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AUTO REVIEW AUTO REVIEW

2021 Mercedes GLS63 AMG

By Stephen Schutz, MD

The 2021 Mercedes GLS63 AMG is a powerful and sporty full jumpy and twitchy, is he on something? Could it be Adderall or even
size SUV for people who want luxury, space, speed, and quickness. coke?” He moves the needle but seems perpetually to be one urine
Oh, and a loud exhaust sound. Combining all those attributes is not test or IRS audit away from losing everything. That’s the GLS63
easy—or cheap, more on that later—but Mercedes has done it. AMG.
The Tuscaloosa, Alabama-built GLS SUV has been around since You start it, and it’s loud. You accelerate to merge into traffic, and
2006, and it has evolved in a good way over the years. The packaging it’s even louder. And in no time you’re where you want to be. Like
is very similar to what it was when it was introduced (as the GL), Right Now. Needless to say, passing slow pokes on the interstate is a
but the luxury part of things has been turned up, if not to 11, then total joke it’s so easy. It handles surprisingly well, too.
at least to 9. Naturally, driving this car is lots of fun, but expect periodic speed-
For example, the dashboard is now one big screen. Previously, ing tickets. You’ll buy a lot of gasoline too (fuel economy figures were
there was a gauge cluster in front of you with a mini iPad-like screen not available at the time of this report but are likely to be poor).
above the center stack. No more, and now the whole thing is one
rectangular screen, including the gauges in front of you. I hope I’m painting a picture: the GLS63 AMG is
With this beautiful big screen providing all the information you luxurious, fast, and loud; and expensive. But it has
could ever want, plus better materials than I experienced when I character galore and will never bore you.
tested a first-gen Mercedes back in 2008, I found that sitting in the
GLS63 was a very pleasant experience. In fact, the GLS has now Ok, a few more mundane aspects of the GLS63 AMG. It uses the
reached the point where it gives you S-class luxury with a higher new MBUX Mercedes touch-screen user interface that famously an-
seating position and extra utility. It’s that good. swers to, “Hey Mercedes” and works surprisingly well. The HVAC
The exterior of the GLS has similarly evolved, mostly by rounding system, audio/media, and a myriad of other vehicle settings are easily
out the sharp edges of the original GL design, but also by shrinking controlled with MBUX and that aforementioned screen.
the taillights and enlarging the grille. It all works, and the newest This is the future, by the way. If your present car doesn’t use some-
GLS looks like the top shelf contemporary luxury SUV that it is, al- thing like MBUX, your next vehicle almost certainly will. Voice con-
beit with some sinister elements when spec'd in GLS63 AMG guise, trol and touch screens are where we’re headed, like it or not. (MBUX
which is what I tested. is undeniably nice, but am I the only one who thinks MBUX sounds
For 2021, the GLS comes in three variants, the in-line six-cylinder like points you earn if you buy enough oil changes at your Mercedes
GLS450, V8 GLS580, and high performance V8 GLS63 AMG. The dealership?)
450 and 580 come with a 48-volt “mild hybrid” system that uses an The GLS63 AMG is a luxurious and very fast full-size SUV that
electric motor to boost low speed acceleration and increase fuel effi- will satisfy your need to speed no matter how intense that need is.
ciency, while the 603HP 63 AMG is all about using brute force to It’s expensive, but if a lot of space plus all of the other AMG extras
achieve speed and quickness. mentioned above are your thing, this is an SUV that will make you
All GLS SUVs come standard with AWD, three rows of seats, 4- happy.
zone climate control, and 20in wheels among other amenities. The
GLS450 starts at just under $80,000, but as with many Mercedes As always, call Phil Hornbeak, the Auto Program Manager at
models, a myriad of stand-alone options and option packages can BCMS (210-301-4367), for your best deal on any new car or truck
push that number well up into six figures, especially if you choose brand. Phil can also connect you to preferred financing and lease
the GLS63 AMG with its base price of $133,000. rates.
I had a thought early on during my week with the GLS63 that I
kept coming back to: if the GLS580 is the corporate CEO who’s Stephen Schutz, MD, is a board-certified gastroenterol-
polished, confident, and reassuring, then the GLS63 AMG is the ogist who lived in San Antonio in the 1990s when he was
VP of sales who’s always on edge and constantly working the phones. stationed here in the US Air Force. He has been writing
He makes his stretch numbers but makes people wonder, “he’s so auto reviews for San Antonio Medicine since 1995.

40 SAN ANTONIO MEDICINE • February 2021 Visit us at www.bcms.org 41