The MercedesBenz GClass, sometimes colloquially called the GWagen (as an abbreviation of Geländewagen) is a fourwheel drive automobile manufactured by Magna Steyr (formerly SteyrDaimlerPuch) in Austria and sold by MercedesBenz. Originally developed as a military offroader, later more luxurious models were added to the line. In certain markets, it was sold under the Puch name as Puch G until 2000.

The GWagen is characterised by its boxy styling and bodyonframe construction. It uses three fully locking differentials, one of the few passenger car vehicles to have such a feature.

Despite the introduction of an intended replacement, the unibody SUV MercedesBenz GLClass in 2006, the GClass is still in production and is one of the longestproduced vehicles in Daimler's history, with a span of 43 years. Only the Unimog surpasses it. In 2018, MercedesBenz launched a technically new second generation, still with only minor design changes.


The 400,000th unit was built on 4 December 2020

The Gclass was developed as a military vehicle from a suggestion by the Shah of Iran (Mohammad reza Pahlavi) (at the time a significant Mercedes shareholder) to Mercedes[6] and was later offered as a civilian vehicle in 1979. In this military role the vehicle was sometimes referred to as the "Wolf". The Peugeot P4 was a variant made under licence in France with a Peugeot engine. The first military in the world to use it was the Argentine Army (Ejército Argentino) beginning in 1981 with the military model 461, at least one of these was captured in the Falklands and subsequently served with the Royal Air Force.

The development of the GClass started in 1972 with a cooperative agreement between DaimlerBenz and SteyrDaimlerPuch in Graz, Austria. MercedesBenz engineers in Stuttgart were in charge of design and testing, while the team in Graz developed the production plans. The first wooden model was presented to DaimlerBenz management in 1973, with the first drivable prototype beginning various testing including German coalfields, the Sahara Desert, and the Arctic Circle in 1974. Construction commenced on a new production facility in Graz, where the new crosscountry vehicle would be assembled nearly entirely by hand in 1975, with production of the "G Model" beginning in Graz in 1979. In 1980, the Vatican took delivery of a specially made GWagen outfitted with a clear thermoplastic top which served as the Popemobile. The “Papa G” later took up permanent residence at the MercedesBenz Museum in Stuttgart, Germany.

The first major refinements were introduced in 1981, including an automatic transmission, air conditioning, an auxiliary fuel tank, protective headlamp grilles and a cable winch. Fuel injection became available in 1982, when the 230 GE was introduced in Turin, along with more comfortable and supportive front seats, auxiliary heating, wider tires and fender flares. For 1985, differential locks, central door locking and a tachometer became standard and by 1986 over 50,000 G Models had been produced.

The GWagen was facelifted in 1990. In 1989, for the 10th anniversary of the G Model, a new model variant with permanent 4wheel drive, a woodtrimmed interior and optional Antilock Braking System (ABS) debuted at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. Production began the following April. For 1992, production began on a new subseries for professional users. The civilian model began to offer cruise control, a stainlesssteel sparetire cover, running boards and Burl Walnut wood interior trim. In the same year, the 100,000th G Model was built in Graz and in 1994, the model line was officially renamed the GClass. Ventilated front disc brakes and a driver's air bag became standard. In 1996 the automatic transmission became an electronically controlled 5speed unit and headlamp washers, cruise control, and a front passenger's air bag were added. In 1998, the rangetopping G 500 with a 296 hp V8 was introduced for series production.




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