Art and fashion are two deeply subjective things, and I don’t claim to understand either of them. I’m not posh enough to collect art (unless you count toys), and my fashion sense is limited to buying the same type of T-shirt and jeans when the old ones wear out, with no regard to any brand names or designers. This meant that the latest Mercedes–Benz press release contained loads of names I had never heard of, but there were pictures of a ’90s G-Wagon, so I was all in.
Turns out there are technically 21 G-Wagons involved in the German carmaker’s latest project. One that was quasi-restomoded by a gentleman called Nigo, and 20 more that are inspired by his creation and will be made available for purchase in 2025. I was thinking of writing this piece just like most other manufacturers’ news releases, but some of the language in it is deserving of closer inspection of the semi-serious type.
Basically, the marketing department of Mercedes tried to explain in a flashy way that its classic workshop had restored a ’90s military-type G model that had then been given some finishing touches by the aforementioned Nigo.
The four-wheeled art piece is called Mercedes-Benz Project G-Class Past II Future, and we are told that it “features a minimalistic, matte two-tone contemporary color palette in olive green and gray, which is offset by striking exterior accents in black and gold.” So, it’s a military-green G where someone spray-painted the jerry can yellow and gave it black window frames, basically.
It’s not that it looks bad—quite the opposite. Given the chance, I’d happily bomb around town or country in this Chedeng, but the whole fashion and art angle sounds a bit too much like the Germans want to be down with the kids. The car also features style elements from fashion label Moncler, which is a partner in the project and has had collabs with Mercedes-Benz before.
The hardtop, for example, looks a bit like the Moncler puffer jacket that is one of the signature pieces of the brand, or so the press release tells me. One glance at the brand’s website tells me it’s way out of my price range to even consider, and I’ve actually bought Mercs that cost less than one of those jackets. But each to his own.
If you’re into high-end and very artsy audio equipment, then you may have heard the name Devon Turnbull. The American equipment maker-slash-artist has made a name for himself with his audio installations in recent years, and he also got his hands on this G-Wagon artwork.
He created and installed some “boom boxes” that are mounted on the convertible top linkage, and seeing as this is a super bare convertible, that basically means you’ll be sharing your taste in music with anyone inside a radius of 50m around the car. The speakers can also be removed to cater for any spontaneous urban dance parties (I assume).
The art car is a one-off, and with its rather bare ’90s underpinnings is also not exactly what most G-Wagon buyers are looking for these days. To cater to those—and make some extra dosh from a limited-production run—Mercedes has created the limited-edition Mercedes-Benz G-Class Past II Future. It’s based on the new G450d and G500 models, and only 20 of them will be made in total.
They all have two-tone exterior paintwork in green and gray, G-Class typical checkered upholstery, a rear-mounted spare wheel with the collaboration logo on its cover, as well as some other accents related to the art car and a “1 of 20” plaque on the center console.
No word on the price yet, but expect it to be quite a bit above the standard car, if you can even get your hands on one. We suspect the 20 vehicles have already been allocated to customers with an appropriate understanding of art and fashion.
So, if in the future you see a new-ish G-Wagon drive past you that is gray at the front and white at the back—and it has not been in an accident and hasn’t been fully resprayed yet—then it is a super rare designer-inspired limited-edition must-have fashion SUV.
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