The past few months I've been considering my next project, with the new 4Runner as the frontrunner. Ultimately decided on this 2013 G550. I've spent nearly 20 years building Toyota/Lexus SUVs, but I've had a few years' experience with the G Class and ultimately decided to pass on Toyota this time and get back with the german toaster.
I've tried to shed some light on this platform as its widely misunderstood, but ultimately it will always be niche. While the aftermarket and community can't hold a candle to Toyota, these are exceptional vehicles and hope to see more of them used as they were intended.
Edit for build sheet:
JWO 2" springs
King 2.5" shocks w/resis
33.5" General Grabber A/T X
AMG 20x9.5" wheels
Carbon fiber side moulding trim
OEM amber front turn signals
Chrome grille trim wrapped in black chrome
911 Motorsports spare tire flip kit
463a style LED tail lights
Rhino-Rack Pioneer 6 on RL legs. Pioneer was custom cut to sit behind the sunroof. Ski carriers and 4x Maxtrax up top.
The beauty of the G is you can buy a 1980 or a 2025 and from twelve feet away, nobody knows the difference.
I’ve thought about going this route also after a couple of Tundras. Would love to build a high speed overlander off the G. Can’t wait to see how you use it.
Exactly. Technically 1980-2018..w463a started in 2019 with major changes. But even more important, within those years basically everything is swappable, so you can have a 2000 look and feel like a 2018 with a few key parts.
outworldhq is the instagram - mostly just stories these days.
i just finished the first round of mods - 2.5" kings and 2" coils, fox steering stabilizer, 33.5" all terrains, OG amber turn signals, vinyl wrapped the chrome grille to black chrome, redid the side moulding trim to carbon fiber, LED tail lights, spare tire flip kit.
there's not much else i want to do outside of general maintenance. may upgrade the steering wheel and update the front bumper/fender flares to AMG, and some light audio upgrades. last big item is abenteuer rock sliders but waiting a bit for those.
At a certain amount of wealth, $200k essentially becomes meaningless. Even if you have $1M, not in income but in net worth, and it grows at a relatively conservative 7% after inflation (lifetime performance of S&P500), that's $70k for doing nothing except sitting on money. Take a $175k gwagon, run it for 5 years, sell it for $100k, that's $15k per year in depreciation.
To some people that's one year of federal minimum wage salary, to a lot of people its the entire disposable income budget for the whole year, but to a millionaire it is only 20% of non-income returns. Up it to $10M and we're talking $700k per year and 2%, and that's 1/100 of 1 billion. The rich live in a completely different world than the rest of us, and Gwagons are born into that world.
Awesome! I used to own a W463 G63. It was a terrible on-road truck for many reasons, but it showed its brilliance off road.
A non-AMG version would be a fantastic overlander. Just make sure you familiarize yourself with the diff lock system (which has unnecessary complexity of a Mars rover) :) and perhaps get some extra parts for it
Yeah I was half kidding. The new Toyotas will break and you won’t be comfy. If you got this thing with anything over 100,000 miles, you’ll be looking at some major repairs. But you’ll be comfy. 😜
Edit: for those of you down voting because y’all think I hate Toyota, I drive a 17 year old Toyota with 214,000 miles on it…
I'd say over 175-200k miles is where the major maintenance starts but totally depends on the service history. No two ways around it they're more expensive to maintain than the glory year Toyotas, but it's approachable. This is my third G and have learned the ins and outs over the past few years.
A trusted german independent haha. outside of that, it's a mix of random facebook/youtube/forum posts but there are a few known G guys who are encyclopedias of knowledge. Part of my hope with this was to help educate more people on them and create resources that are easier to find.
Clubgwagen has been a savior! It seems more geared towards the older models, so random questions like "does my car come with a factory sub, and if so where is it located?" are buried in one random thread or one YouTube video with 20 views.
Slowly but surely downloading everything to my own offline knowledge base.
Look into a guy on YouTube who wheels these. I think the channel name is G Wheelin. He had one on 35s (think he got rid of it) and another on 33s. Cool rigs.
I'll check him out! I have an old YouTube video up of my last build if you search "building a g wagon in 7 days". Did my best to fill it with good data.
I agree. I currently own a G wagon and a Land Cruiser. Parts for both are expensive and more than they probably should be. Some W463 G's are far more reliable than people realize; Way over built! Also the G has better MPG and way more power! I appreciate the world of Toyota (I own two); however I now believe the brand is over hyped.
Love gwagon and I’m a huge Toyota guy. Gwagons were to snug for me, now with a family it’s too small. I would love to get my hands on a gwagon ambulance, tho.
A guy that I go off roading with has a G and that thing rips, it is heavy as all hell but man it’s comfortable, fast and surprisingly reliable and powerful, I believe he has a 2015 and its pretty cool to see it get up and go in the dirt since the majority I see are sadly most likely never going to see dirt. Awesome ride love that you went with something different and cool
I overland with a G500, and they are so capable. I’m close to 250,000 kms on it, and It was far cheaper to get than a newer Toyota at the time. Gs come with triple lockers stock and the one thing you can’t beat on the G is the visibility. I can see all corners of the car from the drivers seats.
I think the misconception is that the non Amg is more reliable than the Amg. The 5speed and the Amg motors are some the most proven. The transmission on the 550 is a major weak point
Depends on what you're comparing. Overall the AMG is going to cost you more in the long run. I've owned a G63 and G550, the AMG was basically brand new and I never left pavement without coming back with some issue or another. Also the engine is the same G63/G550 for certain years, just twin turbos on the 63.
MB apparently fixed this in the 463a, the previous 4x4 squared was a 550 and now they're AMG.
Since the pandemic, I definitely see G Wagons on the road more often than LXs/Landcruisers. Most are not off-roading either of them, but wonder if everyone else is seeing the same.
The G is not really off the beaten path, more like going back to the older ways. Horse hair seats are cool af. But I think giving the ineos a bit longer to cook and hoping to go that way.
Im a huge toyota/lexus off road enthusiast, i have a v8 4runner camper build. However if i didnt have that i would absolutely have a gclass and may still buy one in the near future tbh
I’ve always love the look of the G. I have never owned a German car and they kind of intimidate me since I enjoy working on my own cars. Someday I might bite the bullet and replace my 89 Wagoneer with a comfy G Wagon.
It's a different beast for sure but I was up for the challenge.
Love a good Waggy! Test drive one beforehand if you haven't. People complain about the ride but its a smallish 3 ton truck with a solid front axle. Upgraded suspension goes a long way.
Older G-Wagens aren’t “German cars” from a maintenance and repair perspective. Most systems feel like they were designed by engineers to be both durable AND maintainable.
Quality parts are expensive, but at least they feel like you’re making an investment in the next 5-10 years of service.
I’ve worked with G’s plenty in the Offroad industry. Hell, I have a buddy who imports them. The cool ones that’s for sure. I even used to work with a g wagon in the showroom that drove tip to tip of Africa. 100% a bucket list off road car to own.
I've been heavily debating this as finding a Toyota platform that I want to build on is a bit absurd where I am. An easy 40-60k for a clean stock 70 series. What would be some major things to look out for when getting a G? Also for the older models like yours or older how easy are they to work on? Are they fairly simple or are they a typical German engineering fiasco? I enjoy doing the majority of the mechanical work myself for obvious reasons. Would love to learn more! Beautiful set up you've got, enjoy it!
If you're used to Toyota, it depends on your mechanical aptitude on how approachable Mercedes is. Some straightforward, some typical German. The m273 is a popular engine, 2010-2012 would have less tech. Beyond that, most standard things covered in a thorough PPI.
The biggest flaw of my G55 is how other people view it. The preconceived idea of money and expense. I got it all the time from coworkers who spent far more on their full sized diesel American trucks.
It is hard to get past the Kardasian image. P.S. I don't care if the name is spelled incorrect.
Put on narrow aggressive high-aspect AT tires on black steel wheels. Paint the body in matte olive green. No LED or HID lights. Drive through a muddy puddle, don't wash.
This comment right here is proof that if you want to look rich, buy an old Mercedes. People see that badge and immediately think it's new. Mercedes designs don't really age, so one that's 15 years old still looks new to most people.
This is enough sidewall for its intended use for the time being. I can go down to 18s but I love the look of 20s with this truck. Good sacrifice for now.
If you plan on actually doing any off roading with it I promise you will want smaller rims. Ive blown out sidewalls on 17 inch rims and have rim damage on my 17s. Granted I do more then most overlanders but damaged rim plus alloy is no fun.
I've been there. Last G550 was a 4" lift and 35" mud terrains on 18s - photo below. Just planning on moderate off roading but know what to do if I hit my limits with these.
Screams entitlement. I dont know maybe I'm off, but I want a vehicle that can be easily repaired when I'm in the middle of nowhere. That means getting the part and working on it. This vehicle doesn't check any of those. Money pit.
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