A G-Class Cabriolet hasn’t been offered since the current generation arrived in 2018.
This model looks like a regular G-Class with a fabric roof.
The automaker says this model will be sold globally, including in the United States.
After the last factory-produced convertible was manufactured in 2014, fans of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class who want to drop the top down have had to rely on external coachbuilders and very limited-run special editions.
This will soon change, however, since Mercedes-Benz has been teasing a cabriolet version of the current G-Class for a few months.
While the first clues were dark images showing only the SUV’s silhouette, three much clearer pictures have been released by the automaker earlier today.
These images show what we expected to see, namely that the new cabriolet looks like a regular four-door G-Class with its metal roof replaced by a fabric canopy.
Mercedes-Benz G-Class Cabriolet | Photo: Mercedes-BenzThe prototype is still wearing camouflage, so all details aren’t immediately obvious, but it doesn’t require too much imagination to figure out what the production version will look like.
This will be the first time the current generation of the G-Class, launched in 2018, will offer a soft top model.
Unlike the few special editions and tuner models that were sold since 2014, like the Brabus version with suicide rear half doors, of which 20 were made, and the Maybach Landaulet, only made in 99 units, this iteration will come out in a finished state from the Graz, Austria, factory where all G-Class models are manufactured by Magna-Steyr.
From the looks of the prototype, we don’t expect the upcoming convertible to be as extreme as the Maybach Landaulet, which was powered by a V12 engine and featured Portal Axles.
Indeed, the teaser images show an SUV that looks fairly close to the standard G550, which makes use of a mild-hybrid turbocharged 3,0L inline six-cylinder engine that generates 443 horsepower and 413 lb-ft of torque.
An AMG version could also be offered, using the same hand-built 4,0L twin-turbo V8 as the hardtop G63, which would give the convertible G-Class around 577 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque.
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Another possibility is an electric version, as the current G-Class can be ordered with four electric motors and a 116-kWh battery under the G580 with EQ Technology nameplate.
This makes for an output of 579 horsepower and 859 lb-ft of torque, along with a range of 385 kilometres on a charge. We don’t know for sure if this version will be offered with a fabric roof, as Mercedes-Benz didn’t mention it in the short text that accompanied the most recent pictures.
In fact, the automaker didn’t mention much, except that this “Special Edition” is just starting on road tests in Austria and will have to undergo cold-weather testing in Sweden before it can reach its first buyers.
This means we shouldn’t expect to see the production model for a good few months yet, but according to other comments from the automaker, there is a good chance it will be sold in Canada.
