It's summer time and many think of getting away for a few days to enjoy some family quality time. It is a time when many cars trail caravans or boats, but fancy trailing an Airbus A319 weighing 60 tonnes.

Obviously when trailing, passenger cars handle very differently. Pulling away is an unusually sluggish affair, cornering abilities alter and merely so are the car's handling stability.

This is why Mercedes Benz put their M-Class to the test by driving it along the Stuttgart air port towing the Airbus.

The new Mercedes-Benz M-Class, launched earlier this year in the South of France, is characterised by state-of-the-art technology such as three powerful new engines, the seven-speed automatic transmission 7G-TRONIC fitted as standard, a more effective four-wheel drive system 4-ETS, and the innovative AIRMATIC air suspension, which is in a league of its own.

The M-Class, will also soon be fitted with the Trailer Stability Assist (TSA), an extra function incorporated into the ESP program designed to offer drivers more safety when towing a trailer.

The 'new' M-Class is set to follow in the footsteps of its predecessors which had won the hearts of about 650,000 customers worldwide since 1997.

In fact a total of some 26,500 orders were received for the new M-Class within a few days of the off-road vehicle's market launch which I attended in Nice earlier this year.

At the beginning of April, the new M-Class got off to an excellent start in its primary sales market, the US, where it has made a major contribution to the sales record set by Mercedes-Benz.

Thanks to innovative bodywork design, mainly a monococque body which provides lower weight and outstanding crash characteristics, the new M-Class offers "lavish levels of spaciousness" including generous headroom, elbow room and legroom.

The new M-Class blends every day practicality and ergonomics with high quality and elegance.

Three of the four engines available are new and outstrip the output and torque of the power units for the outgoing model to the tune of up to 38 per cent.

There is a new V6 diesel engine, available with two different outputs and features third-generation common-rail direct injection. The unit in the ML 320 CDI which delivers 165 kW/224 bhp and places a maximum torque of 510 Newton metres on tap from 1,600 rpm.

There is also the new ML 280 CDI, serving up 140 kW/190 bhp and a peak torque of 440 Newton metres. The diesel models burn just 9.4 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres (combined consumption), making the new M-Class one of the most economical off-roaders in its class.

Another new arrival is the V6 petrol unit powering the ML 350, with 200 kW/272 bhp and a maximum torque of 350 Newton metres. The engine range is headed by the eight-cylinder unit in the ML 500, which has an output of 225 kW/306 bhp.