From InsideEVs.
Buy a plug-in hybrid and never plug it in, and congratulations: you’ve invented the world’s most complicated way to waste fuel. There’s really no point in buying one if you don’t charge it, and this is a bigger issue than you may think.
You’re not going to come close to the manufacturer’s claimed efficiency numbers. It might even use more fuel than the same vehicle with the same engine but without electrification. There was a comparative test of the same vehicle with mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric powertrains, and once the PHEV’s battery was depleted, it ended up using more fuel than the mild hybrid. Carwow did the maths, and surprise, surprise, the PHEV lost.
Which brings me to the Mercedes-Benz GLE350de, a diesel-electric mutant that shouldn’t be good, but it kind of is. It’s a true unicorn with its diesel plug-in hybrid powertrain, and its party trick is that it doesn’t turn into a gas guzzler when juice from the battery runs low. I put it through an electric range test, and it managed to complete just under 53 miles (85 km) without trying to hypermile before it started up the combustion engine.
Mercedes says it can do over 62 miles (100 km) on one charge on the WLTP test cycle, but I still came pretty close to matching that without trying to drive it economically. I then charged the car to about 50% and drove it around in hybrid mode until it again ran low, after which I drove it almost exclusively in Sport mode until I returned it to Mercedes.
I reset the average consumption after doing the EV range test, and by the time I returned the car, it was showing 8.1 l/100 km, or 29 mpg. For a 2-liter four-cylinder diesel, it’s not amazing, but for a near-6,000-pound German fortress on wheels that is also constantly putting juice back into its big 31.2-kWh battery, it’s actually alright. You could probably get it even lower with a lighter right foot.
Mercedes says you can expect 0.9 l/100 km (470 mpg), which is absolutely possible if you always have the battery topped up. It could theoretically be even lower than that. However, even if you don’t charge it, the GLE350de won’t ruin your wallet with its fuel consumption, and you don’t have to live downhill from everything to get decent efficiency numbers.
Sign up for InsideEV’s Newsletter to get our content sent straight to your inbox:
https://www.insideEVs.com/newsletter/
00:00 – Why Diesels Are Great
01:23 – GLE 350de Specs
04:36 – DC Fast Charging
05:23 – GLE 350de Sales Figures
06:50 – GLE 350de Driving Impressions
09:45 – GLE 350de Price
10:33 – Electric Only Mode
Follow InsideEVs at:
https://www.instagram.com/insideevscom/
https://www.facebook.com/InsideeVs
https://x.com/insideEVs
https://www.insideEVs.com/newsletter/
