Have Mercedes-Benz created the ultimate off-roader with the G 63 AMG 6×6? crankandpiston get taken for a hoon around the desert in Dubai in the six-wheeled Wonder Wagen.
Right about now you are probably thinking that some talented chap has been getting jiggy with Photoshop to create a crazy render of a six-wheeled G-Wagen. They have not. This is a genuine G – The Mercedes-Benz G 63 AMG 6×6 – and it is seriously bonkers.
When the invite to a Top Secret International Launch of a new vehicle from Mercedes-Benz landed on the crankandpiston virtual desk we quickly put two and two and two together. Rumours of a six-wheeled behemoth have been circulating for quite some time but nothing prepared us for seeing this gargantuan Geländewagen in the flesh/tin/carbon.
At almost six metres in length it is one giant beast of a pickup. Massive 37-inch tyres – with an onboard tyre-pressure control system that can adjust pressure in a matter of seconds even while the vehicle is running – combined with portal axles, raise the height of the G 63 AMG 6×6 to 2280 mm. However, the obvious utilitarian nature of a six-wheel drive pickup is paired with the build quality and luxurious interior associated with a ‘regular’ G-Wagen.
This ‘near-series‘ may be a prototype but the likelihood that Mercedes-Benz will be putting the G 63 AMG 6×6 in to a limited special production run is looking almost certain. Unfortunately, this meant I wasn’t allowed to get behind the wheel and driving duties would be in the hands of an untamed Austrian by the name of Erwin Wonisch.
Any fears that he would be taking things easy soon disappeared. Sinking the boot up the first large sand dune has us momentarily airborne with all six wheels off the ground. I have indulged in a bit of dune bashing in assorted vehicles in the past but I can honestly say I have never experienced a vehicle that breezed up the steepest of dunes like this.
