Mercedes-Benz G580 electric review – impressive, but pointless

The Mercedes-Benz G-class is one of the longest standing models still on the market today, having first surfaced in 1979. Of course, it has seen a handful of updates since, but the basic design and premise of this go-everywhere 4x4 has seen very little change. The same applies to the car seen here but despite its ordinary G-class looks, this is not powered by diesel or a 4-litre petrol V8. Instead, this is an all-electric model, and one of the most technologically advanced at that.

Ignore the telltale green stripe on the number plate and you’d be hard pressed to find any differences between this and its combustion-powered counterparts. This is a through-and-through, no-compromises G-class, only it happens to be powered by electrons. In fact, Mercedes might have taken the no-compromises part a little too far, but more on that later.

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The door handles are perhaps the best indication of just how neatly Mercedes-Benz has integrated cutting-edge technology into an oldschool package. There are no flush-fit, aerodynamically conscious door handles here, as the trademark bolt-on kind make a return, complete with that bolt-action central locking sound that gives you a dopamine hit TikTok could only dream of. What makes these special though is that within these handles are hidden touch-sensitive pads that allow you to lock and unlock the car without using the key. Genius. 

This car is a stunning demonstration of Mercedes’s engineering might, and an incredible showcase of what the G-class can do with the very latest tech. As impressive as it is though, we can’t quite figure out why you’d buy one…

10

Powertrain, 0-62mph and technical highlights

Unlike just about every other electric car on the market today, the G580 comes with not one, not two, but four motors beneath its rugged bodywork. A motor on each wheel doesn’t just give it 579bhp and 859lb ft of torque, it also provides per-wheel control to find traction off-road where you’d never usually find it. It also allows for neat features (or gimmicks, depending on who you ask) like G-turn, where the entire car can within its own length to get you out of a sticky situation on a narrow trail – it’s a multi-step process in order to prevent accidental activation, but in our experience it’s an intuitive feature with surprising polish.

Features like this will probably see most use in city centres by those looking to rake in views on social media, but there is real substance behind this tech. Each of the four motors has a two-speed gearbox allowing it to retain a real, physical low-range mode for off-road abilities beyond its combustion counterparts. Given there’s no intake to protect, it even has an impressive 850mm fording depth to put it ahead of every other G-class in the standard range.

This car has much more torque than a G63 but it’s still not quite as quick. Thanks in part to the use of a huge 116kWh (usable) battery pack, the G580 weighs a mildly concerning 3085kg, pulling its 0-62mph time down to 4.7sec and top speed to 112mph, if you dare. This isn’t to say the G580 feels slow though, with that huge torque figure unrelenting from a low speed roll, dropping the horizon in the windscreen given the amount of front-axle lift. This pull tails off with speed, but in the vast majority of circumstances there’s more performance on tap than you’ll ever realistically need to deploy.

10

An unexpected feature of the quad-motor powertrain is that with four motors contributing to regenerative braking, there’s much more deceleration on lift-off than you’d expect from such a heavy car. There are three levels to choose from, but select the most aggressive for a close-to one-pedal driving experience and it can be hard to modulate smoothly, with a sudden weight shift from acceleration to deceleration occasionally inducing an uncomfortable forward oscillation in the chassis.

A few new vents in the bolt-on arches are just about the only notable design changes Mercedes-Benz made for the electric G-class. The only issue is that combined with the inherent inefficiency of a quad-motor powertrain, the aerodynamic properties of a building make for ludicrously poor efficiency. Mercedes quotes a WLTP range of 280 miles, but in my use the G580 managed a maximum of 200 miles on a charge, with an average efficiency of 1.67mi/kWh – for reference, the 454bhp Tesla Model Y Performance managed 3.4mi/kWh in our test, while Mercedes’s own electric CLA can top 4mi/kWh. To make matters worse, it only charges at up to 200kw on a fast charger, meaning you’ll spend an awful lot of time and cash at public chargers.

10

Ride and handling

The G580, and any other G-class for that matter, has unusual proportions. It’s a huge car that requires you to use its side step for ingress and egress, but oddly, it’s easier to park in most spaces than a modern saloon. That’s because the G-class is shorter than a C-class, yet it’s almost as tall as a standard Ford Transit. Combine this with a 3085kg weight figure and you get a car that doesn’t respond particularly well to 859lb ft of torque.

The G580 handles like any other G-class, lurching and leaning like the cumbersome car it is, and in comfort mode it can develop mild steering-induced oscillations that aren’t very pleasant. The difference with the G580 is that instantaneous electric power makes for more sudden weight transfer than in its combustion counterparts, exaggerating these dynamic quirks.

There’s no air suspension in the G580 in the pursuit of longevity, perhaps partially down to its weight, but there are adaptive dampers for you to tweak on the fly. Ride is reasonable for the most part, with spring rate slow and damping firmer than you’d expect given the vast suspension travel at play – knock it into sport mode and it all tightens up, with improved body control and impressive levels of grip. The steering is as distant and slow as we’ve seen in every other G-class, but this is something you get used to with time. Once you have, the G580 is a pleasant car to live with day-to-day and drive long distances, if you can forgive its efficiency.

10

Interior and tech

The cabin is a very familiar place if you’ve ever been in a G-class, as it’s unchanged in terms of hardware. Everything feels just as rugged and solid as it always has done, with the ‘slam required’ doors, passenger-side grab handle and near-vertical windscreen (an excellent way to reduce your local bug population) all reminders of just how special this car is.

The only real signs you’re in the G580 come when you dive into the menus within one of the two digital displays, where you’ll find charging settings and efficiency ( that never makes for easy reading). Blue woven carbonfibre trim aside, the rest is as you’ll find it in a combustion-powered G-class, with endless tech, endless leather and comfortable high-riding seats that have you sitting at window level with some articulated lorries – a large SUV feels small from within a G-class.

Perhaps the biggest surprise, then, is that there’s a distinct lack of cabin space, as while matters are fine in the front, rear seat passengers don’t have much room to play with. The same can be said for the boot, as the short length of the body means that unless you’re willing to stack your luggage vertically, there’s not much room for storage – unlike most cars, there’s no false boot floor for extra storage either, which is the same as with the combustion-powered G-class. To alleviate some of its storage woes, Mercedes has converted the G580’s external rear wheel compartment into storage for charging cables. Let’s just hope you don’t get a puncture on your off-road expedition.

10

There are numerous clever software features in this car, with a multitude of exterior cameras combining to create a camera feed that allows you to see ‘through’ the bottom of the car when tackling tricky terrain (or a tight McDonalds drive-thru). It also tries to be a little too clever with things like its Adaptive Cruise Control, which preemptively slows down ahead of curves, speed limit changes and roundabouts which can be quite disconcerting when you’re not expecting it. The sound system is also not as good as you’d expect it to be, perhaps due to the acoustics of the unusual cabin and notable wind noise that comes from the vertical windscreen at above 60mph.

The G580’s sense of quality is unlike any other EV on the market, with everything you touch clearly built to last. Peer under the car and just about everything you see is reinforced to beyond normal road car parameters, and on (and off) the road, it certainly doesn’t feel delicate. 

Price, specs and rivals

The Mercedes-Benz G580 starts from £154,870, putting it £13,805 ahead of the entry-level diesel-powered G450d. That price tag does put it £34,505 beneath the similarly-powerful G63, but then this car is not anywhere close to as desirable. 

As fascinating an engineering exercise as this is, there’s a reason nobody else has made anything to compete with it. It might have mind-boggling capabilities off-road, but its inefficiency makes the everyday commute most use a G-class for near-impossible.

Mercedes-Benz G580 specs