Just have to say it....

It does turn nicely, but I believe my old W163 turned even tighter.

Noticeably better turning circle than my X5 had.

This is true...the ML has a smaller turning radius than most sedans. Very noticeable when I first drove the car...I was amazed

MBnAZ said:

It does turn nicely, but I believe my old W163 turned even tighter.

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By official specs the W164 could turn even better than the W163 indeed.

The turning circle of a W164 is 37.9 feet. The W163 has a turning circle of 39.0 feet.

The E53 X5 (2002-2006) has a turning circle of 39.7 feet which is worse than both the W163 and W164. The E70 X5 (2007+) has an all time terrible turning circle of 42.0 feet.

It's something that they show off during test drives. I drove the newest style C-class and they had me turn in a circle and then drove the ML (the one I ended up buying) at a different dealer and they had me do the same thing. The salesman stated, and subsequently proved, that the ML350 can make a full circle within roughly 3 parking spaces. Very impressive, better turning than my Acura TL.

This is one of the reasons why I went with the ML63 vs. everything else. Our office parking garage wasn't meant to be a garage, so other cars have issues. Love the ML!

Turning radius was never part of the decision making process for me. Of course, now it is. It's a whole lot easier in tight places like garages or even parallel parking.

dsb said:

Turning radius was never part of the decision making process for me. Of course, now it is. It's a whole lot easier in tight places like garages or even parallel parking.

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Same here. I am used to cars with poor turning radii. As long as the turning radius is below 45 feet I'm fine. Anything under 40 is pure god-send.

Also, have I told you guys how often I drive various rented U-Haul trucks and such? I've even driven a 28-foot truck and believe that thing simply doesn't turn. I was going around turn making 3-point right turns.