2005 Mercedes-Benz G-Class Test Drive

Mercedes' Civilian Tank

The newest status SUV has actually been around for a long time, but now Americans can find out if the fuss about the G-wagen is just hype or not.

Half of all vehicles sold in this country are now SUVs and trucks, even though fewer Americans are farmers or physical laborers than at any time in our nation's history. What gives?

At least four factors are at play, we think. Gas prices, after a spike last summer, are very low, and extremely good financing deals are available on almost every domestic SUV on the market. But more than that, there's a little-discussed steamroller effect to SUV sales: perspective.

By that we mean that all the tall vehicles on the road today make it impossible to get a clear view on any highway if you drive a low-riding car. And then, once you climb aboard an SUV or pickup and suddenly can see down the eight lanes ahead of you again, you don't want to go back to a ground-hugging car.

And then there's the final piece of the puzzle -- cachet. Top-price SUVs continue to impress many buyers simply by virtue of their supreme (though seldom used) off-road performance and gargantuan size. Which is why a lot of new models continue to spring forth at the top end of the price ladder while the middle of the SUV segment idles along.

But does all that explain the belated emergence of (and great demand for) the latest and yet most ancient of SUVs, the Mercedes-Benz G500? Sort of. The rest of the reason why you can now buy the $70,000 G500 has to do with old-fashioned capitalism.

A little history first: Mercedes invented the Gelaendewagen (now the G-wagen or G-Class for short) for specialty use in Europe as both a military and government vehicle in the mid-1970s. Pointedly, it was not for sale in the U.S. So, naturally, it became extremely desirable. Until 2001, many wealthy Americans were willing to pay up to $100,000 for the G-wagen to a small New Mexico import firm called Europa International that was the sole source of the vehicle in the States.

But after decades of watching someone else sell G-wagens in the U.S. -- only somewhat updated, mind you, over the past 25 years of sales -- Mercedes finally woke up to both the prestige of the G-wagen and to potential profitability. Also, because Mercedes owns the rights to the G-wagen and, of course, contracts to the Graz, Austria, factory where it's built, the company can offer it at a more reasonable $73,165, while simultaneously drawing more customers into its dealerships. A side benefit will likely be a lot of sales to customers who thought they wanted G-wagens and realized that the cheaper M-Class SUV is more to their liking.

Or is it? Besides bragging rights, the G-wagen gets you a supremely capable off-road truck. When we drove one this past fall, we were duly impressed with both how quiet it was on blacktop and how seamlessly it could tackle mud, logs and sand.

So you might be intrigued after all -- but at that high price you might also consider the latest Range Rover, which goes for about the same dough. Which is better? Or, should we ask, which is more exclusive? After all, with only about 2,000 G500s slated for sale in this country each year and as many as 11,000 Range Rovers, you're not going to get the same looks in the Rover. But then, what exactly do you want from your over-the-top SUV? Now that's the question.