A freshened 2011 Mercedes-Benz R-class will show its new face at the 2010 New York auto show, displaying some much-needed SUV-ish masculinity in the form of a new nose with a taller hood, deeper, wider grille, revised lower fascia with LED driving lamps, and wider-looking headlights replacing the vertical almonds from the original. (Of course, this sounds a bit like when GM stuck a truckish snout on its Venture minivan architecture and created the Uplander. Fortunately, the result here is nowhere near as hideous.) The R’s taillamps are now ribbed, sandwich-style stacks typical of most Mercedes models, perched above a new, more intricately detailed rear bumper. Otherwise, exterior changes are minimal compared with the 2010 R-class. Ditto the R-class’s spacious, six- or seven-passenger interior.
There are no mechanical changes to accompany the 2011 R’s brave new face, which is fine, considering that both of the available V-6 engines—including the 268-hp, 3.5-liter gas engine with 258 lb-ft of torque and a 210-hp, 3.0-liter diesel unit with a stout 398 lb-ft of torque—are perfectly acceptable for the sorts of shuttling and road-tripping the R-class was designed to do. Indeed, the latter engine, with its impressive 24-mpg highway fuel-economy rating, is really quite good at said tasks, with torque-rich passing power and a theoretical range of over 500 miles between fill-ups on long hauls.
However minor, the changes for 2011 are the most extensive to date and are certainly welcome, if a bit late in our opinion. Mercedes offers two other crossovers on the same platform, the two-row ML-class and the three-row GL-class (all three are built in Alabama, by the way), which not only offer stronger styling, but V-8 engines as well.
Thanks to: Car and Driver
