The Hofele Mercedes GLS is like a Maybach with less grille

This is quite clearly a Mercedes-Benz GLS. Except, wait, no, stop the presses, hold your horses – say what? Actually, this is not a Merc GLS. Sort of. It’s the Hofele Ultimate HGLS, in fact. Well, that’s what it says here.

Hofele is a German purveyor of posher Mercedes, you see. And it appears it got hold of the massive new GLS, saw a picture of the new Maybach version, and thought “hmmm, yeah, we could do that.”

Not before throwing shade too. Hofele reckons “the standard GLS interior is quite utilitarian.” Ouch. That’s Mercedes’ flagship SUV being derided there. In the UK, the ‘base’ model starts at £75,000. Ouch indeed.

Still, Hofele thinks the GLS can be improved, and not just with an indecisive paintwork choice and replacing the three-pointed star up front with a squiggle. Nope, this thing’s all about the interior. We’re told the finest leathers and suedes have been combined and it’s all fixed together with ‘computer guided stitching.’ Wait, which is better, hand-stitched, or computer-guided stitching? There’s lambs wool rugs and white upholstery here – the ideal interior for a surprisingly competent off-road car with seating for a whole family.  

And yet, just look at the front – that’s somehow less in your face than the uber-grille’d Maybach version of the GLS. Question is, do the sort of people who buy mega-lux SUVs want ‘less in your face’?