Behold, it’s the brand new electric G. After teasing us with concepts since 2021, Mercedes-Benz is finally spilling all the small print on the upcoming, battery-powered Geländewagen.
And no, it is not called the EQG.
Meet the Mercedes-Benz G 580 with EQ Technology. Yes, it’s quite a mouthful and a break from the nomenclature that Mercedes has defined for its previous EVs. However, the electrical G-Wagen is a significantly different proposition from the corporate’s current electrified efforts, and so somewhat branding shake-up is sensible.
Where machines just like the EQE and EQS slot reasonably well into the identical segments occupied by the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and S-Class while being fundamentally different from their same-lettered predecessors, the G 580 with EQ Technology is very much a G-Class. Only, battery-powered.
It starts with a ladder frame setup like that on the revised G-Class that Mercedes-Benz unveiled just last month. It also uses an analogous suspension layout, an independent front setup paired with a solid live axle on the rear — a redeveloped de Dion configuration, specifically. They even look the identical, with the EQ flavor of the G-Class differentiating itself with only a subtly different grille and a couple of other tweaks.
The details, nevertheless, are radically different. While the opposite, internally combusted G-Class models make do with a paltry single source of power, the G 580 with EQ Technology has 4. The combination produces a mighty 879 horsepower, as you will have guessed from the name. Torque clocks in at a fair more significant 859 pound-feet of torque.
That’s 302 more horsepower and 232 more pound-feet than the brand new AMG G 63!
The 4 motors are integrated into the G’s ladder frame, inside shared housings on the front and rear axles each having a pair of motors and their gearboxes. Short half-shafts then connect each motor to its own wheel. Mercedes says this is “the first mass-produced vehicle from the Mercedes-Benz Group with individual-wheel drive,” but those of you with an affinity for searing yellow paint will certainly remember 2009’s SLS AMG Electric Drive. A grand total of nine built doesn’t qualify as mass-produced, but it surely definitely showed some the potential for letting each wheel provide its own twist.
The off-road application here, though, requires some somewhat different capabilities and a few interesting tricks, including the G-Turn feature that is increasingly de rigueur on electric off-roaders. On loose surfaces, drivers can enable this mode and hold either the left or right paddle to spin the automobile on its axis – only twice, though, before the mode disables itself.
A less showy but likely more practical application is called G-Steering, which drags the within rear wheel to assist the electrical G-Class activate a tighter axis. Mercedes has also added a bespoke Crawl function to the electrical G, very similar to Ford’s Trail Control, which allows the automobile to keep up regular speeds of as much as 5 mph over rough terrain.
EVs generally make great off-road performers because of their high torque and smooth power delivery, but Mercedes raised the bar on the brand new G-Class by putting two separate gear ratios at each corner. The driver can enable a Low Range reduction gear ratio (2:1) for off-road situations at hurries up to 53 mph, giving the G 580 much more twist down low.
One major change, nevertheless, is that this G-Wagen doesn’t have the standard front, center and rear differentials which have change into an iconic feature. The buttons that control them are still prominently mounted in the course of the G-Class dash. Not with EQ Technology. There’s literally no need for such differentials when each wheel has its own motor. Instead, the flexibility to individually and precisely meter torque to every wheel based on myriad aspects creates what Mercedes calls “virtual differential locks.” It works mechanically.
We won’t understand how well all that comes together on the dirt until we get a go behind the wheel, but on paper the G 580 looks like it’ll be a powerful performer. An approach angle of 32 degrees and departure of 30.7 degrees compares to 31 and 30 within the regular G.
Additionally, the G 580 can wade deeper than the opposite G flavors, as much as 33.5 inches vs. 27.6, and it has an additional 0.3 inches of ground clearance, too.
It’ll be no slouch in the case of on-road performance, with a 0-62-mph (0-100 km/h) time of 4.7 seconds, but range is not going to be its forte. The G 580’s 116-kilowatt-hour battery pack delivers about 294 miles on the European WLTP test cycle. We should see where it shakes out on the more demanding EPA test, but expect somewhere around 250 miles. Max charging speed is 200 kW. Also, in case you’re wondering, that enormous battery is protected by an aerodynamically designed skid plate product of “an intelligent material mix that includes carbon.” It is an inch thick, weighs 127 kilos and is attached to the ladder frame with 50 steel screws. Mercedes says a standard steel plate of the identical size could be 3 times heavier. They didn’t mention what number of screws it might have.
Range is helped ever so barely by aerodynamic enhancements that include air curtains within the rear wheel-arch flares, special A pillar cladding and a rear lip spoiler. The coefficient of drag falls to 0.44, 0.04 higher than the gas-powered version and 0.07 higher than the outgoing G-Class. Nobody said this was a slippery vehicle, but those are fair numbers for an SUV with all of the aerodynamic finesse of a 7,716-pound cinder block.
Mercedes has also layered on all varieties of fun tech features, like an optional light band integrated into the grille that may run animations or act as additional running lights. A brand new “design box” (for more storage) pictured on the blue G comes standard, but you’ll be able to specify the classic spare wheel and tire on the rear door do you have to prefer the utility a spare provides. The otherwise silent G also has a collection of sounds so as to add a number of the character that surely got lost once they amputated the side pipes. But, blissfully, they’ll disable themselves by default when off-roading.
The only query is how much all this can cost. Mercedes-Benz has yet to supply U.S. pricing for any of the 2025 G-Class range, but you’ll be able to be certain we’ll bring you the word once they do.
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Credit : www.autoblog.com