Automotive Engineering - June 2024 - 18

ROAD READY
Mercedes unveils tech-heavy electric G-Class
Surrounded by celebrities in Beverly
Hills, Mercedes-Benz unveiled the 2025
G 580 with EQ Technology on a dock in
the middle of a reservoir. That mouthful
of a name is met with a large offering
of technology packed into the luxury
off-roader. Sitting atop a 116-kWh capacity
battery pack, four motors (one
for each wheel), a redesigned rear axle
system, and a sound system feature
called G-Roar, the German utility vehicle
is ready to tackle the great outdoors
as well as Rodeo Drive.
While its target audience in the
United States will unlikely use any of
the following features more than a few
times a year, the transition from gas to
battery has done nothing to reduce the
vehicle's off-road capabilities. If anything,
it's enhanced them.
The electric G-Class is equipped with
four independent motors that offer true
torque vectoring and electronic differential
locks. Each of these two-speed
motors has a mechanically gear-reduced
low range. The higher torque at
low speeds is paired with two off-road
modes: Trail and Rock.
As you would expect, Trail is for the
average off-roading excursion, while Rock
gives the electric vehicle rock-crawling
The new Mercedes-Benz G 580 with EQ Technology Edition One in South Sea Blue Magno (European
model shown).
abilities. Rocking out in this way is not
something the average driver will use
regularly, but with its 45-year pedigree, it
wouldn't be a G-Class if it couldn't take
anything nature throws at it.
For those looking to exit Beverly Hills
for heights devoid of asphalt, the G 580
has an approach angle of 32 degrees, a
departure angle of 30.7 degrees, and a
20.3-degree breakover angle. Protecting
the battery pack and situated in the
modified ladder frame is a proprietary
composite carbon-fiber cover that
Mercedes states is more rigid than aluminum
and steel and, at 127 pounds (58
kg), would be three times heavier if
made from steel.
The ladder frame found on the gas
The dashboard of the electrified G 580 uses two 12.3-inch (312-mm) displays.
18 June 2024
G-Class has been modified and reinforced
for the electric variant. As in the
petroleum-powered vehicle, the EV has a
double wishbone suspension system up
front with a solid rear axle in the rear.
There are differences, though. The rear
axle has been redesigned to accommodate
the frame-mounted rear motors,
which are connected to the wheels via
dual-joint driveshafts. That setup allows
full compression of the suspension without
changing the camber of the wheels.
For those traversing a rough trail, having
the entire contact patch of each tire on
the ground can be the difference between
moving forward or being stuck. Or
worse, sliding backward.
For tight corners, G-Steering turns
the G Wagen around one of the rear
wheels. The wheel remains stationary
while the G-Class pivots around it. For a
more dynamic turn, the electric G-Class
will spin 360 degrees in one spot up to
two times while on a dirt road or loose
asphalt. The wheels on either side of
the vehicle turn in opposite directions.
AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING
BOTH IMAGES: MERCEDES-BENZ

Automotive Engineering - June 2024

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