12,2016. 4 1/2 months after it was built. So far everything works perfectly. The delay was because they had to revise the window sticker mileage expectations after the VW cheating fiasco on alternative fuel vehicles. Mine says 43 MPGe. Combined gas and electric. And 21 MPG, gas only. Combined city and highway. I can now compare this to my wife's S550e 2016. They have the same exact motor. First the GLE550e is about 400 pounds heavier and is 4 wheel drive. The S is obviously more streamlined. And the gearing is different. I'm running more RPM at the same highway speed. So I'm expecting less MPG in the GLE. The main thing is your driving pattern. The shorter the trip between charging, the higher your MPG. I do mostly short trips around our town. Many days I do 8-15 total miles, and then it's back on the charger. Often the gas engine never starts. It sows 99.9 mpg for the day. I like to push the select button on the dash and change the setting from hybrid to eMode. This allows more push on the gas pedal without turning on the engine. I get adequate acceleration for most driving, when I've floored it, I was shocked at the power. 0-60 is supposed to be about 5.3 seconds??? I think the electric torque boost really helps. Anyway,this is my first full tank after getting the car. I've had more short driving days than normal, and I've now driven 450 miles on the tank and I'm at exactly 50 MPG, with 331 miles on total electric! I still have just over a half a tank of gas left. This will not be normal, when I do longer drives, but it is possible with many short days. My wife drives about a 26 miles commute a day and in 8,000 miles has never gotten less than 34-36 MPG on a tank. The dashboard number might be off a bit and I'll check it when I get gas in about 350 miles! Since the GLE550E is basically identical to the GLE400, with the addition of the electric, and I believe the base price is about $1,000 more, but then I got a $4,085 federal rebate, it ends up being $3,085 or so LESS, and .8 seconds quicker to 60, plus much better mileage, I think this is the way to go. I'll try and post a picture of the dash board numbers. Until the next refil. John.
Here is the photo of the MPG. Notice still more than half a tank left. One other comparison with the S550e. We seem to be able to get abou 15 miles total electric, part city part highway on the S. On the GLE I am only getting about 11-12 on total electric, before the engine automatically starts, and then it's on and off as the battery charges or I'm going downhill, or at a red light, the gas engine shuts off, and if you accelerate gradually when the battery is way down, you can still get up to 5mph or so before the engine starts again. This really helps the MPG as a lot of gas is used getting this thing moving. The difference between the 2 vehicles is probably the gearing, and possibly the GLE has a smaller battery. I'm waiting for someone to come out with an auxillary battery in a case that you can put it in the back and plug it in. Maybe even a "flux capacitor"!
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I looked at the Cayenne while I was waiting for the GLE, and liked it a lot. But for a number of reasons especially since I mountain bike a lot and need a tow hitch receiver to carry a multi bike carrier, and that was not available on the Porsche. Also having 2 vehicles that are very similar in controls and instrumentation make it a lot easier for either my wife or I to drive either car. Good luck and enjoy.
Thanks Kruz. Congrats on the new 550e! What specs/options did you get? I have one built out for the wife and am about to pull the trigger but i'm hearing whispers of upgrades for 2018 models so may wait to see. Perhaps the Flux Capacitor!
Couple of reasons i went with the Cayenne: 1) No 550e models in Florida, 2) super year-end deal on 2016 models from an aggressive startup dealer, and 3) nice federal tax credit. So net-net it was costing less than the cayenne S and about the same as a loaded 550e.
Not having been able to see a 550e in person can you comment on the reduction of cargo space for the battery?
Couple of reasons i went with the Cayenne: 1) No 550e models in Florida, 2) super year-end deal on 2016 models from an aggressive startup dealer, and 3) nice federal tax credit. So net-net it was costing less than the cayenne S and about the same as a loaded 550e.
Not having been able to see a 550e in person can you comment on the reduction of cargo space for the battery?
Hi Simon. I never drove one before I ordered, but we have the S550e, which has the identical drive train except for the AWD, which doesn't change any appearance, it's just there. Maybe a little lower MPG. I previously had a 2015 GL550, and I loved the Airmatic suspension, so I ordered that. Pricy, but the GLE just floats. Premium package 3, which includes PP1 and 2. Soft close doors like the GL550. Magic vision controller that really works great. Trailer hitch. This was not factory available On the Porsche And BMW hybrids I looked at. I mountain bike every week and I hav a rack mount carrier. Wood steering wheel, air purification system cardinal red write me a ticket paint! Multi contour seats w/massage, panaramic sunroof, heated and ventilated seats, sport package, etc. did not get runningboards. On my GL the didn't stick out enough to use well, narrow and too easy to slip off. But too far out that the bac of my leg would hit it an get dirty. They should be wider, but slide out. Rebate for the hybrid was $4080. They put it towards the down payment. State rebate also. I have a dealer order list. 42 pages or so. I'll try to scan it and post more info than the dealer knows. John
Wow...all the bells and whistles...congrats! Sounds like a beauty. Interesting comment on the running boards. hadn't really thought about not getting them. I'm 6'4" so wouldn't be an issue for me but the wife is 5'3" and she says she needs them so...
I was trying to find the specs online but couldn't see it. Does the 550e come with an external charge unit/cables/adapters? Is the onboard charger 3.6kwh or 7.2kwh?
I was trying to find the specs online but couldn't see it. Does the 550e come with an external charge unit/cables/adapters? Is the onboard charger 3.6kwh or 7.2kwh?
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