Mercedes-Benz G-Class Electric

Taking an existing nameplate and coming out with an electric version of it is a task in itself. That task seems like a steep hill when that nameplate’s as legendary as the Mercedes-Benz G Class. The G580 is the first of its kind, the first electric iteration of the G-Class, and while electrification might sound the antithesis of everything the G Wagen has always stood for, the reality is actually different. 

I spent some time driving the Mercedes-Benz G-Class Electric in different conditions, and one observation that’s as clear as a bright sunny day, is that the G580 is no less of a G Wagen than the standard, or even the mighty AMG G-Class. The claim is tall, but so is the G580’s stance and its abilities. Let’s take a look at what it is all about:

Save for the green numberplate, most won’t be able to tell the G-Class Electric apart from the standard petrol or diesel-powered G Wagen. And I think that’s the best part about it! It might be silently carbon conscious, but it is still as tall, as boxy, as chunky, and as rugged as the modern-day G Wagen we’ve come to know and love.

The flat nose still houses the signature circular LED headlights, above which are the chunky turn indicators – another signature design cue of the G Wagen. Despite being electric, it still gets a rather prominent grille and even the bumper is as rugged as ever. 

Boxy is the first adjective that comes to mind when you look at the car in profile; or any angle for that matter. There literally is no curve or slope in profile, just flat, straight lines. And even after it sits on 20-inch blacked out wheels, there’s a significant gap between the tyre and wheel arch. In case these black wheels don’t suit your tastebuds, there’s also a set of Silver 10-spoke alloy wheels for no additional cost.

The G580 looks its tallest from the rear. There’s not much going on in terms of design with the relatively sleek taillights sitting just above the bumper, and the tailgate-mounted spare wheel taking up most of the space. In international markets, the electric G Wagen gets portable charging equipment instead of the spare wheel on the tail gate as an option.

At the end of the day, unlike other electric Mercedes where the design language is different to their corresponding ICE-powered counterpart, Mercedes has not fiddled with the famed styling characteristics that have made the G-Class nameplate such a legend in the automotive world.

In terms of colour options, the G 580 with EQ Technology is available in over 30 colour options. There are both metallic and non-metallic colour options available, including the MANUFAKTUR shades. So you can either go sober and sophisticated, or take the brightest, most quirky exterior colour option in case the attention from the G Wagen wasn’t enough.

Just like the exterior, the interior of the electric G Wagen is similar to the standard vehicle. The design is typically Mercedes, with fancy AC vents, the familiar three-spoke touch-sensitive steering wheel, and the chunky central console that houses a host of buttons alongside a trackpad to use the infotainment system. There is a generous amount of silver accents on the dash, including the centre console. In typical G-Class fashion, the physical buttons are still placed in the middle of the dashboard, between the two central AC vents. However, they aren’t differential lock buttons here, but low range and G-turn buttons. 

The quality, fit and finish too is as solid as you’d expect. Closing the door is accompanied by a loud sound, similar to reloading a shotgun, and the same is also heard when you pull the handle to open the gate from the inside. Bear in mind, the G demands you shut the door with some firm effort - no soft close door luxury here.

The quality of materials and everything you interact with is solid and premium. Everything feels like it’s built to last. It’s not hard or rough, but smooth in some places, and tactile in others. There’s generous use of soft-touch material too, which can be found on the dashboard, door trims, steering wheel and central armrest.

Front seats

Getting in and out of the G Wagen is a struggle, even with the side step as there is no grab handle on the pillars. There’s a grab handle on the passenger side of the dashboard, but that’s for holding on for dear life while the driver is flooring it through a rough patch, and not for ingress egress.

Once inside, you sit high and tall, towering over almost every other passenger vehicle on the road. The seats are accommodating and comfortable, with a variety of powered adjustments. 

You get aggressive side supports for the torso and thighs, while underthigh support can be increased with the power adjustments. The seats even have a variety of massaging patterns, not just on the backrest, but also on the base. It might be a hardcore off-roading SUV at its core, but if you let it tender you, it genuinely can put you in a state of trance. 

Passenger seats

The experience of the second row of the electric G Wagen cannot be compared to any other typical luxury Mercedes. It doesn’t spoil you with soft seats, pillows, or steep recline angles to chill out, but it won’t give you a reason to complain about either. All three passengers get individual headrests. There's good support for the side passengers, and the cushioning is on the stiffer side, which should offer resistance from fatigue over long roadtrips. Save for limited footroom, even tall people won’t have anything to complain about.

To keep occupants cool, there’s rear AC vents in the centre and on the B-pillars with dedicated climate control. Other features include one touch up/down windows, heated seats and a rear central armrest. There are no sun blinds here. 

Practicality Options

The G 580 is practical enough for all your daily drives, family outings, and grocery runs. All doors have space to hold 1-litre bottles along with some knick knacks. Slide the cover in the central tunnel and it’ll reveal two cooled and heated cupholders, along with the wireless charging pad. There’s a generous amount of storage underneath the front central armrest, but the glovebox compartment is tiny to say the least. The opening is so narrow that you can’t really keep anything other than documents or small bottles inside it.

The rear passengers get seat back pockets, two cupholders in the armrest and an open space below the central AC vents.

Charging Options

Apart from the wireless phone charger inside the central tunnel, front passengers can make use of two Type-C charging ports. 

Rear passengers get two Type-C charging ports and a 12V socket as well.

Features

The Mercedes-Benz G-Class Electric won’t give you the bang for your buck when it comes to spoiling you with opulent features and lounge-like amenities that you’d expect for the price, but then, this car isn’t about comfort and convenience. They just happen to be taken care of well enough.

Basics are covered with amenities like keyless entry, push button start/stop, all windows one touch up/down, auto headlights and rain sensing wipers, and multi-zone climate control.

The 12.3-inch infotainment system responds without any lag or delays. The resolution is bright and the user interface is fairly easy to understand. I like that you can even control via the trackpad on the tunnel. Given that the screen can be a bit too far from the driver in certain cases, this is a pretty intuitive alternative to use it. And yes, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay is wireless.

Even the digital display for the driver impresses equally. Just like every other three-pointed star vehicle, it gets different themes with significantly different experience, ranging from a minimal graphics to an overload of off-road statistics. Notably, the placement of critical information readouts like drive selector display, range and battery percentage is fixed, so you don’t have to actively look for them even if you toggle between different modes. 

While ventilated seats work well, I didn’t get a chance to test out the heated seats. The massaging seats are great, and so is the 18-speaker Burmester 3D surround sound system. It has 760 watts of system power and Dolby Atmos, and there’s no doubt that you will enjoy blasting all kinds of music on it. 

To add some drama to the driving experience, there’s a feature called G-Roar. It mimics the sound of a traditional G-Class V8 engine. It is synthesized , sure, but it doesn’t sound outright artificial like some EVs tend to do, and does a great job of mimicking the feel of an ICE-powered G Wagen.

Then there’s features like the G-turn in which the car rotates on the spot. It’s a feature meant for off-road use but I’m not sure how many people are going to use it in real-life, but it sure is a great conversation starter and party trick to show off to your friends.

While there is no individual crash test rating for the electric G-Class, the ICE-powered version scored a five star rating from Euro NCAP in 2019.

As for features, it includes airbags for the front passengers, driver’s knee and window curtain airbags on both sides for rear and front passengers, ISOFIX mounts, all-wheel disc brakes, ABS with EBD, tyre pressure monitoring system, 360-degree camera, traction control and Level-2 ADAS features.

The autonomous features are good to have on a long-distance inter-state roadtrip, but auto-braking can be over-sensitive to Indian driving conditions in the city. It can be turned off, but you have to do it every time you get inside the vehicle as it defaults to its standard settings. Mercedes-Benz has addressed this with most of its locally-assembled models, where the system stays off even when you restart the car (if you choose the option) but the G-Class is a full import and doesn’t support this functionality. Adding to the pain is that you have to come to either a complete standstill or be crawling at walking speeds for you to turn them off. 

I found the execution of the rear-view camera to be a bit faulty too. It is placed low on the bumper and isn’t exactly the most reliable to judge how much space you actually have left behind that huge spare tyre cover. It is usable but you should combine it with double checks of your mirrors for the most accurate judgment.

Massive would be an understatement to describe the boot space of the electric G Wagen. There’s space for a row of seats to be accommodated easily, so you can imagine that luggage for a family of four or five can be hauled without any difficulties. The parcel tray is adjustable and can be removed entirely too, in case you need to stack items to the roof. 

However, loading and unloading the luggage won’t be the easiest task, owing to the high floor height. 

In case you want to shift houses using the G, you can just fold the second row down using the levers on either side. The seats have a 60:40 split and they fold flat, making it easier to push items inside. There’s also an opening in the backrest of the seat in the centre, which can be used to access the boot from inside the car itself.

The G-Class electric’s powertrain comprises four electric motors, one on each tyre. It gets a humongous 116kWh battery pack that rests under the floor. The G580 might be electric and silent, but in terms of capability and performance, this is a true Gelandewagen.

City Performance

Keeping the sheer size of the G Wagen aside, it is fairly easy to drive the SUV in the city. The throttle is progressive, and the car picks up speed in a smooth manner.

Eco mode is more than enough for all city runabouts, because you just need to flex your right foot ever so slightly to make an overtake. The power feels instant, but not sharp. You can control the regenerative levels via the paddle shifters, which means you can theoretically drive it without having to touch the brakes ever. And using the paddle shifters to toggle between the regen levels is fairly simple too, but I found it is best left in its Standard setting. It slows down progressively, not too hard for the passengers to complain, not too slow for you to apply the brakes yourself. 

Highway Performance

With 1164Nm of torque on tap (literally), the G Wagen feels effortless. It crosses triple digit speeds without the need of much throttle, leaves slow moving traffic behind in a whisker of a second, and will quickly reach its electronically limited top-speed without you even realising it. Hence, it's best to use the limiter to keep your speed in check because there’s plenty of performance available on demand.

As far as the range is concerned, you will be able to extract more range out of the electric G580 within the city at slower speeds. Even still, don’t expect the real-world range to ever cross the 400km mark. Realistically, you’ll get around 300-350km on one full charge.

Charging

Here’s the charging details of the Mercedes G580:

Ride Quality

For a tall and heavy ladder-on-frame SUV, the G580 has good ride quality. Small bumps and potholes are absorbed as if they were non-existent. But multiple rough patches and potholes do tend to cause some side-to-side movement inside the vehicle. You have to slow really down to control that movement, but what’s the fun in that?

When you’re sitting in a G-Class with a ground clearance of 250mm and great approach and departure angles, you can confidently carry speed even over really rough terrain, and the car will just keep going. Maintaining speed is actually better for comfort over deeper or sharper potholes.

However, the car isn’t able to hide its character and weight over undulations at higher speeds. If the road isn’t smooth, there are small but constant dips and inclines, you will move up and down inside the vehicle. That’s where you will miss the comfort of a monocoque SUV, but the G remains unmatched when the road becomes tough. Because it ultimately is an innate off-roader, but it also manages to double up as a relatively comfortable SUV for various use cases.

If you were curious about its off-road credentials, here’s a table with all the numbers:

Handling

It isn’t for the faint hearted, driving the G Class in the chaotic streets of India. Sure, if you set your seat high enough, you do get a good view of the bonnet. However, the size of the car is something that you’ll be perpetually aware of in congested slow moving traffic, especially when everyone’s just trying to change lanes at every opportunity. 

Apart from that, driving it is easy. The visibility is good all around. The steering wheel has weight to it, but it won’t feel overly heavy to use and park. In fact, it feels direct at higher speeds, which helps inspire confidence when attempting a quick lane change, because the body does tend to sway a bit if you’re really aggressive with the inputs. As long as you don’t do anything silly, the handling won’t disappoint you for regular usage and even for road trips to the hills or ghats.

In case you want to know about how a performance-oriented G-Class AMG drives, you can read the review here.

The Mercedes-Benz G580 with EQ Technology is sold in a single G 580 Edition One variant. The standard petrol and diesel powered G-Class, however, is available in multiple variants, which you can get the prices for here.

While the Mercedes-Benz G580 with EQ Technology might miss out on the roar and rumble of the G63’s V8, it is hard to fault in any other parameter that’s definitive of a G-Wagen. It still looks butch, feels solid like a tank, drives like a proper off-roader, and still has plenty of performance. The only difference is that it does all of that with a bit of sophistication and refinement.

Other Cars To Consider Instead Of The Mercedes-Benz G580 with EQ Technology

Land Rover Defender 

Reasons to consider

• V8-powered Defender Octa will please the petrolhead more

• Octa variant’s advanced 6D suspension is a better all rounder, on- and off-road

• Starts at a much lower price 

• Gets multiple seating configurations with two or three-rows of seats

Reasons to ignore

• No electric option though one is expected soon

• Unique street cred of the G-Wagen name and design

• G580 delivers ballistic performance with much lower fueling costs

Lotus Eletre

Reasons to consider

• Sharper design looks much more sporty

• Blistering quick performance

• Better handling and driving dynamics

• Gets more feel-good features

Reasons to ignore

• Can’t match the road presence of the G-Class

• Not nearly as capable off-road

• Lotus’ limited reach and presence in India vs Mercedes-Benz