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Can’t accuse Mercedes-Benz of rushing a new model to market, considering the first major remake of the M-Class sport-ute unveiled in 1997 is just now arriving in showrooms.

Mercedes created a stir when it developed a luxury sport-utility vehicle in the late 1990s to join the SUV craze.

When the M-Class bowed, Mercedes basically had the luxury SUV market to itself. Now it has at least 19 rivals.

For 2006, the big change is that M-Class is built off a car-like platform shared with the new R-Class sports tourer coming this fall.

It originally had a body-on-frame truck platform to itself. It could travel off-road, but on-road those in the cabin experienced the rougher ride and lumbering handling common to trucks.

Now it will be built alongside the larger R-Class (126-inch wheelbase versus 114 in the M-Class), which with three rows of bucket seats is a more upscale crossover, at Mercedes’ plant in Alabama.

The M-Class comes in two versions, the ML350 and ML500. We tested the ML350 powered by a new 3.5-liter, 268-horsepower, 24-valve V-6. It replaces the 3.7-liter, 232-h.p., 18-valve V-6. The top-of-the-line ML500 has a 5-liter, 302-h.p. V-8.

The M-Class now looks more like a sport-ute than a minivan. Wheel wells sport bulges for a more rugged appearance, and the grille is bolder, taillamps larger and headlamps more decorative.

The ’06 ML350 also is 5.9-inches longer and 2.8-inches wider for better road presence as well as more legroom and storage space.

The new V-6 provides a little more response to pedal input and a little quicker movement from the light plus 11 percent better fuel economy. Mercedes said replacing the 5-speed automatic with a new 7-speed automatic helped mileage.

However, the rating is only 16 m.p.g. city/20 m.p.g. highway, so the 11 percent is relative. It’s better than the very poor 15/18 with the 3.7-liter V-6, but you’ll still have to keep an eye out for the fueling station.

Mercedes offers a high-mileage 3.2-liter V-6 diesel in the M-Class in Europe and is expected to offer it in the M-Class as well as the E-Class sedan here for the ’07 model year. The V-6 would replace the 3.2-liter, inline 6-cylinder diesel now in the E-Class.

Another change for ’06 is the “direct select” stalk on the steering column. Rather than the wealthy having to use up all their muscle to move the gear shift lever from Park to Drive and then pause to catch their breath, they now simply push the gearshift stalk up with one finger to move from park to reverse or downward to move from park to drive.

But old habits are hard to change and the novel stalk felt awkward at first and stupid later, especially when it sometimes took more than one push to get out of park and into drive or reverse.

The ML350 comes with full-time all-wheel-drive as will the R-Class, but be careful where you take it for now.

The focus is on better comfort and driving dynamics on the road so there won’t be front and rear locking differentials or an AWD low setting for real rugged terrain for another year.

Thanks to its car-like heritage, the new M-Class boasts better road manners and a softer sprung suspension to reduce some unnecessary harshness experienced in the past while allowing less wandering over the pavement.

To make it more road friendly (Mercedes says only 12 percent of M-Class owners venture off-road), it also comes with electronic stability control and four-wheel traction control as standard. The stability control system detects an impending spin or slide and applies the brakes to the slipping wheel or wheels to keep you on your intended path.

The traction control system detects any slippage from a rear wheel when taking off from the light or taking a sharp corner and applies the brakes to restore straight-line traction.

To complement the package, you get four-wheel anti-lock brakes and wide-profile, 17-inch, all-season radial tires.

The new ML350 sits about an inch lower for better step-in height, and the doors open slightly wider for easier entry. But there’s still not a spacious passage opening through the rear doors.

And cupholders have been moved to the center console from the corners of the dash, where they snagged clothes as you exited the vehicle.

Also, second-row seat bottoms now flip and fold forward and split seat backs fold flat for added cargo capacity; the first-aid kit has been moved out of the hatchlid and into the cargo hold side wall; power plugs are now easy to reach in the dash, not buried below it; and the second-row seat pull-down armrest has a small compartment inside for pen, paper and/or cell phone.

In terms of safety, the M-Class sports side-curtain air bags front and rear (front only before) with sensors to stay deployed longer in a rollover, and knee bolsters to keep front-seat occupants from submarining under the dash in an impact.

Next year, the SUV will add active head restraints that move forward in a rear-end collision to cushion the head and neck and “pre-safe,” the system in the E-Class sedan that detects impending collisions and raises reclined seats upright to position occupants for air-bag deployment as well as automatically closing the sunroof when detecting a rollover.

Tele Aid emergency satellite communication system (the OnStar system purchased from General Motors) is free the first year and a $239 annual option after that. It summons medical or mechanical help and pinpoints your location using satellites.

The ’06 ML350 starts at $39,750, the ML500 at $48,500. Standard equipment includes dual heated power side mirrors, rear window washer/wiper/defroster and power seats and windows; air conditioning with dust filter; cruise control and AM/FM/Weatherband/cassette player; an anti-tow sensor that sounds an alarm if someone tries to take your car; and front and rear fog lamps.

A power tailgate fits the luxury image but is a $520 option.

There are a variety of high-cost option packages, such as a $2,550 sport package; $1,450 comfort package; $2,200 trim package; $890 light package; $1,080 entertainment package; $1,775 air suspension package; along with stand-alone options such as a $1,390 power moonroof, $690 heated front seats and the power tailgate.

Renewing the sport-ute was needed. The M-Class has been showing its age. Sales topped 52,000 units in 2000, but have declined each year since, to 45,000 in ’01, 39,680 in ’02, 30,018 in ’03 and 25,681 in ’04.

The new M-Class arrived in May to breathe life into the sport-ute. May sales were 3,319 units, up 66 percent from a year earlier.

Strictly personal: Birthday greetings to granddaughter Haylie on reaching No. 5.

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2006 Mercedes-Benz ML350

Wheelbase: 114 inches

Length: 191.5 inches

Engine: 3.5-liter, 268-h.p., 24-valve V-6

Transmission: 7-speed automatic

Fuel economy: 16 m.p.g. city/20 m.p.g. highway

Base price: $39,750

Price as tested: $45,020. Includes $1,240 for DVD navigation system; $500 for Sirius satellite radio; $690 for heated front seats; $1,390 for power sunroof/rain-sensing wipers package; and $1,450 for comfort package with auto-dimming mirror, memory seats and power folding outside mirrors. Add $720 for freight.

Pluses: Features bolder, SUV-like styling, less the look of a minivan, and is longer and wider. New engine/transmission with slightly better fuel economy.

Minuses: Drive/Park/Reverse gear shift lever stalk. Endless high-priced option packages.

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Read Jim Mateja Sunday in Transportation and Wednesday and Friday in Business. Hear him on WBBM Newsradio 780 at 6:22 p.m. Wednesdays and 11:22 a.m. Sundays.

jmateja@tribune.com