Size matters

By daryl, 13 February 2019
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In 2016, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia (MBM) formally launched its current SUV catalogue to the theme of ‘Hungry for Adventure’. Over the years, those three words accompanied every initiative that shone the spotlight on the German carmaker’s more versatile offerings, ranging from mountain treks to beach escapades within the region.

The latest instalment of Hungry for Adventure took us to Indonesia’s Central Java region, where a host of challenging activities in the great tropical outdoors designed to awaken the rugged adventurer within awaited us. Yet, the biggest challenge of all was having to wake up at 4 a.m. for two consecutive mornings – once to catch our flight to Semarang and again to witness sunrise from the top of Borobudur.

We made it on both occasions, but it wasn’t the spiritual magnetism of the Buddhist temple that lifted our spirits at such an ungodly hour. To be honest, we weren’t keen on trekking through a forest or abseiling down a 60-metre cavern in the first place. But we accepted the invitation nevertheless on the off chance that we’d finally get to drive the car officially described by MBM as the ‘Godfather of all SUVs’, the Mercedes-AMG G63.

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The trip seemed futile at first when we arrived at the Ahmad Yani International Airport to find that the GLS400 we were assigned to was as big and bad as it got in this year’s Hungry for Adventure fleet.  We were down but not out – the massive seven seater still managed to entertain us for the most part. It was just the narrower sections, especially the ones littered with unpredictable traffic that threw us off. The GLAs ahead of us weren’t the most reliable barometers where width was concerned.

However, our Indonesian hosts were gracious enough to employ police escorts to ease the convoy’s mobility. A set of blaring sirens on either side of a car as physically imposing as the GLS allowed us to cut through the traffic-infested junctions of Semarang and Yogyakarta like Moses crossing the Red Sea. With one stressful element out of the way, we were able to better soak up the GLS400’s qualities en route to Instagram-worthy locations such as the Curug Lawe waterfall, Jomblang cave and Parangtritis beach.

Truth be told, the only quality that really stood out was the GLS400’s agility, which was unexpected given its size. It’s surprisingly easy to manoeuvre for a car measuring 5,120mm long, 1,934mm wide and 1,850mm tall. But despite being billed as the most practical and family-oriented SUV of the range, the serenity in its ride is still easily compromised by rough tarmac. Its age also shows in terms of tech and its powertrain. A GLC200 feels fresher inside, with the pep to outrun the V6-powered GLS400 around the bends to boot.

For much of the trip, it seemed like the non-driving portions of the itinerary were more in line with the Hungry for Adventure theme than the car we were driving. The offbeat sites that eluded mobile signals scoped out by our organisers certainly amplified the element of adventure. But it seemed like the GLS400 would feel happier cruising on three-lane highways and parked in the valet section of a five-star hotel.

These bittersweet sentiments evaporated into the baking hot atmosphere on the last day of the drive when our prayers were finally answered. As we suspected, the G63 was part of the fleet after all. MBM went the extra mile to make special arrangements for the car from last November’s launch gambit in Sepang – the sole unit in the region – to be shipped into Indonesia for the drive. But it was only permitted to join the later part of the programme that centred around the city of Yogyakarta.

We would have swiped the keys to the AMG-spec Geländewagen with the same vigour even if we were only allowed to drive it within a parking lot. In retrospect, the B-roads we unleashed the 585bhp SUV onto weren’t exactly blessed with more breathing room than the average Kuala Lumpur hotel car park.

 But there’s still something special about cruising in the G63 to the watchful eyes and ears – the rumble of the four-litre V8 is inescapable – of curious locals and confused tourists alike. That it stands nearly two metres tall and costs close to RM1.5mil adds to the overall mystique.

We would have swiped the keys to the AMG-spec Geländewagen with the same vigour even if we were only allowed to drive it within a parking lot.

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Physical grandeur aside, the top-of-the-line G-Class is easily picked out by the naked eye, even in a convoy of 20 Mercedes-Benz SUVs, because of how cleverly its designers managed to pen a 2018 product whilst preserving the G-Wagen’s signature traits – squarish profile, chunky door hinges and thick rubber cladding included – from 40 years ago. Even the doors shut with a resounding thud that momentarily transports you back to 1979, the year the G-Class made its commercial debut.

Amidst all the updates Stuttgart’s flagship SUV has gone through over the decades, it’s easy to forget that the new G-Class is only in its second generation. This becomes more obvious when you’re inside the behemoth of a car, massaged by its Nappa leather seats and entertained by the frequencies piped through the Burmester audio system, with vocals by the AMG performance exhaust on the side (literally). The AMG Ride Control adaptive dampers add to the luxury by delivering a comfier ride than the GLS400’s, which says a lot since the G63 rides on a set of menacing 22-inch forged alloys.

Beyond the G63’s wealth of tech and creature comforts, our possibilities from behind its three-spoked wheel were limited by the narrow Javanese roads and the pace of the convoy, sirens still blaring from both ends for maximum effect.

The powertrain, which includes two turbos and AMG’s Speedshift nine-speeder, still took all of this in stride. But we would have loved to give them a run for their money on Malaysia’s North-South highway, with a couple of detours to certain highland areas thrown in. Now, that’s an adventure we’d be hungry for.

The good news is that the G63’s return ticket has already been booked, so there’s a small chance our dreams could still come true. In any case, its movement across international waters is reflective of Mercedes-Benz’s willingness to go where no luxury car has gone before in the name of Hungry for Adventure. We’re just keeping our fingers crossed for an invitation to the next one.