RE: Mercedes launches new G-Wagen
Discussion
kers ? aaron_2000 said:
These sell well to the kind of people that are upper middle/upper class, wear tweed, flat caps and designer wellies, go shooting yet have never gone off-road or on a farm. I call them Farmer Chic 
No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.
How does one go shooting but never go off road ?? No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.numtumfutunch said:
Mind if I ask how it rates as a family car?
Our old RR Sport was ace in this respect:
- boot big enough for luggage plus dog
- enough comfort front and rear for trips to south of France with minimal stops
- bearable tank range to enable the above
- and other stuff like all weather/snow ability
How is life with a G wagon on a daily basis please?
As much as I love the idea of one they just look a bit cramped in the back seats and boot space
Cheers
Here's my take on living with a G63 for a year. Our old RR Sport was ace in this respect:
- boot big enough for luggage plus dog
- enough comfort front and rear for trips to south of France with minimal stops
- bearable tank range to enable the above
- and other stuff like all weather/snow ability
How is life with a G wagon on a daily basis please?
As much as I love the idea of one they just look a bit cramped in the back seats and boot space
Cheers
Don't think you'll find any problem the boot space for luggage and a dog. I have never found there to be a lack of space back there.
As far as comfort is concerned, yes the seats are comfortable and adjust a million different ways and are heated and ventilated. The problem with longer trips is wind noise. Anything over a few hours and it will start to get tiresome. It is definitely not as sit back and waft along comfortably and stress-free as a RR is. Nowhere near in fact, and in that regard I find the G light years behind a RR. Never had any complaints from rear seat passengers who sit even higher than the driver does.
Tank range is poor. Costs over £100 to fill it up with super unleaded when the low fuel warning comes on. On the motorway that gets me (just) to Bristol and back from London. Around town it's a joke. Must be single digit MPG.
Can't comment on all-weather and off-road ability but I'd assume it's fairly bullet-proof in those regards.
Bottom line is that it's a complete hoot to drive around town and shorter trips, and I love it. But for long motorway trips it's definitely a long way from your best choice and I find it very tiring/tiresome to drive for anything longer than a couple of hours at a stretch.
sleepera6 said:
Sounds like the G is the car everyone loves, even though I don’t.
Mums love them.
Single women get their panties wet.
Non-PH men think it’s cool.
Gangsters and noveau rich men think it’s a status symbol for drugs, money and turf power (if applicable).
“Old money”/upper class people think it’s classy, the lower classes aspire for one.
Sounds like it’s an everymans car!
Do Mums really love them though? Perhaps the demographic is different in the UK but here in Canada, its mostly young guys who give off a similar impression as Youtuber Yiannimize (and even he hates it, as seen here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf0CcAy9Ofs).Mums love them.
Single women get their panties wet.
Non-PH men think it’s cool.
Gangsters and noveau rich men think it’s a status symbol for drugs, money and turf power (if applicable).
“Old money”/upper class people think it’s classy, the lower classes aspire for one.
Sounds like it’s an everymans car!
And most of my wealthy relatives in the UK (all in London), and my dad, who drives a W222 S500, think that the G-Wagen is crap, a leathered up truck that only a trollop or someone lacking breeding would drive.
I think they're awesome, though they are fairly crap to drive on road compared with RR or similar - though better on-road than a Wrangler (as it should be for >3x the price). I do hate the drug-dealer/council estate image though I suppose a lot of performance-type cars have that these days
aaron_2000 said:
These sell well to the kind of people that are upper middle/upper class, wear tweed, flat caps and designer wellies, go shooting yet have never gone off-road or on a farm. I call them Farmer Chic No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.
What a load of rubbish. Mine went off road on the first weekend. My previous ones were always offroad too, including a rather tricky one in North Wales. Your description above is no-one I know. No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.RSK21 said:
aaron_2000 said:
These sell well to the kind of people that are upper middle/upper class, wear tweed, flat caps and designer wellies, go shooting yet have never gone off-road or on a farm. I call them Farmer Chic No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.
How does one go shooting but never go off road ?? No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.
aaron_2000 said:
These sell well to the kind of people that are upper middle/upper class, wear tweed, flat caps and designer wellies, go shooting yet have never gone off-road or on a farm. I call them Farmer Chic No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.
No denying they're a cool car, and good on Mercedes for keeping it going.
Sensei Rob said:
Part of the appeal was that these had solid axles, front and rear. Now this is just another SUV.
It's still a solid axle at the rear and is now similar in set-up to the Toyota Landcruiser LC series - you don't need solid beam axles front and rear to be a capable off-roader.Despite its solid axles the G-Wagen never had great axle articulation, hence the need to fit locking diffs all round - ironically, the changes they've made to the suspension have probably improved its articulation and greatly improved its on-road dynamics. The fact that its breadth of appeal has been widened doesn't make it a worse vehicle.
Sure, it's still an SUV, but at this price and specification it's certainly out of the ordinary, in fact I think it's pretty unique.
BlackPrince said:
my dad, who drives a W222 S500, think that the G-Wagen is crap, a leathered up truck that only a trollop or someone lacking breeding would drive.
Lacking breeding? Who still believes in that claptrap?? What are we, living under the Empire!? This sort of opinion, in my view, is even more outdated than the G-Wagen itself. It is in fact possible to be self-made these days and be a decent human being without coming from a well-to-do background...Now personally, I'm not a fan of 4x4/SUVs at all but having recently spent a day at the Mercedes-Benz museum/showroom in Stuttgart (until I went there I did not realise you can walk-in and drive away and brand new or secondhand car, straight from their world headquarters!), I would most definitely have no problem with a G500 4×4² - it's an absolutely mental car.
borat52 said:
I imported a LHD G55 from Germany when the euro was at 1.37. Had it for 3 years now. Ride is uncomfortably hard, wind noise for a 100k new car rediculous, cabin outdated and it is awful around corners but that's not really the point.
IMHO they just look incredible and poke your toe down at the lights and it suddenly makes sense, great fun outrunning executive diesels on the dual carriageways becuase it shouldn't be able to do it yet it does.
Great to see merc sticking some money into building a new model, would like to see one in the flesh but it does look a little fat with the extra width.
Couple of bruisers, S600L and G55...
Fully agree. I brought mine back when I returned from the Middle East. It has over 100,000 miles and was used in the desert every weekend. IMHO they just look incredible and poke your toe down at the lights and it suddenly makes sense, great fun outrunning executive diesels on the dual carriageways becuase it shouldn't be able to do it yet it does.
Great to see merc sticking some money into building a new model, would like to see one in the flesh but it does look a little fat with the extra width.
Couple of bruisers, S600L and G55...
I keep it in fine fettle but I'm not precious with it. Off road, MX bike carrier, trips to the tip.
Love it.
Interestingly, Arnie was at the presentation and was also on a Jay Leno video with an electric G wagen. I'd be happy with one of them too.
jhonn said:
It's still a solid axle at the rear and is now similar in set-up to the Toyota Landcruiser LC series - you don't need solid beam axles front and rear to be a capable off-roader.
Despite its solid axles the G-Wagen never had great axle articulation, hence the need to fit locking diffs all round - ironically, the changes they've made to the suspension have probably improved its articulation and greatly improved its on-road dynamics. The fact that its breadth of appeal has been widened doesn't make it a worse vehicle.
Sure, it's still an SUV, but at this price and specification it's certainly out of the ordinary, in fact I think it's pretty unique.
I agree that you don't need solid axles to be a capable off-roader, however, a solid axle will always be stronger and more reliable than the independent set-up.Despite its solid axles the G-Wagen never had great axle articulation, hence the need to fit locking diffs all round - ironically, the changes they've made to the suspension have probably improved its articulation and greatly improved its on-road dynamics. The fact that its breadth of appeal has been widened doesn't make it a worse vehicle.
Sure, it's still an SUV, but at this price and specification it's certainly out of the ordinary, in fact I think it's pretty unique.
The only off-roaders now with solid front and rear axles are now:
Jeep Wrangler
Nissan Patrol Super Safari
Toyota Landcruiser (76 series)
Suzuki Jimny
I feel like the appeal was that it was a brutish vehicle that was built strong. Now, arguably, it's not as strong as it was before.
Rich_W said:
Brabus G700s sound utterly fantastic dirty though! Properly guttural noise!
https://youtu.be/x5_hpTFLuYM?t=29s
I'm trying to think which of our players that was.https://youtu.be/x5_hpTFLuYM?t=29s
Didn't sound particularly good in that clip, tho. Try this one: https://youtu.be/aQZ96sQqgsk?t=22s
easytiger123 said:
Here's my take on living with a G63 for a year.
Don't think you'll find any problem the boot space for luggage and a dog. I have never found there to be a lack of space back there.
As far as comfort is concerned, yes the seats are comfortable and adjust a million different ways and are heated and ventilated. The problem with longer trips is wind noise. Anything over a few hours and it will start to get tiresome. It is definitely not as sit back and waft along comfortably and stress-free as a RR is. Nowhere near in fact, and in that regard I find the G light years behind a RR. Never had any complaints from rear seat passengers who sit even higher than the driver does.
Tank range is poor. Costs over £100 to fill it up with super unleaded when the low fuel warning comes on. On the motorway that gets me (just) to Bristol and back from London. Around town it's a joke. Must be single digit MPG.
Can't comment on all-weather and off-road ability but I'd assume it's fairly bullet-proof in those regards.
Bottom line is that it's a complete hoot to drive around town and shorter trips, and I love it. But for long motorway trips it's definitely a long way from your best choice and I find it very tiring/tiresome to drive for anything longer than a couple of hours at a stretch.
A helpful response, thanksDon't think you'll find any problem the boot space for luggage and a dog. I have never found there to be a lack of space back there.
As far as comfort is concerned, yes the seats are comfortable and adjust a million different ways and are heated and ventilated. The problem with longer trips is wind noise. Anything over a few hours and it will start to get tiresome. It is definitely not as sit back and waft along comfortably and stress-free as a RR is. Nowhere near in fact, and in that regard I find the G light years behind a RR. Never had any complaints from rear seat passengers who sit even higher than the driver does.
Tank range is poor. Costs over £100 to fill it up with super unleaded when the low fuel warning comes on. On the motorway that gets me (just) to Bristol and back from London. Around town it's a joke. Must be single digit MPG.
Can't comment on all-weather and off-road ability but I'd assume it's fairly bullet-proof in those regards.
Bottom line is that it's a complete hoot to drive around town and shorter trips, and I love it. But for long motorway trips it's definitely a long way from your best choice and I find it very tiring/tiresome to drive for anything longer than a couple of hours at a stretch.
I have a RR and keep toying with a change of Marque to a G63.
The motorway aspect you mention (and I assumed this may be the case) may well put me off.
Can I ask you if you have had any reliability issues/ niggles with the vehicle? - I vowed never to purchase another Mercedes (twenty years ago) when the quality and dealer network were dire. (for 20 years have owned JLR products with largely positive experiences)
stuckmojo said:
Love it.
Interestingly, Arnie was at the presentation and was also on a Jay Leno video with an electric G wagen. I'd be happy with one of them too.
Ooh, no. The whole point of the G Wagon is that dirty, over powered V8 thumping out a sound Beethoven could only dream of, all packed up in something ludicrous that shouldn’t have such a power plant. Interestingly, Arnie was at the presentation and was also on a Jay Leno video with an electric G wagen. I'd be happy with one of them too.
While an EV is an obvious improvement on the diesel (why would anyone buy something at this price point and not have the funds to fill it up or miss the entire point of this car’s existence is astounding) it does remove from the G63 it’s beating, ludicrous heart.
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