Compare the2024 Honda PilotVS 2023 Mercedes GLB

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 Pilot are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The GLB doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Honda Pilot 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 GLB doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Pilot EX-L/TrailSport/Touring/Elite has a standard Low-Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The GLB doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The Pilot’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 GLB.

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

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

Honda pays for scheduled maintenance on the Pilot for 2 years and 24,000 miles. Honda will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Mercedes doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the GLB.

There are almost 3 times as many Honda dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Pilot’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 Pilot’s reliability 20 points higher than the GLB.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 11 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 19 places higher in reliability than Mercedes.

The Pilot’s 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 64 more horsepower (285 vs. 221) and 4 lbs.-ft. more torque (262 vs. 258) than the GLB’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Honda Pilot is faster than the Mercedes GLB:

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

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Pilot uses regular unleaded gasoline. The GLB requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Pilot has 2.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLB (18.5 vs. 15.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Pilot 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 GLB doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Pilot higher (7 out of 10) than the Mercedes GLB (5). This means the Pilot produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the GLB every 15,000 miles.

A 10-speed automatic is standard on the Honda Pilot, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the GLB.

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

For better traction, the Pilot has larger standard tires than the GLB (255/50R20 vs. 235/55R18). The Pilot TrailSport’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the GLB (265/60R18 vs. 235/55R18).

The Pilot 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 GLB doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Pilot TrailSport has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the GLB; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the GLB don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Pilot’s wheelbase is 2.4 inches longer than on the GLB (113.8 inches vs. 111.4 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Pilot is 4.1 inches wider in the front and 4.4 inches wider in the rear than the track on the GLB.

For better maneuverability, the Pilot TrailSport’s turning circle is .7 feet tighter than the GLB’s (37.7 feet vs. 38.4 feet). The Pilot’s turning circle is .6 feet tighter than the GLB’s (37.8 feet vs. 38.4 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Pilot TrailSport has a greater minimum ground clearance than the GLB (8.3 vs. 7.9 inches), allowing the Pilot to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

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

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

The Pilot offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the GLB can only carry up to 7.

The Pilot has 6 inches more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, 2.7 inches more rear legroom, 6.8 inches more rear shoulder room, 4.5 inches more third row headroom, 3.4 inches more third row legroom and 15.7 inches more third row shoulder room than the GLB.

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

The Pilot’s cargo area provides more volume than the GLB.

The Pilot has a 3500 lbs. towing capacity. The GLB has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the Pilot uses the Vehicle Stability Assist sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The GLB doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Pilot Elite has a standard heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The GLB doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

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

Consumer Reports rated the Pilot’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the GLB’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Pilot has standard extendable sun visors. The GLB doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Pilot to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The GLB doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Both the Pilot and the GLB offer available heated front seats. The Pilot Elite also has standard heated second row seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated second row seats aren’t available in the GLB.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Pilot, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Mercedes GLB isn't recommended.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Pilot third among upper midsize SUVs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The GLB isn’t in the top three.

The Honda Pilot outsold the Mercedes GLB by over four to one during 2022.