Government regulations do tend to dictate the kind of cars Indian buyers can enjoy. While most of these regulations are arbitrarily made and throw manufacturers in a frenzy, like the 2.0-litre+ diesel ban in recent times, they do end up having a silver lining. In this case, it is the revival of the big powerful petrol engine and its quickly growing market in India. And Mercedes-Benz is on the forefront of this petrol push with the new GLS400 petrol. This flagship petrol-powered SUV is priced at Rs. 82.90 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Comparatively, the GLS350d is priced at Rs 81.90 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) and even though the diesel is a CKD and the petrol is a CBU, the petrol is just Rs 1 lakh more expensive.
The GLS400 is the erstwhile successor to the GL500 that found quite a few takers in India when launched a few years ago. Available only in one variant, the new GLS400 will be powered by a 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine making 329bhp of peak power and 480Nm of peak torque as low as 1600rpm. The low down torque will give the GLS400 good drivability just like the more popular GLS350d with the diesel motor. Of course, the GLS400 will continue to be a 4MATIC only setup with permanent all-wheel-drive. The engine will be mated to the tried and tested 9G-Tronic+ automatic transmission with a paddle shifter.
Although the GLS400 will be used mainly as a family car, it could give some faster sportier cars a run for their money. The claimed 0-100km/h sprint is taken care of in 6.4-seconds while the top speed is said to be closer to 250km/h. The GLS400 doesn't really have much competition in its price range with neither Audi nor BMW launching non-M powered petrol engines for their Q7 or X5 anytime soon. The closest rivals are the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT and the Range Rover Sport V6 petrol, both of which come only with a 5-seat option and not a 7-seat configuration like the GLS400 does.
Incidentally, this is Mercedes-Benz India's 13th launch in 2016. With the launch of the GLS400, Mercedes-Benz now offers a petrol version of their entire SUV portfolio. In fact, with the GLS400's launch, Mercedes has completed its petrol powered offerings in India and the only mainstream Mercedes-Benz offering that you can't buy with a petrol motor is the CLS. Mercedes-Benz still has four more launches left in 2016 which will include the C-Class cabriolet and the GLA 4MATIC.
Incidentally, this is Mercedes-Benz India's 13th launch in 2016. With the launch of the GLS400, Mercedes-Benz now offers a petrol version of their entire SUV portfolio. In fact, the only car in the Mercedes-Benz portfolio that does not offer a petrol engine is the CLS and we expect them to introduce a CLS400 with the same engine in the coming months too. Other future launches include the C-Class convertible with the C300 engine spec and the new E-Class which will come early next year with both petrol and diesel options.
