In the background, a small passenger plane accelerates and after a few seconds disappears into the dark, overcast sky above the city of Graz, which has a population of 200,000. But the G-Class disciples have no eyes for what’s happening at the neighboring airport in the Styrian capital – they look up the fortified hill and can hardly believe that the currently clean Mercedes G-Class is supposed to make it up here. The test is coming. If you don’t want to drive the Mercedes G-Class – no matter the year – alone in Grünwald, shine in Beverly Hills or impress in the Arab Emirates, we recommend a trip to the G-Class Experience Center. For a few years now, not far from the production facility in Graz, Styria, Mercedes has created an extremely varied playground on the site of the former Nittner air base for all G-Class fans who want to be able to deal with ground clearance, differential locks and approach angles more skillfully than ever.
On the extremely rough terrain, off-road novices have the opportunity to test the impressive potential of the G-Class off the beaten track, to train their own driving skills in extreme terrain and to find out what the “Schöckl proved” quality feature really means. Anyone who knows the Mercedes G-Class has already heard of Schöckl, Graz’s local mountain, on which the spectacular test track is located. Here every Mercedes G-Class has to prove itself during its torturous development journeys. The conditions on the 100,000 square meter property of the G-Class Experience Center south of Graz are just as challenging as the rocky terrain on the Schöckl. In addition to the reception and event area, the area contains four test modules that are intended to demonstrate the technical qualities of the off-road vehicle. For example, there are the natural and artificial off-road areas, known simply as G-Rock. Here, daily test drivers can experience the star-squared timber in tough off-road use on various uphill and downhill routes with different surfaces and gradients, as well as on diagonal journeys and water crossings.
In a crawl over hill and dale, through the dense woods and through water half a meter deep – everything is possible here. Because the topic of nature conservation was at the top of the specifications when planning for the area, alongside the driving experience for the potential drivers – biotope experts and experts for forestry and nature conservation ensured that the ecology did not fall uncontrollably under the studded tires during the daily G-Class excursions comes. The area also offers various ramps with gradients of up to 100 percent as well as an on-road area where aircraft used to get to the runway. There the G-Classes are driven at the absolute limit in terms of driving dynamics. If you want, you can even ski on the slalom course there – on four wheels. The exercises themselves – as well as the long water crossing in the adjacent forest – are carried out under the expert guidance of terrain instructors. In addition to the on- and off-road exercises, anyone who wants can also take a look at the production of the G-Class on a Magna factory tour, where more than 500,000 G-Classes have been manufactured over the 45 years. The whole thing can also be combined with delivery of your own G-Class for around 2,500 euros. “We want to offer our customers an exclusive and comprehensive product and brand experience,” explains Dr. Emmerich Schiller, Chairman and CEO of Mercedes-Benz G GmbH, “With the factory delivery in the homeland of our off-road icon, we are creating an emotional framework that makes the special atmosphere upon first contact with the new dream G even more intense.” This will change The G-Class will not change in the future, because the G-Class will soon also be available as an electric version – and the E-G-Class will also show what it can do at the experience center.
