Compare the2023 Jeep WagoneerVS 2022 Mercedes GLS

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Wagoneer are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The GLS doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Jeep Wagoneer has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The GLS doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

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

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Wagoneer has standard Park Assist with Rear Stop that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The GLS doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

A passive infrared night vision system optional on the Wagoneer Grand 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 displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The GLS doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the Wagoneer and the GLS have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front 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, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, lane departure warning systems, around view monitors and driver alert monitors.

Jeep’s powertrain warranty covers the Wagoneer 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Mercedes covers the GLS. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the GLS ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

Jeep pays for scheduled maintenance on the Wagoneer for 5 years and unlimited miles. Jeep will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Mercedes doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the GLS.

There are over 6 times as many Jeep dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Wagoneer’s warranty.

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 Wagoneer’s reliability 25 points higher than the GLS.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Jeep vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Jeep 1 place higher in reliability than Mercedes.

As tested in Car and Driver the Grand Wagoneer 6.4 V8 is faster than the GLS 450 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid:

On the EPA test cycle the Wagoneer gets better mileage than the GLS:

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Wagoneer V8’s fuel efficiency. The GLS doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The Wagoneer has 2.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLS (26.5 vs. 23.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Wagoneer has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The GLS doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The Jeep Wagoneer’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Mercedes GLS only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Wagoneer has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The GLS doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Wagoneer has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the GLS; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Wagoneer is 1.9 inches wider in the front and .8 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the GLS.

For better maneuverability, the Wagoneer’s turning circle is 1.4 feet tighter than the GLS’ (38 feet vs. 39.4 feet).

The front grille of the Wagoneer uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The GLS doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Wagoneer uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The GLS doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Wagoneer offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the GLS can only carry 7.

The Wagoneer has 1.9 inches more front headroom, .6 inches more front legroom, 6.8 inches more front shoulder room, .8 inches more rear legroom, 6.7 inches more rear shoulder room, .1 inches more third row headroom, 2 inches more third row legroom and 14.1 inches more third row shoulder room than the GLS.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Wagoneer’s middle and third row seats recline. The GLS’ third row seats don’t recline.

The Wagoneer’s cargo area provides more volume than the GLS.

The Wagoneer’s cargo area is larger than the GLS’ in every dimension:

Maximum trailer towing in the Mercedes GLS is limited to 7700 pounds. The Wagoneer offers up to a 10,000 lbs. towing capacity.

The Wagoneer 4WD with optional equipment can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Wagoneer can be unhitched and driven around locally. The GLS can’t be towed flat on the ground.

Trailer Sway Control is standard on the Wagoneer, 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.

The Wagoneer’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The GLS does not have an oil pressure gauge.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Wagoneer has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the GLS only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

Consumer Reports rated the Wagoneer’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the GLS’ headlights, which were rated “Good.”

The Wagoneer 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.

The Wagoneer is available in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The GLS doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

The Wagoneer will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Wagoneer will retain 52.54% to 52.77% of its original price after five years, while the GLS only retains 41.62%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Jeep Wagoneer will be $12468 to $20181 less than for the Mercedes GLS.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Wagoneer first among large suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The GLS isn’t in the top three.

The Jeep Wagoneer outsold the Mercedes GLS by almost two to one during the 2022 model year.