Mercedes-Benz has provided a glimpse of how its legendary G-Class off-roader will fit the electric era.
Mercedes-Benz has used the Munich motor show to unveil a near production-ready concept car, previewing how an all-electric version of its iconic G-Class four-wheel-drive will take shape when it hits showrooms in 2024.
The Mercedes-Benz Concept EQG blends the bluff, upright styling of the current G-Class with a range of Mercedes-EQ styling details, including an enclosed grille panel with a full-width illuminated light signature, and a two-tone paint scheme as seen on the EQS sedan.
Without naming power or torque outputs, Mercedes-Benz describes the Concept EQG’s powertrain as a four-motor layout, with each positioned close to the wheels, allowing individual wheel speed control for tough off-road conditions.
Like the regular G-Class, the EQG will also retain a two-speed drivetrain, but rather than a traditional low-range transfer case, a switchable two-speed gearbox allows effective gearing to switch between on- and off-road modes.
The EQG also retains a ladder frame chassis, with the concept’s batteries integrated into the frame to keep the centre of gravity low. An independent front and rigid rear axle layout also carry over from the current G-Class.
No details have been provided on the concept’s powertrain outputs, performance, or range, nor how those might translate to the eventual production version due in 2024.
Moving away from the G-Class’s more iconic elements, the Concept EQG also wears a set of massive 22-inch wheels, not unlike those seen on the 2020 Project Geländewagen art car. Those are shod in a set of custom tyres displaying a tread pattern that looks more suited to the racetrack than any dirt track.
It also dispenses with the tailgate-mounted spare, instead opting for a carrier box, styled to look like a wallbox home charger.
Other non-G elements include LED light strips running the full length of the car, where the bodyside mouldings would normally reside, and LED running light strips in place of light bars atop the roof, set in a custom roof rack.
Perhaps a little oddly for a variant of a car already in production, powered by a drive system that’s hardly unusual, the Concept EQG’s official images are all set in a futuristic landscape with clichéd metallic-clad models gazing vacantly at (or away from) the vehicle.
Chief design officer at Mercedes-Benz, Gordon Wagener, said in a statement: “We’re travelling into the future with the new EQG! This car epitomises the fusion of state-of-the-art off-road capabilities with the dawn of electric mobility that we all need to strive for.”
“For us, the most important thing was to keep the full G- Class DNA but beam it into the EQ age: Like the G-Class but different.” That must explain it then.
No images of the interior have yet been revealed, but as with the EQA, and its close relationship to the petrol-powered GLA range on which it’s based, the eventual production EQG will most likely keep the current G-Class four-wheel-drive’s interior.
IAA Mobility, also known as the 2021 Munich motor show, begins on 7 September. We’ll bring you all the latest news from the show as it’s announced.
The post Mercedes-Benz Concept EQG previews upcoming electric all-terrain range appeared first on Drive.
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