2020 Mercedes-Benz GLE vs 2019 BMW X5

Today I'll be comparing the 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLE450 to the 2019 BMW X5 xDrive 40i in seven different categories in which points can be assigned from one to ten. To see the final winner of this comparison test, click on the video here. 

The 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLE, via allcarseveryday

Let's start with value. The GLE450 is the second highest of the three trims that the GLE comes in, and you could drive off the lot in one for $61,150. For that price, the exterior comes with 19-inch five spoke wheels, power folding and auto-dimming mirrors that also illuminate the Mercedes-Benz logo on the ground as you walk up to the car, and LED headlights, tail-lamps, and daytime running lights. Other exterior features include rain-sensing wipers, an alarm system, and remote start via a smartphone app. The interior has a multitude of luxury features including Linden wood trim, a Nappa leather steering wheel, heated front seats with a driver memory function, a power tilt/telescoping steering wheel, and dual-zone climate control. Though the steering wheel is leather, the interior is made from MB-Tex, which is a quasi-leather surface that isn’t quite cloth but definitely isn’t genuine leather. To me, this is unacceptable on a $60,000 car, when I evaluate Elantras for $30,000 with leather. I know that Benz would need to use higher quality leather than an Elantra, but I was surprised to see that leather was part of a package and not standard equipment, as I believe it should be. The rear of the vehicle has a power operated lift-gate with the ability to swipe a foot under the bumper should your hands be too full to pull open the latch. The rear seats fold in a 40/20/40 split, which allows for a wide variety of luggage and equipment to fit in the rear of the vehicle, while still retaining seating for the kids. The key can be used to unlock and start the car without ever removing it from your pocket, and it also has a button to close all windows after the driver has exited the vehicle. The final features of the interior that aren’t involved with the infotainment system are the power sunroof and brake hold feature for stop and go traffic. The Mercedes has a beautiful, giant 12.3-inch screen for the infotainment system that is flush with an identical 12.3-inch screen for the gauge cluster. Mercedes’ infotainment software is called MB User Experience, or MBUX for short. It has navigation, steering wheel mounted controls, Bluetooth, HD radio, Apple CarPlay and Android auto. MBUX also has over-the-air software updates like a Tesla does. Notably absent is SiriusXM satellite radio, which is nearly standard across the industry by now. The Mercedes has a pretty advanced voice recognition software that is queued when the driver says, ‘Hey Mercedes’ and it can respond to phrases like “I’m cold” by increasing the temperature of the cabin. The Benz also has three years of MeConnect, which is an app that allows you to start, lock, trace the GLE, and locate where you park all from an app on your phone or tablet. The final luxuries that round out the cabin are the auto-dimming rear view mirror and five USB-C ports in the cabin. That’s a lot of ports for sure, but for those of you unfamiliar with the tech lingo, USB-C ports are only used by a select few devices, and the Apple iPhone and most Android cellphones would need an adapter to connect to the ports, which I find extremely irritating and irrational. Besides that, and the missing leather, I think that the GLE450 is outfitted well and the interior has an opulent feel that I’ve come to expect from late model Mercedes Benz vehicles. 

The 2019 BMW X5, via allcarseveryday

Let’s look at the value proposition from the 2019 BMW X5. The naming disaster that is the BMW X5 xDrive40i starts at $60,700, undercutting the GLE450 by about $500. It has the same size alloy wheels at 19 inches, and it has LED headlights, tail-lamps and fog-lights like the Benz. Also like the other SUV it has heated, power folding exterior mirrors to avoid the feared parallel parking scrape, and rain-sensing windshield wipers. On the interior, things don’t vary much either. The seats are heated, powered and memory for the driver, the rear seats fold 40/20/40, it has wood-grain in the dash, and again, this $60,000 SUV is missing genuine leather. Instead it has SensaTec upholstery, which, like the GLE, looks good and does a decent job looking like real leather. The BMW uses a HiFi 10-speaker audio system unit. The steering wheel has leather and functions for the infotainment system, which consists of two 12.3-inch screens like in the Mercedes. Instead of being one giant head unit like in that car, however, one is reserved for the gauge cluster and is separate from the one on the center console, more like a traditional dashboard. iDrive is the name of the infotainment system, but the BMW also supports Apple CarPlay but not Android Auto. The X5 has ConnectedDrive services, like the Mercedes, where you can start your car and see vital information from your smart phone. Navigation is part of iDrive, as is Bluetooth, HD radio, voice recognition and a touch-pad controller. The Germans must think that USB-C is the new USB, as the X5 comes with these types of USB as well, but I did find one normal USB under the center console. As a value proposition, both of these vehicles come with nearly identical features for a nearly identical price. For the same money, you could have a better optioned sedan from the same companies, but I will give the GLE450 a seven out of ten and the X5 40i a seven point two out of ten in the value segment, purely for the $500 savings.  

The next part of the comparison will be the safety segment. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rates both the 2019 X5 and 2019 GLE as a Top Safety Pick Plus, which is the highest rating possible. Obviously, the 2020 GLE is a different SUV than the 2019, but it’s a very safe bet to assume that Mercedes-Benz didn’t decrease the crash-worthiness of the model in the new generation. To differentiate between the two models in terms of points assigned, let’s check out the active safety technology that each model offers. The GLE450 has brake assist with forward collision mitigation, an attention assist feature, blind spot assist, parking assist, Pre-Safe and Car-to-X communication, which allows the Mercedes to communicate with other vehicles on the road with this technology. BMW has a similar pre-collision system called Active Protection, daytime pedestrian detection, frontal collision warning with city collision mitigation, lane departure warning, active blind spot detection and rear cross traffic alert. Here, the BMW has more advanced safety features standard. Though Car-to-X communication is a brand-new technology and isn’t even available as part of an option on most other cars including the BMW, GLE buyers will have to pony up for a safety package to get some of the basic amenities that the BMW has, like lane departure warning. As such, I will give the GLE a six point five for missing industry standard features without a package and the BMW a seven for including those in its list of active safety features.  

Next up, let’s look at the powertrain of each of these Germans. The 2020 GLE450 has a turbocharged 3.0-liter straight six under the hood, which is an upgrade over the 2.0-liter four-cylinder in the GLE350. It makes 362 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque running through a nine-speed automatic with shift paddles. Engine Stop/Start is included on this six-cylinder. The 4Matic part of the name means that the Benz is all wheel drive, and—all in—the powertrain is good for a 5.5 second 0-60 sprint. The X5 also uses a turbo 3.0-liter straight six, in this guise making 335 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque. Power is routed through an eight-speed automatic with paddle shifters and a launch control function. BMW speak for all wheel drive is the ‘x’ part of xDrive40i. Even with a power deficit, amazingly the BMW knocks a half second off the 0-60 of the Mercedes, flying to 60 miles per hour in five seconds flat. I’ll give the Benz a nine for its powertrain and performance and the BMW a nine point five for being the Hot Rod of SUVs.  

Maybe the hottest trend in new vehicles is ever-increasing fuel economy, due to consumer demand and government mandates. The Mercedes-Benz gets 19 miles per gallon in the city and 24 on the highway for an EPA combined 22. The BMW tops the Mercedes at 20 in the city and 26 on the highway, despite the Mercedes having an identical displacement engine and one more forward gear for highway driving. Eight points for the GLE, nine points for the BMW. 

Next, let’s move on to the styling of each vehicle. Mercedes-Benz is mid-transition into a slightly different styling language ever since the 2014 S-Class came out, and this is just now getting to the SUVs. Anyway, the new GLE looks very good and I like both the interior and exterior. I think the front end is a tad boring on video or in pictures, but in person the vehicle is stunning. The BMW is a more analytical design, but I like it as well, save the 110% size front grille. The rear of each vehicle is the better angle, and I think the GLE really takes the cake here. The X5 doesn’t have a bad look anywhere, but BMW styling has not evolved in forever and I think once you’ve seen one kidney grille and Hofmeister kink, you’ve seen them all. On the interiors, I don’t dislike the BMW, but I’ve always been a sweetheart for Mercedes-Benz interiors, and they just keep improving. I think the BMW interior looks relatively dated right off the bat, at least compared to the GLE which looks sleek, premium, and athletic. In this category, I’ll give the BMW a seven for styling and the Mercedes an eight. 

Next, let’s check out how reliable these SUVs are. German vehicles aren’t exactly known for their reliability, but according to Consumer Reports the BMW scores better than the average vehicle in reliability, where the Mercedes-Benz scores average. I assign two points per car for each step up or down in these rankings, so the Benz gets a six for Average and the BMW gets an eight for better than average.  

Our final category is family friendliness and usability. Both SUVS had easy ingress and egress, and I thought both front seats and back seats were nicely appointed. Cargo capacity with the seats in the rear folded is almost 80 cubic feet in the Mercedes and 72.3 cubes in the BMW. The BMW also has at least one regular USB port, which I like, and a 20-foot turning circle compared to a 39-foot turning circle in the GLE. The switchgear in the Mercedes felt somewhat subpar to me, as the buttons didn’t have a definitive bump stop, so they felt sort of cheap. The volume control in the GLE is also infuriating, because instead of just using a regular knob like every other car for sale today, instead there is a scroll wheel mounted low on the center console. It’s small, hard to use, and blocked by the touchpad for the infotainment system. However, the Mercedes has a slightly bigger fuel capacity at 22.5 gallons, but the BMW still has a longer driving range even with 21.9 gallons because of its better fuel economy. I’ll give the Mercedes a six point eight for the extra storage space and the BMW a seven point five for the USB ports and turning radius.  

The final tally is fifty-one point three for the 2020 Mercedes Benz GLE450, and fifty-five point two points for the 2019 BMW X5 40i. Even though the BMW won this comparison with its relatively stellar MPG and reported reliability, I would have no qualms recommending either vehicle to a friend or family member. They’re both so good that your purchase decision could come down to personal gripes or which vehicle you think looks better. Oftentimes, I compare vehicles where there is a clear loser, or a car I just couldn't put my name behind, and this is not that comparison. That’s all for this week! Tune in shortly for more comparison videos! 

2020 Toyota Corolla vs 2019 Honda Civic vs 2019 Hyundai Elantra

To watch the video, click here.

Let's compare the brand new 2020 Toyota Corolla XLE and see if it is now a better car than the 2019 Honda Civic EX and 2019 Hyundai Elantra Limited.

2020 Toyota Corolla, via allcarseveryday

The 2020 Toyota Corolla XLE starts life at $23,950. On the exterior, that money gets you LED headlights, daytime running lights and taillights. It also makes heated mirrors and 16-inch alloy wheels standard on the Corolla. On the interior, the Toyota sports a moonroof, automatic climate control, and more premium cloth seats that are eight-way power adjustable for the driver and four for the passenger, as well as being heated for those two occupants too. The steering wheel is leather trimmed and has the controls for some active safety features, Bluetooth, and the voice recognition software. Behind the wheel sits the Corolla’s new seven-inch TFT multi-information display in the gauge cluster. In the center of the dash sits an eight-inch touchscreen housing Toyota’s infotainment system. The Corolla is brought into the 21^st century with Apple CarPlay compatibility, but still lacks AndroidAuto. WiFi and SiriusXM are on a subscription basis, and the vehicle comes with six speakers standard, though there is a 9-speaker including subwoofer system as on option on the XLE. Entering the front two doors of the Corolla is easy with the smart key, but the rear doors are just regular power locks that are activated by pressing the button on the key. The key also supports push-button start, which is standard on the XLE. All four windows have one-touch power up and down, and the car has four cupholders, a 12V auxiliary power outlet and two USB ports.

2019 Honda Civic, via allcarseveryday

Next in line is the 2019 Honda Civic EX, which costs $23,400. The headlights are projector beam Halogen units, but the DRLs are LED and the taillights have integrated LED lightbars. Like the Corolla, the Civic also has heated outside mirrors, but adds fog lights and bigger alloy wheels into the mix, at 17 inches. On the interior, the Civic has push-button and remote start, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, and dual-zone automatic climate control. The seats are cloth, and the front two heated. However, the driver is the only front seat to have power adjustment, the passenger only gets power adjustment on the most expensive Touring trim. The Civic has Bluetooth like the Corolla, and has two additional speakers, bringing the total to eight. A 450-watt system with ten speakers including a subwoofer is available on the top-of-the line Touring trim. The EX also has two USB ports, and supports both Apple CarPlay and AndroidAuto, which could be a decision changing factor for some diehard Android fans. The center console touchscreen is seven inches in diagonal and SiriusXM has a standard subscription when you purchase the car, like the Toyota. The Civic also has walk away auto-lock, where when the driver leaves a certain radius of the vehicle with the key, the Civic will automatically lock itself. A power moonroof, and automatic up/down windows in the front are the final features that round out the interior of the Civic.

2019 Hyundai Elantra, via allcarseveryday

Finally, let’s look at the 2019 Elantra Limited. The Hyundai is the least expensive at $22,700. The Hyundai is the only vehicle with power folding mirrors, and they’re also heated. The headlights, taillights and daytime running lights are all LED, and the wheels are 17 inches like the Civic. On the interior, the Hyundai is the only of the three without a moonroof, which was initially surprising. However, the Elantra more than makes up for that by being the only vehicle with leather seating and it also has heated front seats. Other features that are more common at this price range are the dual-zone climate control, one touch up/down for the driver’s window, and a six-way power driver’s seat with lumbar support. The steering wheel and shift knob are both leather as well, like in the Civic. Other modern features include a wireless charging pad for cellphones with that capability, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Elantra also has remote keyless entry with a proximity sensor and push-button start. Because this is the highest trim level Elantra, it also has an Infinity eight speaker sound system with a subwoofer. Music is chosen through the seven-inch touch-screen in the center console, which also has Bluetooth, a SiriusXM subscription, and HD radio, like the other cars. The rearview mirror is auto-dimming, and the gauge cluster is a 3.5-inch TFT monochromatic unit. Strangely, the Hyundai is skimpy in some areas, like the gauge cluster, power seating and one-touch auto up/down windows, but then has extremely valuable big-ticket items standard, like leather, heated seats, and the audio system. Regardless, it’s also the cheapest, so expect the Hyundai to win the value segment.

The 2020 Corolla sedan is not yet rated by the IIHS, but the hatchback was tested in 2019 and received a Top Safety Pick from the organization as well as scoring ‘Good’ in every category except headlights, where the trim of the vehicle determined if it received an ‘Acceptable’ rating or a ‘Marginal’ rating. Expect the sedan to have very similar if not identical ratings; it’s safe to say the new sedan will be a Top Safety Pick as well. As for the active safety features on the 2020 Corolla, Toyota went full stop here, with some new technologies I haven’t seen before. The Corolla has a pre-collision system with low-light pedestrian detection and daylight cyclist detection, lane departure alert with steering assist, road edge detection with sway warning system, automatic high-beams, road sign assist, lane-tracing assist, full-speed dynamic radar cruise control, blind spot monitoring, and lane departure alert with steering assist.

The 2019 Civic scored ‘Good’ in every category except headlights, where it got ‘Poor’ and the child seat anchors ease of use, where it got ‘Acceptable’. The headlight rating is probably due to the Halogen headlights, whereas the other two cars have LEDs. The active safety on the 2019 Civic includes forward collision warning, lane departure warning and lane keep assist, collision mitigation system, road departure mitigation, adaptive cruise control, auto-high beam headlights, and Honda LaneWatch.

The 2019 Elantra is a ‘Top Safety Pick Plus’ besting the Toyota with the addition of the ‘Plus’ badge. It scored good in every category except headlights, where the score varied from ‘Poor’ all the way to ‘Good’ depending on trim. Since we are testing the Limited trim of the Hyundai, it would get the ‘Good’ rating from its LEDs. The child seat anchors were also rated ‘Acceptable’. The Elantra also comes standard with blind-spot warning with cross-traffic assist, forward collision avoidance assist, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, driver attention warning, and automatic high-beam assist.

One of the number one priorities of a compact car buyer is the fuel economy, so let’s see which car sips the least gas per mile. The 2020 Corolla is rated at 29 miles per gallon of gas in the city, and 37 on the highway for a combined average of 32. Amazingly, the Civic achieves 32 in the city, and 42 on the highway, and this car has been out since 2016. The Elantra nearly ties the Toyota with 28 in the city and 37 highway. To put into perspective how amazing those Honda numbers are, remember that the Elantra was redesigned for 2019 and isn’t even a year old yet, and the Corolla is fully a 2020 model. Not only do they not beat the Civic like the industry trends typically move, the Civic is getting three to five mpg better than the other two; which is literally miles ahead when it comes to this category.

Let’s see if we can figure out why the Civic does so much better in fuel economy, by taking a look at what’s under the hood. The new Corolla sticks with the old 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine, but old engines should have at least had their kinks worked out. By itself, the engine makes a measly 139 horsepower and 126 pound-feet of torque, which isn’t much by today’s standards, even for this class. The Corolla has a Continuously Variable Transmission, or CVT, that has no actual gears but instead has infinitely swappable ratios. Oftentimes, these are used to save gas, but auto enthusiasts usually don’t prefer these transmissions. The average consumer probably won’t notice much difference in drivability, however. The 2020 Corolla naturally, then, is a bit of a slowpoke, taking about 8.6 seconds to reach 60 miles per hour from a standstill. The 2019 Civic has a much newer engine—a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder. Bringing the Civic to modern day, the little engine also makes 174 ponies and 162 pound-feet of twist through Honda’s iteration of the CVT. Because of the huge power gap between it and the Corolla, the Civic takes only 6.6 seconds to reach 60 miles per hour. The Elantra Limited has a 2.0-liter four-cylinder, making 147 horsepower and 132 pound-feet. The Elantra is the only one of the three to stick with a traditional automatic gearbox, coming with 6 speeds. The 0-60 is 9 seconds flat, and that can probably be attributed to the old six-speed. Expect a mid-cycle update with either a CVT, or more likely, an eight-speed auto, as Hyundai isn’t the biggest proponent of the CVT yet.

The Toyota is rated as ‘Much Better than Average’ by Consumer Reports’ extensive field testing, which is the highest rating. The Civic gets a rating of ‘Average’ like much of the rest of the Honda line-up. In my experience, Hondas have been just as reliable as my Toyotas, but I won’t let my opinion cloud this objective comparison. The Hyundai Elantra manages to get a ‘Much Better than Average’ rating from the same organization.

Now let’s move on to the usability of each vehicle. The Elantra and Honda seemed to have the roomiest back seats to me, but the Elantra was a little more uncomfortable than the other two. Two cup holders are in the front of each car behind the shifter, and the Honda’s can slide into or out of view depending on if the driver or passenger wants to use them. All three had a small space for phones, pens, or other trinkets that passengers bring in the car under the screen in the dash but before the shifter, which is nice. As for trunk space, the Toyota is smack dab in the middle of the other two at 13.1 cubic feet, the Civic brings up the rear with 11.9 cubes and the Elantra is the roomiest with 14.4.

And finally, our last area of evaluation is styling. Of course, this category is purely subjective, so if your opinions differ from mine, feel free to adjust points assigned to this category at the end of the video. The 2020 Corolla is a huge improvement over the previous generation, and I can’t express how far Toyota has come, especially since the 2009 to 2013 Corolla. I can finally say I like the looks of the Corolla, and for the first time I had fun filming it. That being said, I’ve always loved this generation of Civic’s styling, so it will be hard for me to pick between the two. I suppose I like the front of the Civic more, mainly because of the goofy line of sheet metal in between the headlights on the Corolla. However, I do like the rear of the Corolla better, though I think it’s kind of a mix between the old generation Elantra and Ford Fiesta, weirdly. Either way, they executed well this time. Again, since about 2012, I have loved Hyundai’s design language, and I don’t think they’ve lost their way. However, I’m not sure about the front of the Elantra. Hyundai design has been flowy and sinewy, and it has worked for them even on the new Santa Fe and Sonata. It was a break in style to go with such sharp and pointy lines on the front of this Elantra, and it doesn’t even match the rest of the car. Not a big fan of the front, but the rear looks decent. As for the interiors, again the Toyota is leaps and bounds better than the previous generation, and somehow exudes some Tesla dash design here. Typical Toyota dashboards start the beltline low and move it upward toward the glovebox, which you can still see in this car, but it’s less emphasized. Instead the main line is a horizontal, unmoving line across the dash, only interrupted by the large touchscreen, like a Tesla. The two-tone interior that can be had on some trims is stylish as well but be careful of the white vinyl…I was seeing it already getting dirty on brand new cars on dealer lots. The Honda’s interior is not unattractive, but I can just tell it’s getting a little older compared to these two. There are too many surfaces and trim pieces transitioning between each other and it looks a little busy. I’ve almost always considered Honda interiors too busy though, and they too have come a long way since they used to put two screens on the center console. The Hyundai has a beautifully integrated interior, with the proportions just right. The dash moves nicely from left to right, like you’re reading a book, and there are no hard breaks.

Here are the rankings of each car on a scale from one to ten in each of the seven categories. I was even surprised by the 2019 Hyundai Elantra, a car that came from behind slightly in this competition. The Civic has been extremely competitive since 2016, so I thought this comparison would be between the brand-new Corolla and the award-winning Civic. I knew the Elantra would win value from the start, but the reliability was surprising and in the rest of the categories it was really a jack of all trades and a master of none. The Elantra and Corolla score big in safety for ‘Top Safety Pick’ and lots of new driver assist features in the Corolla and the ‘Plus’ designation in the Elantra. The Civic dominated fuel economy and powertrain for its stellar miles per gallon and much newer engine, though it’s still the oldest car of the group. Where it really gets hurt is reliability, because I assign two points to each step up or down in Consumer Reports’ ratings. The three were close in usability; I docked the Civic a half point because of the trunk space. Overall, the two newest cars did the best, with the Corolla being within a half point of the winning Elantra. These are three vehicles that I would not have a problem recommending to family and friends, and I truly believe all three are stellar options that no consumer could go wrong with. And that wasn’t as true in the last compact comparison test with the old Corolla and the current Sentra. But in the end, the 2019 Hyundai Elantra Limited is the King of this year’s compact sedan test. Now we await the new Sentra.