Compare the2022 Bentley BentaygaVS 2022 Mercedes GLS

Both the Bentayga and GLS have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Bentayga has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The GLS’ child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Bentayga has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The GLS doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Bentayga helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera to detect heat, the system then projects the image on the windshield, near the driver’s line of sight. The GLS doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the Bentayga and the GLS have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors, rear cross-path warning, available collision warning systems and lane departure warning systems.

The Bentayga comes with a full 3-year/unlimited-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The GLS’ 50,000-mile basic warranty expires sooner.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Bentayga’s reliability 25 points higher than the GLS.

The Bentayga’s standard 4.0 turbo V8 produces 180 more horsepower (542 vs. 362) and 199 lbs.-ft. more torque (568 vs. 369) than the GLS’ 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid. The Bentayga SPEED’s standard 6.0 turbo 12-cylinder produces 264 more horsepower (626 vs. 362) and 295 lbs.-ft. more torque (664 vs. 369) than the GLS’ 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the Bentayga SPEED 6.0 turbo 12-cylinder is faster than the Mercedes GLS:

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Bentayga’s fuel efficiency. The GLS doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

For better stopping power the Bentayga’s brake rotors are larger than those on the GLS:

The Bentayga offers optional heat-treated ceramic brake rotors, which last ten to twenty times as long as conventional cast iron rotors, don’t rust, don’t fade during repeated high speed braking, and their lighter weight contribute to better braking, handling and acceleration. The GLS doesn’t offer ceramic brake rotors.

For better traction, the Bentayga has larger tires than the GLS (285/45R21 vs. 275/45R21).

The Bentayga’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the GLS 450’s standard 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Bentayga has standard 21-inch wheels. Smaller 20-inch wheels are standard on the GLS 450.

The Bentayga offers active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The GLS doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The Bentayga SPEED handles at .93 G’s, while the GLS 450 pulls only .87 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Bentayga SPEED executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.8 seconds quicker than the GLS 450 (24.6 seconds @ .79 average G’s vs. 26.4 seconds @ .7 average G’s).

The Bentayga is 3.2 inches shorter than the GLS, making the Bentayga easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Bentayga has .9 inches more front headroom and 1.4 inches more front legroom than the GLS.

A Trailer Sway Mitigation is standard on the Bentayga, using the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. A trailer sway program costs extra on the GLS.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Bentayga has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The GLS doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The Bentayga has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the GLS.