In the late 1990s, Mercedes-Benz introduced the car division's first "truck" with the M-Class SUV. The company's commercial division had supplied the world with vans, medium- and heavy-duty haulers, and the rugged Geländewagen, but the car division had not sold an American-style SUV until the Alabama-built ML320 emerged in 1997.

The company learned quite a bit about American tastes for such vehicles in the wake of this launch. So, when Mercedes-Benz introduced the second generation, it brought out three flavors.

First was the new M-Class. Second was the award-winning, seven-passenger GL-Class. The third model was the much-overlooked R-Class. U.S. sales of the R-Class have been underwhelming, peaking in 2006 at just 18,168 units.

Perhaps its lackluster sales stem from the R-Class design. Although every manufacturer throws around the term crossover to describe what would have been a station wagon or SUV only a few years ago, the R-Class might be one of the few vehicles to deserve such a moniker. It's related to the M-Class--but it's definitely not an SUV. It has three rows of seats--but you wouldn't call it a minivan.

When Mercedes-Benz introduced the concept at the 2001 Detroit show, it was called the Vision GST (for "Grand Sports Tourer"). In Europe, "touring" editions of cars are simply station wagons in the United States, and the R-Class has the look of a tall, modern station wagon.

Once you look inside, however, the car takes on another theme.

Three rows of seats each provide room for two passengers, instead of cramming a third passenger in between people (although a seventh