2025 Mercedes-Benz G580 with EQ Technology: Gee Whiz

Okay, let’s get this out of the way: “2025 G580 with EQ technology” is a terrible name. But Mercedes is abandoning its EQ branding convention (EQS, EQE, etc.) and bringing back the old letter-plus-a-number scheme that everyone understands, so that’s the moniker affixed to the new electric G-wagen. Fortunately, Benz had the foresight to give the electric G an alphanumeric that lends itself to shorthand – since there’s no gas-powered G580, we can just use that succinct handle for the EV. And from now on, we will.

The G580 is very similar to its internal combustion siblings, the G550 and AMG G63, and that’s intentional. There are some subtle nods to aerodynamic efficiency, but not in a way that you notice right away. The G580’s most obvious visual cue is its slim external cargo compartment at the rear, which houses a charging cable where you’d expect to find the spare tire. But you can specify a spare tire, so even that isn’t an automatic offer.

The G580 is still a body-on-frame SUV, and in fact the body mounting points are the same whether a gas or electric G-wagen is hitting the assembly line. The frame itself is very different, as it houses a 116.0 kWh battery between the rails. Since the battery excludes the ladder sections of the structure, the assembly itself replaces itself as a stressed member and is designed accordingly, with cells spaced to allow for structural reinforcements attached to the structure.

Also bolstering torsional rigidity: the 127-pound underbody armor plate that protects nearly everything between the axles. Mercedes claims that this component, which is secured with 50 screws, is made from “an intelligent mix of materials including carbon”. Which seems like a step back from the claim of a carbon fiber skid plate, but when you peek below the G you’ll see a familiar glossy black fabric that sure looks like carbon fiber. Whatever Benz is called, the underbody armor is designed to withstand severe abuse from rock crawling in the name of battery preservation, because breaking the pack with a rock would be a big problem for its trail ride smoothness. .

Benz also tested the package in situations that combined torsional stress with rapid temperature changes because, hey, this is off-road – you can climb a mountain with the suspension flexing at maximum articulation for a kilometer, leaving the motors and battery just fine. heated while the trail tries to play Slinky with the structure and then dives into a cold stream and suddenly cools all the components. What happens next? Are all seals still tight? What if you do all this 10 times in a row? Benz is confident that its test engineers abused the G580 more severely and creatively than its customers.

And, in fact, some of its capabilities may be underestimated. The G580’s 33.5-inch rated depth is 5.9 inches deeper than gas models can handle, but Mercedes admits the electric G can go even deeper than that – the powertrain is fully proofed. of water. The weak point now: the HVAC air intake. We’re guessing that in the next few years, Benz will snorkel this inlet and allow for some truly absurd water crossings.

And we can confirm (with the help of the French climate) that the G580 can handle a lot of water. Mercedes organized a trail outside of Montpellier, France, which involved climbing goats, crossing water and mud. All of these off-road disciplines were more difficult than planned due to the relentless rain. We’ve been to off-road events where the rain completely derailed plans, but not here – our hosts just reminded everyone that the climbs would be more treacherous, the water and mud deeper, and we carried on.

We went out on the trail in pairs, with one driver in the G550 and the other in the G580. Traditionalists, prepare for some clothes-tearing and teeth-gnashing, because the electric G is clearly the superior off-roader.

While the G550 retains its locking front, center and rear differentials, the 579 HP G580 quad engine requires no differential at all, and so the G-wagen’s unique differential lock buttons in the center of the dash are renamed to reflect the possibilities. thrilling amounts of independent torque at every corner. The middle button activates low range, which might seem superfluous when you have 859 pound-feet of torque at 0 rpm. But by deploying a 2:1 gear for rock crawling, Mercedes was able to use smaller engines, with the mechanical advantage helping to minimize heat build-up during off-road training. (The engines use extra lubricating oil to dissipate heat, Porsche 993 style, aiding the cooling circuits. And no, the oil never needs to be changed.) You can shift between low and high gear on the move – while coasting in neutral – Which is a neat trick, and neutral mode lets you tow a G580 if you’re looking for a luxury vehicle to strap behind your Prevost. On top of all that, the low-range capability means you can say your car has four transmissions, which should be worth bragging about at your neighborhood off-road park.

To the left of the drive range selector is the G steering button, which allows the G580 to turn sharply by dragging the inside rear tire and overshooting the opposite corner to turn the rear end. On the trail, there were tight turns that required a two-point turn of the G throttle, which the G580 was able to turn smartly. To really emphasize the point, Mercedes set up a dirt slalom track with the cones placed absurdly close together, and the G580 slid to the right, requiring little more than the length of a car to get through the gates.

Of course, even if there was only a car length – say, a dead end on the trail – the G580 could still turn, thanks to the third button on the dash. This activates the G turn, which drives the motors on each side of the car in opposite directions to rotate it on its axis. After engaging G-turn, you pull the steering wheel shift lever in the direction you want to turn, then step on the accelerator and keep the steering wheel pointing forward. That last part requires some mental recalibration, because it’s extremely difficult to resist driving a car that’s turning, and if you push the lock a little, the system will override. And you need to hold on tight to keep the wheel from moving. Follow all the rules and the G580 will turn two full rotations, that is, one more than is strictly necessary for a convenient exit from your Upper East Side parking lot.

The electric G even mimics the active rear axle articulation of gas-powered models by using a De Dion rear end, a setup also employed by the eSprinter. The De Dion is a sort of hybrid with a solid rear axle and independent configuration, with the engines mounted centrally and driving the wheels via axle shafts and CV joints, while a C-shaped solid axle connects both sides. Thus, unsprung weight is minimized while maintaining the articulation valued by off-roaders – one side goes up, the other side goes down. Like the other G-Classes, the G580 eschews air springs and its ride height is fixed. It still offers a suitably imperious ride.

On the sidewalk, the maximum speed is limited to 180 km/h, a speed at which the engines rotate 14,500 rpm. The G580 will run in rear-wheel drive mode whenever possible to increase efficiency, meaning Benz had to consider the possibility that a driver could be traveling at 110 mph with the rear engines, encounter a hill and suddenly need the engines. front idlers to join the party – which means matching engine speed to road speed. So here’s a fun stat: the G580’s engines can spin from 0 to 14,500 rpm in 300 milliseconds. The engineers present stated that despite the increase in power required for this trick, selectively disengaging the engines is still the most efficient strategy. EPA range has not yet been established, but Mercedes expects the G580 to travel 240 miles.

The first G580 with EQ technology will be the $168,000 Edition One, and if that seems like too much of a bargain, we recommend talking to your sales representative about the Manufaktur customization program, which offers a modest selection of new exterior colors (20,000). . Because there’s nothing more embarrassing than seeing your neighbor drive up in a G-wagen painted in the same standard-production Obsidian Black Metallic shade that you just ordered.

In the decades since its introduction in 1979, the G-wagen has gone from a difficult four-by-four to a luxury icon, but even its more ridiculous offshoots (looking at you, Maybach G650 Landaulet) were fundamentally capable machines. The electric G not only meets these expectations, but also expands them. For example, after experiencing the magic of carving the G steering radius, we asked a Mercedes engineer why gasoline models couldn’t do it too. He admitted that someday they probably will.