Switching from Mercedes GLE 350 to Telluride...any thoughts?

[twincam23]

@Enjoynit
Maybe there's just more options in SoCal, but no need to order and wait to get the build you want.
Go to the Kia.com Telluride page and select Build.
Select all the options you want.
On the upper right of the page, click on the Summary box.
Select View Nearby Inventory.
It will tell you what dealership has a perfect match for your build.
This was how we purchased ours. Just make sure you haggle the markup cost.

 

[WilliamsK]

@Enjoynit:

I've never driven a GLE 350 but I drove a mid-80s Baby Benz 190E for a bit.

That was fun to drive fast, good cornering, no modern ABS brakes, but felt solid.

Premium gas is a reason I ditched the 2002 Lexus LS 430 V8 and shopped for a new car.

In California, paying the stupid 55 cents per gallon gas tax at the pump is basically like burning money.

Telly is pretty good on gas but the tank isn't the hugest. You'll still have to stop for gas on longer trips, but it's not any worse than most cars.

The unibody construction of modern SUVs and smaller crossovers mean they drive just like cars and you already know this.

I love driving my Telly in Sport Mode and never check MPG because I just don't care anymore, but if you're looking to move to a Telluride, here's what I like most:

#1: looks <--- handsome, rugged stance. Big, boxy, beautiful is what the designers were going for. They looked at all the automotive design, borrowed ideas from at least 20 cars that I can name, and integrated Kia's own signature "design language" into the mid-sized SUV of the year, defending champion in the category of mid-sized 3-row SUVs. Looks matter, otherwise we'd all be driving fugly Subaru Outbacks and Priuses. Every time I walk up to my car, or stare at it from afar, I'm smiling inside and out. The black SX wheels (non-Nightfall) are gorgeous. The aluminum/chrome lines make the Dark Moss body lines look perfect.

#2: comfort <--- I don't even use the 3rd row so it's a 4-seater and boy are those seats comfortable. Kia Motors has been on a roll making the interior cabin space satisfy 99% of people looking at the car. The perfect mix of comfort and support in the seat design is just right for me. Heated and cooled seats. Heated steering wheel. Heated and cooled seats in the 2nd row. If you add the excellent OEM All Weather Floor Mats, your feet and heels will be comfortable too. Check out the thread, "Warm hands, cool backs"

#3: traditional shifter <--- If a car doesn't have this, I don't care. I don't want it.

#4: sport mode <--- requires foot on pedal and so fun

#5: lock <--- when the snow and ice and slush and winter and sand and you keep it under 25mph

#6: safety <--- Perfect, bright, focused LED lights with a lot of throw, lumens, candelas, etc. Rear-cross traffic alert is awesome if you have to back out from a parking spot in a garage/lot, etc. Blind spot lights/beeps are awesome. Frontal collision alert/braking is amazing. I turn off most of the Nanny features like Lane Keep Assist because I don't ever want to fight the steering wheel to swerve to avoid stuff on the road or tree branches hanging over lanes, but those key ones I mentioned are good.

#7: infotainment tech <--- coming from a 2002 car with AM/FM, cassette tape deck and a CD-changer, this is like a whole new world of awesome features. I put my phone in the holder in front of the cup holders and plug in the USB cord and WOW !! So much fun. Kia's map and navigation is pretty good. I actually prefer the UVO to Google Maps because it integrates with the HUD and gives turn arrows lol.

#8: hidden storage well: <--- if you're a prepper, you'll love how much you can fit in this ample space. I have my battery jump pack, some basic tools, emergency food and first aid stuff, and other things. It's so spacious!

#9: compliments <--- everywhere I park, from gas stations to garages to parking lots to wherever, people ask me about my car. It also helps that I picked the flagship exterior color, Dark Moss (skipped the NFE because I like chrome/aluminum/light gray accents) and picked the amazing Dune Brown Nappa Leather Seats that pair with the dark gray premium cloth microfiber headliner that also cover the A-pillars and partially cover the B-pillars. So cozy, so upscale, so puppy-soft and stress-relieving

Dune Brown Interior Feedback

After 1 month of ownership. Still lovin’ the cozy upscale Dune Brown interior :)

tellurideforum.org

Everything darkmossjustin said!

 

[Enjoynit]

@Enjoynit
Maybe there's just more options in SoCal, but no need to order and wait to get the build you want.
Go to the Kia.com Telluride page and select Build.
Select all the options you want.
On the upper right of the page, click on the Summary box.
Select View Nearby Inventory.
It will tell you what dealership has a perfect match for your build.
This was how we purchased ours. Just make sure you haggle the markup cost.

Thanks, I did try that and it gave me a list of about 20 dealers to check. I would have to look at each and every dealer's inventory. Most of the first 4 - 5 I checked had nothing even close to a match. But I will try that again and see what I can come up with . Thanks.

 

[LookingforTelly]

Thanks, I did try that and it gave me a list of about 20 dealers to check. I would have to look at each and every dealer's inventory. Most of the first 4 - 5 I checked had nothing even close to a match. But I will try that again and see what I can come up with . Thanks.

I had the same problem. I found it easier to just go on to the website for the dealers and click the button requesting information. They'll call or text within a day or 2. Then describe what you want and tell them to call you when that trim/color shows up.

I did this last weekend and on Monday had about 15 dealers in contact. By today, I've had about 5 nearly perfect matches. I'm picking it up tomorrow. I'm guessing for some of them, people had out a deposit but later found something else or otherwise the buyer fell through. So, now it's mine.

 

[Butch Cassidy]

I had the same problem. I found it easier to just go on to the website for the dealers and click the button requesting information. They'll call or text within a day or 2. Then describe what you want and tell them to call you when that trim/color shows up.

I did this last weekend and on Monday had about 15 dealers in contact. By today, I've had about 5 nearly perfect matches. I'm picking it up tomorrow. I'm guessing for some of them, people had out a deposit but later found something else or otherwise the buyer fell through. So, now it's mine.

How much over MSRP?

 

[Enjoynit]

I had the same problem. I found it easier to just go on to the website for the dealers and click the button requesting information. They'll call or text within a day or 2. Then describe what you want and tell them to call you when that trim/color shows up.

I did this last weekend and on Monday had about 15 dealers in contact. By today, I've had about 5 nearly perfect matches. I'm picking it up tomorrow. I'm guessing for some of them, people had out a deposit but later found something else or otherwise the buyer fell through. So, now it's mine.

Thanks, I tried going on the main Kia site and getting the list of dealers that had a vehicle that matches. Only one had my exact match including preferred exterior and interior color combo. So I contacted that dealer online to ask if that vehicle was indeed in inventory, they said they are not showing it as available meaning someone already bought it. Had the same issue with a couple other dealers - a car shows up as being available and I call or email right away and I’m told it’s been sold. My local dealer was supposed to let me test drive an SX that was promised to someone else but instead he let them pick up without letting me try it. He wants me to come in and try out the EX but I want to test drive the actual model and package I’m buying. So I said no to that. I plan to order an SX Prestige but not until I have sat inside, driven and experienced the same package I’m buying. I don’t feel comfortable plunking down $52k on a vehicle I’ve never tried out.

 

[DarkMossJustin]

Thanks, I tried going on the main Kia site and getting the list of dealers that had a vehicle that matches. Only one had my exact match including preferred exterior and interior color combo. So I contacted that dealer online to ask if that vehicle was indeed in inventory, they said they are not showing it as available meaning someone already bought it. Had the same issue with a couple other dealers - a car shows up as being available and I call or email right away and I’m told it’s been sold. My local dealer was supposed to let me test drive an SX that was promised to someone else but instead he let them pick up without letting me try it. He wants me to come in and try out the EX but I want to test drive the actual model and package I’m buying. So I said no to that. I plan to order an SX Prestige but not until I have sat inside, driven and experienced the same package I’m buying. I don’t feel comfortable plunking down $52k on a vehicle I’ve never tried out.

It's a good idea just to harvest a long list of dealership phone numbers and call them directly to inquire about availability, markup, possibility to leave a deposit to get on a wait list to order, etc.

When I was first looking for a Telly, I did the same thing and any Dark Moss listed available online was in reality already sold to customers.

Kia's website/network of dealerships shows a lot of vehicles that have been spoken for, unfortunately for those searching online.

Why not just call up a bunch of them to compare what they have to offer?

 

[LookingforTelly]

How much over MSRP?

None. I found half the dealers in my area Charging msrp. I have to drive an hour and a half but that's not a big deal to me. I posted them on the good dealer thread. Not sure your area but I covered about 200 miles in the Mid-Atlantic lol.

 

[LookingforTelly]

Thanks, I tried going on the main Kia site and getting the list of dealers that had a vehicle that matches. Only one had my exact match including preferred exterior and interior color combo. So I contacted that dealer online to ask if that vehicle was indeed in inventory, they said they are not showing it as available meaning someone already bought it. Had the same issue with a couple other dealers - a car shows up as being available and I call or email right away and I’m told it’s been sold. My local dealer was supposed to let me test drive an SX that was promised to someone else but instead he let them pick up without letting me try it. He wants me to come in and try out the EX but I want to test drive the actual model and package I’m buying. So I said no to that. I plan to order an SX Prestige but not until I have sat inside, driven and experienced the same package I’m buying. I don’t feel comfortable plunking down $52k on a vehicle I’ve never tried out.

Yeah. Initially nobody had what I wanted. But within a week, some popped up. So I'd definitely just call all of the dealers within the radius you're willing to drive.

As for driving ex or sx, I think they're pretty similar and I'd put more emphasis on testing awd VS fwd. I understand what you're saying, and I could be wrong, I haven't seen the sx, but I think objectively, you'll get what you need to know. I think ex is the most common too.

Im not sure what the deposit for pre-order is but in only had to put down a 500 refundable deposit. That being said, the wait is what gets me. Just tell the dealer you're looking for an sx in whichever drive you're searching and have them call you. They don't need to know if you're going to buy on the spot or decide you don't like that color and want to order instead. The biggest thing that worked for me was just reaching out to over a dozen dealers and making it known. I want ex, awd, nightfall in these colors and I'm not paying over msrp.

If you know you're ordering, make it more broad. I want sx in AWD, call me when you get one. Then be ready to jump on testing it asap.

 

[Cameron]

We looked at the GLE350 and Q7. At the end of the day, we couldn't possibly have made any other choice. I can assure you, you won't be disappointed. We've not, for one second, wished we'd made any other choice.

 

[VegasRam]

I own both a 2022 Telluride SX (5years) and a 2020 MB GLE 350 (3 years). The 350 is a turbo 4, and the SX a six, and I like the Telluride much more. Simply speaking, it's way more fun to drive, engine is smoother and more responsive throughout the the entire range, and the transmission is perfectly mated to the engine.

The Telluride also has a better greenhouse effect for the driver. You feel way more enclosed (cockpit like in the Merc, which some people may prefer) but the materials are hard to improve on, which in my opinion is evidenced by the fact MB hasn't changed the model in seven years, and it is virtually identical to the GLS.

The one area where the Merc excels, and it's not even remotely close, is the MBUX infotainment interface, especially the "swipe" pad, and the screen and graphics themselves. however, comparably equipped and the same model year, given the 50% cost differential, I would buy the Telluride in a heartbeat, and am looking real hard at the new 2027 Telly.

BTW, the incessant beeping/warnings in the GLE IS annoying as hell!