Classic pearls of the future - Mercedes-Benz G
11/12/2015
In the early 1970s, hardly anyone would have expected a "Land Rover" off-road vehicle from Mercedes , even though Mercedes had of course been producing off-road vehicles for decades with the Unimog. The G model was built on the initiative of the then Daimler shareholder Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was looking for a suitable vehicle for use in Iran. Mercedes also hoped that it would be used by the German army, but the latter opted for the VW Iltis. But despite this setback, the Puch G, as the joint production with Austrian manufacturer Steyr was also known in some sales markets, made a career for itself in various armies.
The vehicle was designed for tough off-road use and high towing capacity and therefore had a sturdy box frame as its base, as well as rigid axles at the front and rear. The body consisted largely of flat surfaces; aerodynamics were not a factor in the development.
The engines used were units from the Mercedes passenger car range, four and six-cylinder engines in petrol and diesel versions. Eight-cylinder engines and tuning versions from AMG were added later, and the G-Model had long since conquered the boulevard and city traffic.
The G-Model, which like the other Mercedes models underwent a type designation change in 1991 (from 280 GE to G 280, for example), became a long-lasting success. Over the years, it underwent constant model upgrades without losing any of its character. In contrast to other off-road vehicles, which developed in the direction of off-road capable leisure road cars (also known as SUVs), the G model, like the Land Rover, remained true to its original orientation.
And as with many cars produced over a long period of time, the transition to classic is also fluid for the G-Model, but early models are already sought after today and with the expected boom in off-road vehicles in the classic car environment, the G-Model should also have a good future as a classic.
Further classic gems can be found in the dedicated theme channel.
