by M. Wallin
(Belgium)
2003 Mercedes-Benz G-Class G500 SUV AWD
When talking about unmodified, out of the box 4x4's meant for tough conditions and professional use, my money is on the Mercedes/Puch G-class (work variants that is, not so much the bling versions).
As a working vehicle, the G-class' off-road and other field capabilities are really second to none. Its overall technical quality and durability are also very impressive and contribute to the supreme overall usability. That being said, the G is also an ok on-road vehicle in a traditional, large 4x4 kind of way. That is probably most surprising of all, considering its other capabilities.
The G's also tend to last. And last. And last. We have one in the family, now in its 28th year and well over 750 000 km on the clock. The vehicle has lived all its life in northern Scandinavia in quite a harsh climate. It is being used as an every day work horse, pulling city duty as well as hauling trailers. It also does some real forest work occasionally, and is even used for longer road trips, when needed. Of course the vehicle has required some body maintenance and also some replacing of parts (the original engine was replaced with an overhauled version at appr. 600 000 km), but nothing really excessive aside from the engine. For the most part the car is untouched, and for example the drive train and axles are still original and working fine. And it even looks decent both inside and out, no through-rusted body or trashed interior or any of the sort.
That being said, the G-class has of course its negatives, too. Firstly, both new and decent second hand vehicles are very expensive, as are the spare parts - it's a good thing the parts are not needed often. Also the services are very expensive, especially if they are performed by the main dealer.
Another thing is the body paneling, which is steel, and hence will eventually start to suffer from rust. In that sense it is inferior to for example Defender's aluminum body construction.
Thirdly, the G's boxy design results to significant air resistance, pushing the on-road consumption up.
The earliest diesel models are also quite lethargic on-road by modern standards. They survive surprisingly well in the work use, though. That is mainly due to the excellent gearbox as well as three 100% mechanical locks (factory option), which manage to compensate quite a bit for the initial lack of power.
After G-class, the second best 4x4 for the above mentioned use would probably be Land Rover Defender. Only in principle, though, since unfortunately Defenders still seem to suffer from quite severe quality issues and seriously sub-standard ergonomics. Therefore, if there wasn't a G-class available, I would personally choose one of Toyota's working line products over Defender. Toyota is quite a bit ahead of Defender when it comes to build quality and overall ergonomics, and still comes close enough for the heavy-duty 4x4 stuff.
Ps. If someone is interested in G-class in more detail, Wikipedia has a decent page. It contains info such as where G-class is made, which model variants there have been/are in production, which armed forces use it (for example USMC does) etc.
