I just took my GLE43 in for state inspection and got a 2020 GLE350 loaner. What is with all this watering down the brand over the last few years? Drivetrains aside, the body now has plastic over the wheel wells and the electronics are ridiculous. No more bump stick for the cruise control. Nope. Now, you have to thumb the ON switch and thumb resume on the steering wheel. Touch pads are unresponsive if you press too hard. The whole video game style panel is set too far forward in the dash enough that you need to lean to touch it & it's overloaded with a lot of confusing symbols and it's tough to distinguish which touch pad operated what. And what's with the way cool dial type temperature control Benz's had for 25-30 years? Gone. You guessed it, touch pad or thumb roller.
Now I know this is the future. But gull dang it, latest is no longer the greatest. It takes more work to operate features than it used to.
Am I the only one that thinks this is overkill?

These are the new Germans who brought you the POS Blaser, and not the 98K Mauser...

Well, I know many like to rib Blaser owners.
Just for giggles -------------- I owned a K95 Blaser it was a fine fine rifle with a very smooth crisp 2 pound trigger and cocking slide and shot consistently small .50 MOA groups every time. The quality was 100% and the coating on the barrel tough as nails. A very handy rifle except it felt a bit short and butt heavy in the Mannlicher style. I didn't have luck finding a good deal on a half stock K95 and so I replaced it with a half stock K1 Merkel which is close and almost as accurate, has a sweet 2 pound trigger but doesn't have quite the same tough barrel finish of the Blaser and has a bit thinner, easily worn stock finish.

On the other hand, I hunted hogs with a Blaser R8 and the cocking slide felt unrefined and the trigger was very close, yet not quite as smooth as either the K95, K1 or even my M12 Mauser which incidentally has a dandy smooth 2 pound trigger, essentially an underappreciated rifle with a somewhat bulky feeling stock.