Carlsson Kit for Mercedes GL Released

German tuner/manufacturer Carlsson announced yesterday the release of their newest kit for a Mercedes vehicle. Dubbed the RS Kit, Carlsson's latest is intended to give the GL both a sportier look and a power boost.

Performance wise, thanks to the CK50 upgrade, specially designed for the GL 500, the car now benefits from both electronics remapping and sports air filters. Together, they make for a hell of a power increase, as now the GL 500 has abandoned the 388 hp troop in favor of a bigger, 435 hp one. Of course, the torque has modified as well, increasing from 530 to 600 Nm.

The tuner does not let diesel-GL owners out of the loop either. For the GL 420 CDI, power has been increased from 306 hp to 354 hp, while for the entry level model GL 320 CDI, the tuning kit provides an extra 45 hp, bringing the total output of the engine to 269 hp. To handle the increase in power for all models, Carlsson will also provide its C-Tronic suspension, which lowers the car by 30 mm.

Visually, the Carlsson kit adds large radiator grill, grill inserts, two bonnet attachments, front skirts front spoiler lip, side skirts, bonnet and radiator grill. Being an alloy wheel manufacturer as well, the GL gets from Carlsson a set of 22-inch 1/11 Evo Brilliant Edition wheels. The wheels are shoed in Dunlop high performance tires, measuring 295/35 R 22.

As for prices, well, is you want something worthwhile, you'll have to pay for it. The Carlsson GL aerodynamics kit costs 10,119 euro, VAT included. The performance upgrades can be purchased for 3,799 euro (GL 500), 1,545 euro (GL 420 CDI) and 1,783 (GL 320 CDI) respectively. Add the 4,985 euros to be paid for the wheels and the 1,309 for the C-Tronic suspension and you could have easily bought two other low-to-medium-priced family cars instead. Total cost for the GL 500 kit, including VAT, amounts to 20,200 euros.