And I can hardly imagine that at least one of them was sent to the scrapyard or written off.
Not a retiree at all
Whoever you meet behind the wheel of a Gelandewagen! There are satirists, collective farm chairmen, trophy raid enthusiasts, and business people. The car migrates from owner to owner without losing relevance. Its safety margin surpasses any other SUV. Even the roof here is reinforced to the level of a safety cage so that the body can withstand a rollover.
True, the Germans managed to create a too bulky machine, and its center of gravity is a bit high. To somehow cope with such a beast, engineers had to install a stiff suspension. Naturally, any connoisseur of automotive culture looks at such a combination with poorly concealed irony. Perhaps that is why Gelandewagen production volumes remain quite modest.
Nevertheless, this year we celebrate the model's thirtieth anniversary, and unlike other classic SUVs, the Gelandewagen's design has hardly changed over all these years. While the current Wrangler no longer has anything in common with the CJ, not to mention the Willys. In honor of the anniversary, the "German" received a light facelift and a version with a 5.5-liter engine.
Black square in blue
Changes to the exterior and interior need not even be mentioned — they are so insignificant that no one except experts will notice them without a hint. Outside, it's still the same suprematist square; inside, all the ergonomic miscalculations remain. The multimedia screen is placed noticeably below the line of sight, and frequently used buttons are hidden from peripheral vision. Only the deflectors and the activation keys for the three differential locks are in plain sight.
But the seating position here is excellent — even better than in the benchmark Range Rover. Visibility is superb, though only forward: backward you have to move almost blindly because of the spare tire mounted on the tailgate. And then there's that ruthlessly stiff suspension, which is why few dare to take the Gelandewagen on long trips over broken asphalt.
For us, the Gelandewagen is primarily a body-on-frame SUV with solid axles, locks, and a low-range gear. Everything else — image, price, security, black color, and, of course, dynamics — is secondary. Yes, a version with a powerful 5.5-liter V8 has appeared, accelerating the car to 100 km/h in 5.9 seconds. But how appropriate is that for such a "tram"? This machine's element is not the city or the autobahn, but off-road, where 530 Nm of torque allow you to cut a hill at its base or cross a ford, fortunately the air intake is placed well — Land Rover-style high.
Ergonomic shortcomings haven't gone anywhere. The multimedia screen sits too low, and the climate control knobs have gone into a dead zone — to see them, you have to crane your neck. But the locks of all three differentials are always in front of your eyes
Funeral canceled
Off-road, the Gelandewagen behaves like a Hummer: everything that hinders movement is scattered to the sides by its rollers, and where you could get stuck, it sits on its belly better than anyone. The worst thing is tipping over due to the high center of gravity, so for cross-country rides, the lightweight open version is more suitable. The body lineup remains the same: long and short wheelbase Station-Wagen plus a convertible. For each of them, besides the gasoline 5.5-liter engine, a more economical V6 CDI diesel with 224 hp and 540 Nm of torque is also available.
SPECS: MERCEDES-BENZ GELANDEWAGEN
The test vehicle was valued at 141,036 euros. For that money, you could actually buy several Jeep Wranglers or Land Rover Defenders. Hence the conclusion: off-road capability is not the main thing for the Gelandewagen; it sells primarily thanks to its image, looks, security, black color, and acceleration. Long live marketing!
This model has been buried more than once. But production has never been stopped — the plant in Austria still works. As the official Mercedes press release says, "the story is not over: the G-Class will continue to evolve alongside its powerful SUV-segment siblings." And that's great news.
