Mercedes-Benz GL-Class

The GL-Class is the Mercedes-Benz that some buyers may have been waiting many years for. It's a proper 4x4 with seven-seat practicality and yet has an interior that matches any of the company's saloons for comfort and style. It's significantly larger than many of its 4x4 rivals - like the Porsche Cayenne, Range Rover and Audi Q7 - but the same width as the smaller M-Class on which it's based. That means that although driving around town is hardly easy, you can at least negotiate narrow streets with some comfort. As with most Mercedes-Benz products, it doesn't come cheap. Entry-level cars start from just over £50,000, while at the top-end, it's entirely possible - with options - to spend in excess of £70,000.

GL500 Tip Auto, GL320 CDI Tip Auto, GL420 CDI Tip Auto

GL320 CDI has upholstery in Artico (man-made leather), Poplar wood trim, electrically-adjustable front seats, climate control, auto-dimming interior and exterior mirrors, automatic headlamps and wipers, leather-trimmed multifunction steering wheel, electric windows, electric folding and heated door mirrors, trip computer, tinted glass, DVD-based satellite navigation, CD autochanger and Parktronic parking sensors. The GL420 CDI adds leather upholstery with burr walnut trim and electrically-adjustable seats and steering column and climate control in the rear. The range-topping GL5000 has Nappa leather upholstery, heated seats in the back, bi-xenon headlamps that turn in the direction in which the car is moving and a the Easy-Pack tailgate that opens and closes automatically.

GL500 Tip Auto