Mercedes G-Class Celebrates Major Production Milestone

December 7, 2020

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Mercedes G-Class Celebrates Major Production Milestone

After four decades, the Mercedes G-Class is still proving to be a strong seller.

The Mercedes G-Class hasn’t had the most fortunate relationship with the media lately. Just last month, one G-wagen driver made the news after a video clip showing them overturning the six-figure SUV in the snow went viral, and literally days later, UK footballer Joe Willock lost control of his G-Class on a highway, ripping a rear wheel off.

Even still, the iconic Mercedes G-Class has cause for celebration right now because the 400,000th example has just rolled off the line. Some 41 years after the model’s 1979 introduction, the 400,000th G-Wagen to leave Mercedes’s Graz, Austria plant is a G 400 d, ready to be delivered to its new owner in Rhineland, Germany.

This isn’t the first time this particular customer has bought a G-Class, however. As a hardcore fan of the off-roader, he already owns around 20 G-Class models, abiding by the mantra: “I can’t be without the G.”

“We are so proud to have produced 400,000 of these off-road vehicles. We’d like to thank our loyal customers and fans, plus our employees – not to mention our production partner in Graz, Magna Steyr,” says the head of Mercedes’s Off-Road Vehicles division, Dr. Emmerich Schiller. Now, “we’re already writing the next chapter in this success story: we’re electrifying this series so the G will have a zero-emissions future, making our icon future-proof,” he adds.

Production of the current-generation G-Class began in summer 2018, marking the first major redesign in 40 years. Sporting a new suspension, new driving modes, and three 100-percent differential locks, the new G-Class is more comfortable and agile than ever, capable of tackling the toughest terrains.

Since the 2021 model year update, the G-Class comes with new standard equipment, including a reversing camera and a new desert driving mode. New personalization options were also added through the G manufacture program with new exterior colors and equipment packages. This has proven immensely popular, accounting for some 60 percent of all G-Class orders.

Starting at a lofty $131,750, the 2021 Mercedes G-Class is powered by a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 producing 416 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque in the G550, or 577 hp and 627 lb-ft of torque in the AMG G63. Looking ahead, spy shots have shown Mercedes is planning to revive the insane G550 4×4 Squared for a new generation.