Where each one leads
Ford Explorer
- Fewer Ford Explorer cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (1.0% against 7.7%).
- New Ford Explorer cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 75 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 253 for the Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class in 2022.
Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class
Ahead on none of the like-for-like measures.
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Ford Explorer | Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1984–2027 | — |
| New cars registered in Europe | 10,009 (2010–2022) | 26,871 (2014–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 16,800 | 3,502 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 7,417 | 733 |
| In traffic in Finland | 1,617 | — |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Ford Explorer | Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.2% | — |
| … against cars of the same year | −20% | — |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 1.0% | 7.7% |
| US owner complaints | 34,627 | — |
| Most complaints about | Power train | — |
| Model year with most complaints | 2002 (3,295) | — |
| US recall campaigns | 142 | — |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 5,035 | — |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 155 | — |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Ford Explorer | Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2027) | — |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Ford Explorer | Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 10.4 l/100 km (2026) | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | — | 10.6 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | — | 15.2 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel hybrid | — | 10.4 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 75 g/km | 253 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 267 kW (358 hp) | 304 kW (408 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 2,547 kg | 2,591 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €77,709 | €195,655 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 86,000 km | — |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).