The G-Wagen finally got its first ever major revamp since it debuted in the late 70s. Sure, there have been numerous facelifts, interiors and engine upgrades over the years, the basics underneath always remained the same, and it was horrendous to drive (once you take off the fanboy glasses). The new 2019 model changes all that. Mostly.
Along with the barely-facelifted versions of the S-Class Coupe and Cabriolet, at Frankfurt, Mercedes-Benz pulls two other rabbits out of its hat which come in the form of new exclusive versions of the G65 and G63 AMG models. The all-dark exclusive editions will serve as one final refresh for the current generation G-Class before the next-gen model arrives in 2018.
The Mercedes-Benz Geländewagen, or the G-Wagon is undoubtedly the most iconic Merc around. A few months back, Mercedes-Benz came up with a Crazy Colour edition of the G-Class. Now Brabus, the German tuning firm, has tried their hand at adding more bling to the G and they’ve come up with the flashy Widestar edition.
If you didn’t quite figure out from the photos, this is not a regular G-Wagen. This is the 2015 Mercedes-Benz G 500 4×4², with a squared at the end of the name just to annoy us. And it’s lifted from the factory.
This is the weirdly-named Brabus B63-620 WIDESTAR. It’s named like so because it is based off of the 2013 Mercedes-Benz G 63 AMG. And it has “620” horses. And it’s very wide.
The Gelaendewagen, the legendary Mercedes-Benz that has lived on for over three decades in its same attire, appears to have been given some touch-ups for 2013, as seen in this early photo.
The longest-serving and most-outdated Mercedes-Benz model series, the G-Wagen, continues to enjoy strong sales around the world, including the Middle East. While its off-road capabilities have little to do with the Gelandewagen’s success, the company is still celebrating its GCC popularity with a special edition exclusively designed for the Middle East, dubbing it the G-Class Arabia 100 Limited Edition.
Mercedes-Benz has come with an armoured patrol vehicle concept that seems to be attempting a rejuvenation of its military roots. Dubbed the G-Wagen Light Armoured Patrol Vehicle 6.X Concept, it shows the real possibilities of the G-Wagen platform, other than creating rolling roadblocks on city streets.
Mercedes-Benz tuning specialist Brabus has gone ahead and created, according to them, the most powerful offroader ever. The Brabus G V12 S Biturbo, based on the G-Wagen, is exclusively available in 5-door form, and is powered by a BRABUS SV12 S engine, as found in the German tuner’s super-sedans.
Seeing Sheikh Mohammed zipping around Dubai in a Mercedes-Benz G-Class is a rolling tribute to the strength of the German manufacturer’s overengineered pre-1995 designs. The Geländewagen is the only Merc to survive the cost-cutting 1995-to-2005 era, when quality hit the crapper. Even the attempt to replace it with the characterless GL-Class flopped. It is hard to imagine that the vehicle that is a favourite with sheikh-copycats has been around since 1979.