Compare the2023 Mercedes GLBVS 2023 Honda Passport

For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Mercedes GLB have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Honda Passport doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The GLB’s optional pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Passport doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

The Mercedes GLB has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Passport doesn’t offer knee airbags.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the GLB’s standard Downhill Speed Regulation allows you to creep down safely. The Passport doesn’t offer Downhill Speed Regulation.

The GLB offers an optional Surround View System to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Passport only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The GLB’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Passport doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the GLB and the Passport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive and lane departure warning systems.

The GLB comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Passport’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the GLB’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Passport’s camshafts. If the Passport’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Mercedes vehicles are more reliable than Honda With 35 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Mercedes higher than Honda.

On the EPA test cycle the GLB gets better mileage than the Passport:

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Mercedes GLB higher (5 out of 10) than the Honda Passport (3). This means the GLB produces up to 16.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Passport every 15,000 miles.

The GLB offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Passport doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

For better stopping power the GLB’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Passport:

The GLB stops much shorter than the Passport:

The GLB’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Passport TrailSport’s standard 60 series tires.

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires available on the GLB can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Passport doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

The GLB has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Passport’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The GLB offers an optional driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Passport’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The GLB’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Passport doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The GLB’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (57% to 43%) than the Passport’s (58.5% to 41.5%). This gives the GLB more stable handling and braking.

The GLB 250 4MATIC handles at .89 G’s, while the Passport Elite pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The GLB 250 4MATIC executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Passport Elite (27.5 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the GLB’s turning circle is .9 feet tighter than the Passport AWD’s (38.4 feet vs. 39.3 feet).

The Mercedes GLB may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 600 pounds less than the Honda Passport.

The GLB is 6.7 inches shorter than the Passport, making the GLB easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The GLB is 6.4 inches narrower than the Passport, making the GLB easier to handle and maneuver in traffic.

The GLB offers optional seating for 7 passengers; the Passport can only carry 5.

The GLB has 1.2 inches more front headroom and .2 inches more front legroom than the Passport.

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the GLB easier. The GLB’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 28.5 inches, while the Passport’s liftover is 32 inches.

The GLB uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Passport uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Unlike the driver-only memory seat and mirrors in the Passport, the GLB has standard driver and passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, suspension setting, power steering assist, outside mirror angle, climate settings and radio stations and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The GLB’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Passport’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the GLB and the Passport have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the GLB is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Passport prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The GLB’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Passport’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

The GLB’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Passport’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the GLB offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Passport doesn’t offer cornering lights. The GLB also offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

The GLB’s power mirror controls are mounted on the armrest for easy access. The Passport’s power mirror controls are on the dash where they are possibly hidden by the steering wheel and are awkward to manipulate.

The GLB offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Passport.

The GLB’s optional Active Parking Assist can parallel park by itself, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Passport doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The GLB is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Passport doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.