Goodbye, Gelandewagen! Blasting through Mexico in the First-Gen

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Our cluster of high-powered SUVs tore away from Mexico City headed southeast, flanked by a chase car carrying armed personnel, just in case. An hour down the road, we stopped to change license plates. The limited-access freeway gave way to a two-lane road, but the needle of the speedometer remained close to 200 km/h, the equivalent of 124 mph. We had an excuse not to waste any time: That evening, Mercedes-Benz was unveiling a hybrid version of its GLE in Oaxaca de Juárez, almost exactly 300 miles away from the capital. Reason enough to make haste, especially since the police appeared to be utterly unfazed by our elevated pace.

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The GLE hybrid represents the future, but we opted for heritage in the form of the classic G-wagen, which made its final official appearance as a new car at this driving event. Since its launch in 1979, the G-wagen had been updated with great caution; in 1990, the W460 became the W461, and the W463 was added as a more luxurious version. Later this month, at the 2018 Detroit auto show, the next generation will be launched. It will feature styling greatly similar to that of the current model but will be about four inches wider. The underpinnings are new, though, and the leap will be greater than ever before, even though the new model disingenuously retains the W463 code.

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We choose the G550 for the trip down to Oaxaca; for the drive back, we lined up a G550 4×4², the more intensely off-road-worthy model with portal axles and Unimog-like ground clearance. The last few units of that particular monster are being made as this is written, but you can’t order it anymore. It doesn’t take the radical G550 4×4² to appreciate why the G-wagen continues to fascinate like few other cars. The lofty seating position, the upright windshield, the clack of its heavy doors: all of this has remained untouched since 1979. The cockpit, however, is an assembly of parts lifted from various bins over the past few decades. And it is clad in leather, countering the frugal character of this cabin and adding up to a somewhat confused style.

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The powertrain has evolved as well. Early on, the remarkable thirst of the G-wagen, whether diesel or gasoline, stood in marked contrast to its leisurely nature. Current G-wagens are as thirsty as ever, but at least they serve up impressive performance. The G550’s twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8, originally developed by AMG, makes a whopping 416 horsepower that pushes it to an impressive (and electronically limited) 130 mph and, in C/D testing, hurled the big brick to 60 mph in just 5.7 seconds.

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Even more impressive is the soundtrack. The V-8 fires up with a bellow, emits a dark growl at low rpm, and sounds ever more aggressive as the revs climb. Just don’t expect to squeeze much more than 12 or 13 mpg out of it—especially if you push it into triple-digit velocities on Mexican highways.

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Of course, the G-wagen was originally designed for off-roading, and this means that its on-road capabilities are somewhat compromised. The vague on-center slop in the steering, supposedly advantageous when negotiating massive rocks and difficult terrain off-road, translates into less than stellar precision on the highway. And curves that can be negotiated by modern SUVs effortlessly will cause the G-wagen’s body to roll considerably.

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All of that character is amplified to an extreme in the G550 4×4²; this model is far taller, and while it is unbelievably good off-road, its on-road manners are further compromised by the extremely high center of gravity. It also gets more looks than the regular G-wagen, which doesn’t exactly blend into traffic seamlessly.

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Scarily, the G550 4×4² can still manage to top 130 mph, but zero to 60 mph takes a slightly more leisurely 7.3 seconds. Fuel economy is EPA rated at 11 mpg in city and highway measures alike, but if you use the car at anywhere near its potential, prepare for single digits—as we found out on the drive back from Oaxaca to Mexico City. Most colleagues took the plane back, but we asked to do the drive.

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First Ride: 2019 Mercedes-Benz G-class

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Driven: Mercedes-Benz G500 4×4²
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Research Mercedes-Benz G-Class: Reviews, tests, photos, prices and more

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Since we were without the heavily armed chase car to protect us, Daimler asked us to skip any lengthy photo shoots and just head back to the city, de pronto. All the same, our haste was tempered a bit by the sight of the needle on the fuel gauge plummeting toward E. Despite all of its shortcomings for daily use, the G-wagen remains one of the most fascinating off-roaders on the market. The G-wagen has taught us, yet again, a lesson in timeless style.

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