Does it attract attention? Yes. But around here they're not all that rare. Typically see one or two per week. I absolutely believe that the average person thinks the typical G wagen driver is a douche.
What's it like to drive? Steering is vague. Incredibly susceptible to cross winds. Requires fiddling with the wheel on the highway like an old fashioned piece of American iron. Turning radius similar to a cruise ship. 3 point turns become 5 point turns.
Unstoppable. I'd rate it comparable to an 80-Series Land Cruiser.
With all the flat glass, car headlight reflections will play games with your head, until such time as your brain learns to sort-of interpret the information and basically disregard the sensory overload. This was a serious problem for me.
Overall driving comfort was pretty good. Front seats do not adjust all that far back. Leather wore like iron(in a good way). Not even a minor crease after 5 yrs.
Accessing the cargo area sucks. The rear door is heavy and side hinged. And be very, very careful with the roller shade cargo cover. It's a fragile, archaic bit of kit which will set you back $1K for a new one.
Tumbling the second row forward is a truly miserable task. Don't think the G wagen has the utility of a similar sized SUV.
It does not. I cannot overstate how much effort is required to enlarge the cargo area floor. And even then, it's barely worth it.
Cycling the door locks is awesome. Like the angriest bolt action rifle you've ever heard.
The M273 motor is a beast. Sounds absolutely wonderful. Produces more power than a shipping container on wheels should ever have. 5.5 seconds to 60 is downright scary. Will spin all four wheels. I can't see any point to the G6X versions. With the 550, you get 80-90% of the performance of the AMGs, for 2/3rs or half the price.
The front windshield is a $3-4K affair. And it's flat. They get broken. I used racing-style tear offs sourced from a shop in Southern VA. Managed to survive with only a couple of small bullseye chips.
Our specific example (2013) became an absolute nightmare toward the end of the warranty period. Windows lowering themselves. COMAND turning itself on after the car was locked. Vehicle/engine not shutting off after the key was removed (no Keyless go).
It was surprisingly gentle on tires. And nothing mechanical failed in 5 yrs/30K miles.
We bought ours for my wife, but she basically stopped driving it after about a year. She was that bored with it. I found myself taking it for groceries because it has sat for weeks on end.
When MB announced the new motor lineup a couple years back, the older ones shot back up in value. My selling dealer made a very strong offer to buy it for his inventory, and I couldn't throw the keys at him any quicker. He added $10K on top of what he paid me, and sold it within a week.
Did I mention that they're unstoppable?
