Mercedes confirms a new 'baby' G-Wagen is on the way

Mercedes confirmed that a new baby G-Wagen, a smaller and presumably less expensive version of the G-Class, is coming.

The company hasn’t given much in the way of information, but there are a couple of things we can already predict.

There’s no timeline either, but Mercedes also said a new V8 is coming.

A new V8 and new baby G-Wagen in the same sentence sounds nice, doesn’t it?

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What we can expect from the baby G-Wagen

Mercedes confirmed they’re working on a newer, smaller G-Wagen in their annual presentation to investors.

The current-gen G-Wagen uses a slightly modernized version of the same design it has used for five decades.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it – as they say – so the first thing we can expect from the baby G-Wagen is a design language that mimics that of the ‘standard’ version.

We can also expect a combination of internal combustion and electric power.

We know this because Mercedes announced the new smaller G-Wagen (and a new CLA) along with a new V8.

This may be coincindental, but it might not be.

The newest version, the W465 model, is available with an inline-six, both gas and diesel, a V8, and also as an EV.

It’s around 180-190 inches (4.6-4.8m) long, depending on the model, and very tall at around 80 inches (2 meters, give or take).

It weighs up to three tons, depending on the model.

We can realistically take those numbers and make them 20-40 percent smaller.

If we had to pick a car to compare it to, we’d expect it to be the same size as a Range Rover Evoque or a Velar.

The reason why the G-Class is such a big deal for Mercedes

The G-Wagen, or G-Class, has been around for over 40 years, since 1979, and some people, including Mercedes CEO Ola Källenius, by the way, think it might be the most important Mercedes car on sale.

Källenius was once quoted stating that the ‘last Mercedes to be built will be a G-Class’ which is a pretty straightforward (and somewhat dramatic) statement.

Despite being a heavy, gas-guzzling, six-figure vehicle, this vehicle sells like hotcakes and has been selling like that for decades.

It’s one of those vehicles that no one needs, but everyone wants.

There’s even a Popemobile version of it.

The fact it is still one of the best off-roading vehicles out there certainly helps.

In the future, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to imagine Mercedes reinventing the G-Wagen as a sub-division, with entire line-ups of G-Wagen-based models.

Imagine what a G-Wagen supercar would look like.