Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon 2012 Review

Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon

Not so much
>> Spongy brake pedal
>> Green and brown paint
>> Being on the wrong end of SRV's 50-cal machine gun

The Australian Regular Army's Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon is nothing if not basic. Developed under the aegis of Project Overlander phase 3A  Project Overlander phase 3A (also known as Land 121), the G-Wagon is nearly 40 years old, but has been updated for the Aussie application.

While ADF (Australian Defence Force) drivers are over the moon with the new vehicle's level of comfort – air conditioning and power steering principally – drivers not familiar with the G-Wagon's predecessor, the Project Perentie Land Rover, will consider the Benz to be spartan indeed.

Need to crack open a window? The G-Wagon comes with manual winders rather than electric motors. There's no audio system and none of the flash climate control switchgear to be found in the civilian version. However there are power outlets where the audio head unit would normally be. All up the G-Wagon boasts five power outlets; two 12-Volt outlets and three 24-Volt outlets in the centre fascia. Two batteries are located under the bonnet, to supply the 24-Volt power and there's a third battery underneath what would have been the front centre armrest in the civilian G-Class.

Ambience in the cabin of the army wagon (the vehicle motoring.com.au drove) was barely worthy of the name. It's stark inside, with bare metal floor painted green and green seats that are softly sprung for comfort, but unlikely to hold occupants in place during heavier offroad work. The wagon features bucket seats front and rear, limiting its seating capacity to four.

There's no rear-vision mirror for the driver, since there's no rear vision. The rear barn doors are windowless and, indeed, nor is there any side glass between the C and D pillars. A cargo barrier fences off the cabin from the load area, which can be loaded to the roof. An electric air compressor is mounted permanently in this location, to reinflate tyres once the offroad work is done.

Between the two rear seats on the passenger side of the cargo barrier a first aid kit is fastened to the floor. Unlike the civilian G-Class, the army G-Wagon is just a little more spacious – probably by virtue of the lack of amenity, such as carpets, insulation, map lights and other accessories, et cetera.

There was no opportunity to drive the G-Wagon on the road but motoring.com.au did get behind the wheel at the Janowen Hills 4WD Park, about 90 minutes' drive from RAAF Base Amberley. The army was careful not to let us loose doing anything more challenging than our (unassessed) experience might have prepared us to face. So we didn't drive the G-Wagon up one steep grade in the complex's quarry section, for instance, but that wouldn't have posed a significant problem for even inexperienced drivers – the G-Wagon being so easy to drive offroad.

Not to take anything away from the ADF's DTOs (Driver Testing Officers), the G-Wagon mostly drove itself around the park. Once tyres were deflated to the appropriate level, low range was selected and all three diffs were locked the G-Wagon required little more skill offroad than reverse-parking a small hatchback.

When there was some loss of traction hauling up a rocky outcrop the driver simply prodded the accelerator and the G-Wagon's other wheels just dragged or pushed it up and over.

About the only time the novices behind the wheel needed specific instruction was in preparation for the vehicle fording a stream. The G-Wagon comes with a 'wading' button, which must be pressed first prior to switching off the engine. Once the engine is restarted, the vehicle is ready for wading through salt water up to 600mm deep. Its wading depth in fresh water is 750mm. The DTO along for the ride made sure the headlights were switched off a full minute prior to the vehicle entering the stream.

Despite the DTOs' assertion that the power steering fitted to the Mercedes is a real luxury after the manual steering of the Land Rovers the G-Wagon replaces, the steering remained heavy in contrast with modern SUVs. Nor was there much in the way of self-centring. But all of that must be weighed up in the context of driving around a 4WD park with the tyres deflated.

On uphill grades the engine emitted an occasional fluttering sound – a sign of the diesel V6's variable-geometry turbocharger going about its business. Torque was abundant and the G-Wagon felt strong from as low as 1500rpm.

Over rocks and up steeper grades the engine just slogged its way everywhere without any fuss. Being a six rather than a four-cylinder diesel it was more refined that is the norm for diesel-engined commercial vehicles and offroaders. At times the engine's power delivery invited the driver to select a higher ratio, rather than revving it unnecessarily on some of the faster sections of the track, but Mercedes-Benz has configured the automatic transmission to resist shifting up, even when the driver is shifting manually (through the tiptronic shift lever).

While in low range the transmission would hold lower gears up to several seconds after the driver had selected a higher gear. The transmission is very cautious in this regard. Presumably if the vehicle is heading down a descent the transmission has been set up to anticipate a need for engine braking.

Even on the road the ride was not as firm as the civilian G 55's, but the DTOs found the army Benz to be significantly firmer in its ride comfort than the Land Rover.

On the rocky, rutted tracks at the 4WD park the G-Wagon's brake pedal felt spongy, but easier feathering for those times when too much pedal effort could be disastrous. There's no Hill Descent Control in the G-Wagon and even in low range the auto transmission didn't deliver enough engine braking, so descents did require some use of the brake pedal.

The ADF drivers were also careful of leaving all three diffs locked too long around the track. In the very early days of the G-Wagon's service with the army and air force CV joints had to be replaced, as some drivers were leaving the diffs locked on practically a permanent basis.

DTOs were unstinting in their praise of the Benz for its NVH qualities, but at highway speeds the wagon was a cacophony of rattles and bangs from fittings at the rear.

If the G-Wagon's seats lacked side bolstering and proper contouring in the conventional, civilian fashion, the Benz made up for it with plenty of grab handles and straps. Without any side running boards it was quite a climb into the cabin for anyone of average height or less. Drivers will quickly adjust to hauling on the steering wheel with the right hand as they haul themselves up into the cabin.

If stepping up into the cabin happened to be a sticking point you wouldn't hear it from the G-Wagons' drivers and instructors. Over the course of the drive program the ADF personnel were fulsome in their praise for the newest vehicle to join the fleet.

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