The Mercedes GLE to travel to New York

'The Big Apple' will next week play host to one of the biggest car motor shows of the entire year as the New York Motor Show gets underway. There have already been some might fine cars announced to be making their grand debut from this big event with models such as the new Jaguar XF and McLaren Sports Series model being some of them. Another company who have thrown their hat into proceedings this week though is Mercedes Benz who yesterday confirmed that they will be bringing along their brand new GLE model to the big event. The new suv will take to the big stage and will be showcased for the first time. The new model will work as the direct replacement for the companies former ML model and will also operate as a sibling to the GLE Coupe model too. The German firm have designed the car with the BMW X5 in its sights as the strongest source of competition for the vehicle. Just how are Mercedes planning to make it just as successful as the X5 though?.

The key things to know about the new GLE

So when we look at the tremendous success that the X5 has achieved since launch, it will take something pretty special on Mercedes part to take on this model, and in our opinion this is exactly what they have done. In terms of some of the special features that this new model is going to carry, the engine range will consist of a selection of four,six and eight cylinder units. Amongst these is a V6 sized petrol engine which will give out 328bhp. This is joined alongside by an electric motor which will be delivering 114bhp as a part of the plug in hybrid model. The car has been confirmed to be running on an all wheel drive platform and as completely standard throughout the range, will be offered with a seven speed automatic gearbox.

The exterior design of the car carries some similar traits to other suv models from the same brand with the likes of LED lighting all around the car,a two bar front grille and the same daytime running lights which can also be found on the brands S Class range. Other information given out by the brand concerning technology equipment included the likes of a seven inch touchscreen with the option to upgrade to an eight inch setup. Active parking assistance,a reversing camera and a 360 degree camera has also been confirmed to find a special place inside of the vehicle.

Does the GLE have what it takes to rival the X5?

With some of the great pieces of technology and equipment that we have outlined above, we see the GLE bringing a big fight to the BMW brand when it comes to having the best suv. The new GLE will launch here in the United Kingdom and across other areas of the world from later this year.