Even better, there's the joy of Touch Shift, which allows manual shifting by nudging the lever to the left or right, with the gear displayed on the instrument panel. The transmission learns the driver's style in the Auto mode, though if you jump on it then back off to, say, make a lane change, it may hold the lower gear longer than you want.
The Mercedes-Benz M-Class vehicles ride smooth and steady, firm but seldom jarring. The handling is good for an SUV this heavy, though it bobs significantly when cornering hard. The M-Class responds to aggressive steering commands without fuss, and the beefy tires are grippy. Still, a driver can feel the truck's weight if he or she yanks the steering wheel, and the M-Class will lean in emergency lane-change maneuvers.
Charge into a corner at the limits of the tires and the M-Class will go into a predictable four-wheel drift. It's prone neither to pushing at the front end (understeer) nor sliding at the rear (oversteer). Of course, the magical Electronic Stability Program controls this loss of traction during cornering, particularly on dirt, gravel or slippery pavement. ESP applies brakes to individual wheels to help turn the vehicle evenly whenever it detects a skid. It was recently revised for a more rapid response.
The steering seems a bit heavy. At slower speeds the steering effort is high, which can make it a bit of a chore in crowded parking lots. You might find yourself turning wider than you intended to because you didn't muscle it enough.
The anti-lock brakes, with massive discs, are impressive, and the pedal feel is as solid as the rest of the truck. The ML500 stops quicker than almost any other SUV made.
The M-Class lacks a hand brake or locking differential, two pieces of hardware that experienced off-road drivers sometimes rely on. But with 8.7 inches of ground clearance, it's capable of traversing terrain that few SUV buyers are likely to challenge. A switch on the dash triggers low range for the full-time four-wheel-drive, allowing the vehicle to creep up and down seriously steep inclines. Meanwhile, the electronic power distribution delivers grip in mud, snow, or on uneven ground. The electronics apply the brakes on wheels that are slipping, and then send most of the power to those that are gripping. The M-Class can creep forward even if only one wheel has a bit of traction. Unlike a Land Rover, however, the Mercedes traction-control system can leave the M-Class sidelined when the grip goes away completely, as on a flat piece of sheer ice. In that case you'll have to switch the traction control off and let the wheels spin to gain a little momentum.
The ML500 performs so well, and its ride and handling are so solid, that only the wealthiest, hard-core, high-performance buyers would want the image-heavy ML55 AMG. Perhaps that's why Mercedes has canceled that version of the M-Class for 2004. Next Page