Compare the2023 Chevrolet SuburbanVS 2023 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 Suburban 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 Suburban (except LS with front bench seat) has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The GLS doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Suburban Premier/High Country offers optional Reverse Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The GLS doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The Suburban’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the GLS.

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

Chevrolet’s powertrain warranty covers the Suburban 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.

The Suburban’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the GLS’ (6 vs. 5 years).

There are almost 8 times as many Chevrolet dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Suburban’s warranty.

The Suburban has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The GLS doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 42 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is ranked 19th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet above average in long-term dependability. With 21 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Mercedes is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Chevrolet 4 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

The Suburban’s 3.0 turbo diesel produces 91 lbs.-ft. more torque (460 vs. 369) than the GLS 450’s standard 3.0 turbo 6-cylinder hybrid.

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

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

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Chevrolet Suburban uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended with the 6.2 V8 engine for maximum performance). The GLS requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Suburban has 4.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLS (28.3 vs. 23.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Suburban 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.

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Chevrolet Suburban, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a nine-speed automatic is available for the GLS.

The Chevrolet Suburban’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 Suburban 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 Suburban 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 a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Suburban’s wheelbase is 10.7 inches longer than on the GLS (134.1 inches vs. 123.4 inches).

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

The front grille of the Suburban (except Diesel) 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 Suburban offers optional seating for 9 passengers; the GLS can only carry 7.

The Suburban has 2.9 inches more front headroom, 4.2 inches more front legroom, 6.7 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear legroom, 6.3 inches more rear shoulder room, 2.1 inches more third row legroom and 12.5 inches more third row shoulder room than the GLS.

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

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

Maximum trailer towing in the Mercedes GLS is limited to 7700 pounds. The Suburban offers up to a 8300 lbs. towing capacity.

The Suburban 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 Suburban can be unhitched and driven around locally. The GLS can’t be towed flat on the ground.

Trailer Sway Control is standard on the Suburban, using the StabiliTrak® 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 Suburban’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 Suburban 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 Suburban’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the GLS’ headlights, which were rated “Good.”

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

Insurance will cost less for the Suburban owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Suburban will cost $6800 to $7220 less than the GLS over a five-year period.

The Suburban will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Suburban will retain 49.7% to 52.84% of its original price after five years, while the GLS only retains 41.62%.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Suburban is less expensive to operate than the GLS because typical repairs cost much less on the Suburban than the GLS, including $452 less for a water pump, $91 less for a muffler, $100 less for front brake pads, $388 less for a starter, $208 less for fuel injection, $276 less for front struts and $783 less for a power steering pump.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Chevrolet Suburban will be $14742 to $33172 less than for the Mercedes GLS.

The Chevrolet Suburban outsold the Mercedes GLS by over two to one during 2022.