It's actually a tool. Like a hammer. A screwdriver or a knife. A Mercedes-Benz G-Class was not intended for strolling, not even for “non-military” purposes. But that's how it is. A Swiss officer's knife nowadays belongs under the Christmas tree rather than part of the basic equipment of the Swiss army. The Mercedes-Benz G-Class inspired an entire vehicle class. And adapting oneself in the process without really changing.
Over the years, comfort came to the edgy hut. It was sometimes more or more power added, at least since the G-Class is the performance colleagues from Affalterbach on the price list, was from the tool a working device, with which one rather flirted with the working class, than the one still on a service thought to regulation. The G-Class, a legend during his lifetime. A legend that has extended your own lifetime. It can work that way.
2018 - The year in which we contact the new G.
The inventors of Coca-Cola would rather change the taste of the soda than the color scheme or the legendary shape of the Coca-Cola bottles. Mercedes 2018 has to proceed in a similar way when introducing the, in principle only second generation of the G-Class, which has existed since 1979, to the world public. So optically it will be more about details than about the “big picture”. While the exterior will not yet be revealed, but will hardly offer anything surprising in terms of looks, more changes are possible in the interior of the former farm animal. The G hasn't been a tool for a long time. The best-selling G-Class? There are now the AMG variants with bi-turbo eight-cylinder. Therefore, the “comfort requirement” in the interior must now also be written larger.
Mercedes-Benz has given us a first look at the interior of the new model. And yes, it will change a lot.
Digital first & heritage second
In the future, it will no longer be possible to avoid the large digital cockpit made up of two TFTs, even in the angular G. And that's good. But in addition to high-effect digital displays and futuristic ventilation nozzles, it is above all a keypad that immediately arouses “feelings of home” for entire generations of G-Class friends: the three manually operated differential locks remain directly in the driver's view and just as prominently positioned. Even the climate control panel known from the S-Class has to slide lower. In general, the G-Class will exude more Mercedes-Benz in the cockpit than it has for 20 years. Touch field, controls, consoles and switches - they are actually not small assemblies, but the changes in the cockpit are overwhelming.
That one was allowed to go to the sheet metal with all the optics, the inmates benefit. While the commercial vehicle was not designed to offer ride comfort and luxury at the beginning of its career, it is finally changing after 39's production years. More elbow room, more space for the shoulders, and still the luxury of almost vertical windows and the windshield continue to provide exactly the steep level that you have to give up in cw value optimized limousines. Yes, it remains a G-model. Yes, it's the Mercedes-Benz G-Class. Even if you care about the luxury of playful details. For example, the speakers of the sound system interpret the turn signals on the fender.
World premiere of the new G-Class? In January, 2018 in Detroit on the NAIAS.