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There is a certain quality to quantity. Mercedes’s exhibition in this regard has always been his geländewagen, an absolute unit of a SUV since the 1970s, when it is said that Iran’s SHAH suggested that the company’s engineers take a crack in the construction of a vehicle of military specifications. (Geländewagen translates approximately “all -terrain vehicle”). Even in its civilians, sports and Fornida utility better known as class G has always been a bit extra, clinging to its foundations of motorized infantry and its dictator-chico outfit beyond the last man in the bunker.
But here comes the Mercedes-Benz G 580 With EQ technology, new for the Model 2025 year. This G-Wagen, £ 180,860 as tested, the part is seen, with a classic square cabin, a high distance to the ground and pronounced wheel arches. However, it is driven by something new: a 116 kWh lithium -lithium battery and four individually mounted controlled engines near the wheels. Together they offer a range of up to 283 miles with a single load and a maximum total output of 587 horsepower, with zero CO₂ emissions. It is a paradox on the wheels: G 580 is a vehicle equipped with the technology of the future, dressed in all the signifiers of a past without reference.
However, it is still much more. The White Paper provided with my loan technology quoted with more GS than a record of the death row: G-Turn, G-Steering, G-Roar. Gee Whiz. Some of these are fun tricks, with little use beyond impressing the boys. G-Turn is a donut function that turns the vehicle almost in place on loose or unpaved surfaces, a party trick that will surely put a big smile on the face. G-Roar is a solid “experiences.”
The power of G
However, most new teams contribute to making the electric G class an SUV more capable than its counterparts conventionally. In an extremely muddy and extremely Scottish off -road course installed in an old quarry, G 580 was handled as previous iterations of the Mercedes truck anywhere, climbing slippery hills with ease with ease and stable in lateral slopes of up to 35 degrees. (In non -technical terms, that is wildly, uncomfortable sideways).
Something intuitive for a vehicle built on a massive battery, the electric variant is also able to safely remove the deeper water than gasoline models. Before a particularly neglected path, I turned on the “intelligent” tracking function of G 580, more or less cruise control for off -road, and electric motors maintained optimal propulsion through deep waters and mud while concentrating on navigating the ground and not sweating through heated and cooled leather seats. Blitzkrieg for fools, in other words.
In the normal field, that is, the lanes and the roads of the country, G 580 is not as inflatable and clumsy to drive as G 63 with conventional food. His cabin is also considerably quieter. Previous G-Wagens could make the old trip something heartbreaking in the lumbar. G 580, for any section, would be a reasonable daily driver.
As expected in this price range, G 580 is full of small delicious details. It retains the thick handles and mounted on the board that make it easier to load in the vehicle, for example, and the usual replacement wheels on the back can be reused in useful storage for vehicle load cables. Of course, many of these, such as the slightly high hood, subtly distinguish G 580 from other GS. But by qualifying this is a first geländewagen and an electric vehicle in second place, Mercedes seems to have affected a winning formula to balance new and green technology with a classic attraction of the brand.
The question about the G-Wagen has always been: why? Why was a narrow, heavy and inefficient ex -military vehicle for drivers whose territorial conquests were more likely to finish, for example, Neiman Marcus parking? For decades, the answer required a certain innocence about the opinions of others. At least one neglected shoulder shrink. When electrifying the G-Wagen, Mercedes has presented many more credible new responses. Even if you will never take it out of the road.
Mercedes-Benz G 580from £ 154,870