Today’s automotive logic suggests that a boxy, thirsty, and rather absurd looking SUV with the aerodynamics of a brick shouldn’t exist, yet the silver star has been building the G-Wagon for 40 years, with each successive model year debuting more farcical options than the last. We’re talking about million-dollar six-wheelers, obnoxiously jacked up 4x4s, and bulletproof variants for the presidential elite. To put their popularity into perspective, last year Mercedes sold just as many G-Wagons in Canada as Porsche did with their iconic 911.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a Russian gangster or a Russian gangster wannabe, the G-Class commands a kind of road presence and fan following that does not step into the shadow of any other SUV. It has a galvanizing personality, old-world charm, and there’s undeniable character. Frankly, it’s an SUV that you either love or you hate. Lovers will swoon every time they hear those rifle-bolt latching doors, citing that it hits that mysterious and mythical G-Wagen-spot. Haters will say that a 50.000 USD Jeep can do the same job, but better and cheaper. They’re not wrong, but there’s certainly no DMZ separating the two camps either.
The revisions to the G 63 were substantial enough in 2019 to carry over unchanged for 2020. Those changes included swelling in both length and width, increasing interior volume, along with a 170 kg weight loss. There are new LED headlights, front grill design, and a stainless steel brush guard that is mounted differently on the G 550 (in front of the grill) and G 63 AMG (below the grill) as to not obstruct the 360-degree camera’s view. AMG models get that new vertical-slat Panamericana grill, a different front fender, wider wheel arches, side-exit exhausts running under each rear door’s running board, and a host of unique wheels. I would probably wet my pants if I saw one approaching me in the rearview mirror – it makes the sedated GLS look like melted ice cream.
Inside you will find a Jeep-like upright windshield, shallow dashboard, grab handle on the passenger-side dashboard, and three differential lock buttons located front and center. The G 63 AMG receives all the trimmings with a new steering wheel, dual 12.3-inch infotainment units stretching the dashboard width, and a beautiful marriage of carbon fiber, metal, and soft leather. You can add those little driver toggles budding out the steering wheel much like the GT 4-Door, but personally I would leave that box unchecked. While convenient especially when Sport+ mode is needed for those last-minute overtakes, the buttons themselves feel exceptionally low-rent, they aren’t fixated to the wheel with the same solidity as other panels in the interior, and they squeak under operation like those old Hasbro action figures.
