Frontal changes are easy to spot. Image: Mercedes-Benz
Showcased back in February this year, Mercedes-Benz South Africa has officially confirmed price and specification details of the updated GLE, as well as its coupe offshoot.
Officially still in its first generation, which debuted in 2018 as the previous GLE still carried the M-Class or ML nameplate from 2011 until 2015, the internally named W167 GLE arrives in South Africa still powered by a choice of two diesel engines and one petrol, all now equipped with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system.
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In the absence of the AMG models expected next year, both the GLE and GLE Coupe’s aesthetic changes consist of a new front bumper, a restyled grille, reshaped headlights with the Performance LED or optional Multibeam LED diodes, and for the former, a pair of new chrome louvers on either side of the three-pointed star on the grille.
Reserved for coupe, which boasts the AMG Line exterior package as standard, is a chrome outer grille surround, up to 21-inch alloy wheels and an imitation rear diffuser.
While the standard GLE can be equipped with 19 or 20-inch wheels, it, as well as the coupe, can, be finished in one of two new colour options, Alpine Grey and Sodalite Blue Metallic.
Inside, the turbine-style air vents now feature chrome finishes as opposed to the previous black, while the USB count has been increased by two with the addition of a pair in the rear armrest.
A new steering wheel, galvanised real inserts and an optional 13-speaker, 590-watt Burmester sound system with Dolby Atoms completes the interior, along with the latest software for the MBUX infotainment system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and three colour options; beige/black, brown/black and black/red, the latter limited to the coupe only.
Carried over is the choice of five or seven-seats in the GLE, with the coupe being a strict four-seater.
As for boot space, 825-litres or up to 2 055-litres are available in five-seat guise, with the coupe swallowing between 655 and 1 790-litres.
As mentioned, the trio of powerunits are now hybridised by means of the 48-volt EQ Boost system that adds an additional 15kW/200Nm for short bursts.
On the petrol side, the 3.0-litre turbocharged straight-six powering the GLE 450 has been uprated from 270 kW to 280 kW, with torque remaining unchanged at 500 Nm.
Similar to the rest of the GLE range, drive is routed to all four wheels through the 9G Tronic automatic gearbox. Claimed top speed is 250 km/h with 0-100 km/h taking 5.6 seconds.
Kicking-off the diesel options, the 2.0-litre four-cylinder in the GLE 300d also receives a bump in power and torque from 180kW/500Nm to 198kW/550Nm. Top speed is limited to 230 km/h, with 0-100 km/h taking 6.9 seconds.
For now the top-rung model, the 450d replaces the 400d in addition to prevailing the sole option for the GLE Coupe.
Displacing 3.0-litres, the oil-burning straight-six outputs 270kW/750Nm, which translates to a limited top speed of 250 km/h and 0-100 km/h in 5.6 seconds regardless of bodystyle.
Besides the GLE Coupe, the regular GLE can be specified with or without the AMG Line package, in addition to the five-year/100 000 km maintenance plan all receive as standard.
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