Few models of car can claim to have won the Paris-Dakar rally at the hands of racing driver Jacky Ickx, as well as being used as the basis for a popemobile. But the Mercedes G-Class isn’t exactly your run-of-the-mill SUV. Today, having served the world since 1979, the production line in Gratz is celebrating the 500,000th example to roll out of the Austrian factory.
Mercedes-Benz has paid tribute to the occasion by ensuring the 500,000th example of the G-Class is a unique production anniversary vehicle. It pays homage to the SUV’s roots, taking inspiration from the 1986 280 GE, with a few small but purposeful retro touches.
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While the basic shape of the G-Class has been fairly unmistakable since its inception, with subtle evolution in design over the years, the anniversary model retains the present-day G-Wagen’s lines. However, the historic paint code, agave green, harks back to one of the earliest available color options for the G-Class. And it’s not just the body paint that gets the retro treatment: the indicator covers too are finished in orang. Yes, we can almost feel you rolling your eyes at us for highlighting some orange indicators, but it’s a ’70s touch that isn’t seen so much on cars of today (and, in this writer’s opinion, a trend that needs to return). Other elements to the exterior include the large Mercedes star on the rear wheel cover — a touch that has long since been superseded by more restrained badging — and the five-spoke sterling silver wheels.
Inside this unique G-Class the changes are less evident. You’ll find the middle section of the seats are upholstered in a fetching chequered fabric that was typical of the early cars. At the same time, there’s a grab handle on the passenger side which features the lettering “No. 500,000” in the same green as the exterior.
See Also: What If The Mercedes-Benz G-Class Was Launched In 1969 As A Luxury SUV?
Launched all the way back in 1979, the creation of an off-roader with the three-pointed star on the grille was first posited by the Shah of Iran. In 1979 the first G rolled out of the very same Gratz factory that the 500,000th car is produced in, with MB getting into bed with Austrian military vehicle manufacturer Steyr-Daimler-Puch to produce the “Geländewagen” (German for cross-country vehicle).
Over the years, the G-Class has been offered in many forms: as a bare-bones option for reliable and utilitarian transport, all the way up to a wood, Dinamica, and leather-filled excuse for extravagance. And with an all-electric version set to grace forecourts sometime next year, the G Class is showing no signs of letting up: So, here’s to the next 500,000 then?
