Luxury SUV Of The Year - Mercedes Benz G-Class

We may have to thank the Shah of Iran for this behemoth lurking in these pages.Way back in the 1970s it was suggested by him to Mercedes that a hardcore tough as nails SUV was needed in the range, which promptly got the go-ahead. More than four decades later, the G-Wagen aka the G-Class soldiers on oblivious to the world around it.

- Somnath Chatterjee

For this SUV, time has indeed stood still. Even to this day the G-Class stays true to its roots yet Mercedes has amazingly made it even better in its new generation avatar.

To understand this SUV you need to wade through its deeply intriguing history. As said earlier it was originally made to be a hardcore off-road biased SUV with little in terms of creature comforts. Yet, many years later, Mercedes, in a stroke of genius, turned it into a status symbol which was lapped up by the jet-set like no other.

The ruler of Dubai has a G-Class and so does probably half of Hollywood along with the world’s rich and famous. In-fact more than anything, you are more likely to find a G-Class tucked away at a billionaire’s mansion than a bottle of Dom Perignon.