O.G. 2.0
Redesigned for the first time in 40 years, Mercedes’ new G-wagen pairs a familiar look with all-new levels of luxury, power—and finesse
Good news for fans of Mercedes’ iconic, iconoclastic Geländewagen: Even after its first full redesign in nearly 40 years, it still looks more like a troop transport than a civilian luxury vehicle. Its corners haven’t been rounded off, its side panels haven’t been smoothed out, and it still towers above virtually everything else on the road—stolid, workmanlike, and a bit severe, standing proudly apart from the stylistic conventions of the moment.
This, of course, has always been core to the cult of the G, and it helps explain why, despite sharing only five parts (headline washers, the spare tire cover, and a couple other odds and ends), the 2019 is actually kind of hard to distinguish from the 2018.
Inside, it’s another story. Except for the bolt-upright seats, you’d think you were in an S-class—it’s as comfortable and modern as a Mercedes interior gets. Accent lighting. Leather where leather shouldn’t be. And exceptionally comfortable. (It’s got a few inches more space, which makes things go from historically intolerable to perfectly roomy.) It just doesn’t feel like you’re in something that can creep down or crawl up a 45-degree angle or ford water higher than its bumper (a sensor automatically switches air intakes). While unmistakably a truck, the ride is more S-class-like, too, thanks in no small part to the long-overdue arrival of four-wheel independent suspension, even as its traditional set of three locking differentials, which give you control over all four wheels, makes it able to take on anything.
Good news for fans of Mercedes’ iconic, iconoclastic Geländewagen: Even after its first full redesign in nearly 40 years, it still looks more like a troop transport than a civilian luxury vehicle. Its corners haven’t been rounded off, its side panels haven’t been smoothed out, and it still towers above virtually everything else on the road—stolid, workmanlike, and a bit severe, standing proudly apart from the stylistic conventions of the moment.
This, of course, has always been core to the cult of the G, and it helps explain why, despite sharing only five parts (headline washers, the spare tire cover, and a couple other odds and ends), the 2019 is actually kind of hard to distinguish from the 2018.
Inside, it’s another story. Except for the bolt-upright seats, you’d think you were in an S-class—it’s as comfortable and modern as a Mercedes interior gets. Accent lighting. Leather where leather shouldn’t be. And exceptionally comfortable. (It’s got a few inches more space, which makes things go from historically intolerable to perfectly roomy.) It just doesn’t feel like you’re in something that can creep down or crawl up a 45-degree angle or ford water higher than its bumper (a sensor automatically switches air intakes). While unmistakably a truck, the ride is more S-class-like, too, thanks in no small part to the long-overdue arrival of four-wheel independent suspension, even as its traditional set of three locking differentials, which give you control over all four wheels, makes it able to take on anything.
But how capable can something be if almost no one will test its capabilities? And does it even matter? Has it ever mattered?
The G was Mercedes-Benz’s reaction to a surge of interest in four-wheel-drive vehicles in the ’70s. From the very beginning, it was meant for both military and civilian use, so Mercedes needed it to be both rugged and drivable. Materials marketing the original 460-series models show its long wheelbase moving over construction sites and rocky coastlines. There’s a shot of it on a mountain trail in front of a downed (and very large) tree, as if the driver is contemplating driving over it. Then there’s a shot in front of a movie theater, loading up a foursome of Berliner yuppies. You somehow believe it all.
The new G is riding a wave of popularity: Mercedes-Benz sold more than 4,000 2018 models in the US—a rounding error compared to the nearly 1 million F-150s Ford sells in a given year, but it’s a record for the G. Despite the car’s relatively small sales numbers, you seem to see them all the time. They’re just that unique.
Take the new G 63 outside the city, and you can’t believe its quickness. Powered by a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8 tuned to 577 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque, the 5,500-pound vehicle rockets to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds. For anything, that is fast. For something that looks like a troop transport (which it was for Iran in the ’80s), that is mind-blowingly fast.
A new 9-speed transmission shifts seamlessly and effortlessly, all the way to a governor-limited top speed of 149 mph, and after a week behind the wheel of the top-of-the-line Mercedes-AMG G 63, in both Manhattan and the woods of northern Westchester County, I never thought twice about passing cars 2,000 pounds lighter, even uphill. Another bonus: On turns, you don’t feel like you’re going to tip over, like you do in, say, a Defender. The few inches of length and width that have been added to the truck amount to loads more confidence in it.
And off-road? The locking differentials can get you through anything. The clearance can get you over anything. As always. Not that most drivers will ever need such chops. But it’s nice to know they’re there.
For Mercedes, the new G-Wagen is a totem of modern capability. For its driver? Eternal possibility.
- Photographs by Sean Gale Burke
