Some say the driver seat is affectionately called the G-Spot.

A manual transmission and promise of no electrical problems, I'll take the old one for sure

Screw the new G Wagen. I'll take one of these. Gunther Holtorf drove his 1988 around the world, clocking 550,000 miles in 26 years. At the end of the journey, the only modified parts were suspension components for increased load. The engine, tansmission, transfer case, axles, etc... were all original. Not just OEM. Original. What more needs to be said about such a vehicle?

Reviewing G class without mentioning diff locks and off road excellency is like reviewing water without saying that water is wet.

I find these absolutely utilitarian workhorse Mercedes a hell of a lot more interesting than their bread and butter luxury cars.

And it's still more reliable than your Land Rover.

The mystery black switch is the Idle adjuster

Actually, an inclinometer is a very handy thing to have when off-roading. Many of us install them to help prevent roll-overs. The Idle Speed Adjuster switch (the mystery switch by the hazard light button) is extremely important in many situations off road with a manual transmission or if you have to use a winch. But then you probably already knew that...

I like your Motor Week-esque demonstration of the operation of the manual transmission.

Re Radio Buttons: M= Mittelwelle (AM in German), U = Ultrakurzwelle or UKW (FM in German)

I like the older G-Wager and Land Rover Defenders over the newer versions.

Now we're talkin'. A real G class.

He raises a good point... Why does every single wealthy world dictator drive a Mercedes, and why do they sell it to them?

The good old days when cars were mechanical and raw

Thats a inclinometer measures your incline so you can push it to the limits and not tip over when off roading. Not a airplane gauge.

I saw an 80s G-wagon that had the rear tire on the back door, and it had a tire case that looked like it was from a brand new G-Wagon. It had a new paint job and from the outside looked as if it was brand new. I thought wow, didn't know they made a convertible G-Wagon. It looked really good.

I would take a Mercedes Benz 300 GD over any of the new g wagons or Land rovers. Hands down, without a doubt, no question asked.

I bet that one will last longer than a new one with all of its fancy technology that breaks all the time

80 Horsepower from the cold war lmfao

NGL I’ve watched quite a few new and old Doug videos, and this one is by far my favorite. Well done. Thank you.

When cars were simple, basic, and got the job done. I'd love one of these.

YES. Doug is back!!!! I'm so happy, I thought he was gone forever from KZfaq.

The fact that this thing is a convertible and a diesel makes it more awesome! I've always loved Mercedes G-Wagons. That was a good find and review.

Your videos are great! Great reviews, practical opinions and good, intentionally cheesy humor. Keep em coming!

My my, how times sure have changed, Doug! Interesting to see how far the G class has become and how much your style has changed

My 1990 Mitsubishi Montero had one of those airplane gauges. Showed fore-and-aft pitch and side-to-side roll. It was my favorite feature.

Good to see you're back!

My dad's got one of those. Same colour, same spec, same wheelbase, similar roof too. Except his is a year older and is much more rusty and nearly all the electrical bits are broken. But it's never broke down and it's good off road. I've been told that that peticular spec is very rare over here in the UK.

I was stationed in Germany in 1987 with the U.S Army. Our unit had one of these painted OD green which we used as an administrative vehicle. It doesn't look much different than current G-Wagen's.

I owned a Mercedes Benz MB100D which was coming standard with the same 2.4 L, naturally aspirated, inline 4 cylinder engine as this GD240 or the E240D (W123) and I sold it at 1.2 million miles. The craziest thing is that it's still running

Haha the 240. It has followed me my entire military career. Trusty old steed through the Norwegian countryside.

the switch with unknown function at 1:45 is to regulate the idling mixture when you are in the very lowest gear, wich you only use when you are stuck or pulling stuff. If I remember it right

This was a military spec vehicle. The only reason the G-series remains in production is that Europe needs a military jeep other than the old Land Rover (as they are deemed too unreliable by many European contintental military).

AMAZING review, right on!

Thank you for the sense of humor. Love your review.

That thing looks awesome

Great video, if own one of these myself and the character of this vehicle and the community around it is amazing!

The M on the radio stands for Mittelwelle (Middle Wave) and the U stands for UKW = Ultrakurzwelle (Ultra Short Wave).

0:20 Doug flexing on us with his g wagon and polo sweatshirt

That is one damn fine offroad vehicle, i used to drive it in the Danish army and loved it

Who know that 4 years later, Doug would own a Mercedes Benz G-Wagon Cabriolet that is a 1999 model year which meant that it's more modern than the one he reviewed 4 years earlier.

Okay, I know I'm going through your videos commenting on the plates you use, but seriously, a NM POW plate from the late 80s? I've decided you must be a collector and that's awesome.

In my opinion it's still one of the best off roaders you can get

The "unknown function knob" is for setting the engine idle speed, it's directly connected to the gas pedal..

Man i love these old reviews

I remember reading about your 2002 G Wagen in your book!

Ohhh Doug you came so far now you can review any car or suv you want 😁

you are great reviewer, like your videos

Doug you are the best bro 👍🏻👍🏻

For me it is amazing how the older G Wagens have benefited from the high prices of the new ones. Go find anyone of these from the 80s and 90s and watch the high prices they are asking.

This is so much cooler than the luxury to be honest. It just looks like a fun car that does its actual job well.

Who else thinks that the old doug was so much better than now and more honest with reviewing cars

I believe it has manual blockable differentials on both axels plus the central one, few cars have this standard

I FOUND A VIDEO OF YOURS I HADN’T SEEN. LIT

It's always amazing how much you focus on the stuff you don't need in a car ... in car infotainment system? Serious? You need that to go to work or drive the kids to school ...

Like this g wagon tuff and nicely finished

I just have to say I have been watching some videos and I am subbed to you so I saw this video in my feed I was laughing most of this video..this was great man . thanks for the laugh and great vids. please keep doing what your doing I look forward to these videos ! take care man !

Hey doug! I wonder if your are going to make any video showing the Toyota fj40 or BJ 73 in the future. It would be awesome!!

I really want one... They are just so hard to find, which I am kind of glad because that makes them cool and rare! :)

The 230GE that my Dad has was much more fun... Same engine as the 190E cosworth - 190bhp and a side out exhaust. Though getting upto 90 didn't take long it was never a good idea to go past that. Always loved the panic handle for the passenger though.

Unknown switch to the left of the hazard switch is the idle speed adjust.

I'm surprised that you know who Ceausecu was LOL

The first few generations of the G class are pure workhorses that are intended to get through the toughest terrain. 3 mechanical Diff locks and low/high range gearbox. Shortwheelbase, unstoppable offroad. Screw the new G class, the 461 series is what the G class was always truly about!

That button with unknown function is one you probably shouldn't mess with lol. I'm pretty sure the owner uses that to adjust the idle haha. I have a 78 240d 4mt, wonderful little tank lol.

You should do one of those old 80's toyota land cruisers, also noticed plates were of a former POW.

Great video!!!

That thing is amazing. Going to try to get one and ship it to Rwanda.

I miss these good ol Doug vids

Great video

I love everything about that truck...

I wonder if Doug ever reflects on this video...

Bring back this Doug Demuro NOW

Doug forgot the coolest feature of the old diesel Gelandewagen. It can survive a nuclear apocalypse. Provided it isn't damaged from the bomb blast, the emp pulse from a nuclear weapon will not affect this truck. Unlike newer cars, there are no micro-chips that run the engine to get fried in that emp blast. Even if it won't start due to a dead battery, you can always push it and pop the clutch, off you go.

The aeroplane gage is for knowing your angle, go above certain angle and you tip over.

well its not an airplane gauge, its a meter that shows the cars angle so you know when it may roll over, these is seriously good mountain vehicles built by Steyer, and with an mercedes engine mostly.

That attitude gauge on the dash isn't in other G-Wagen photos. Is that something I can buy somewhere? There's other incline-o-meters on Amazon, but this one is way cooler looking.

Hey that's awesome. We had one at our dealership and I got a lot of time with it. It's pretty awesome. Ours wasn't diesel though. There weren't too many imported

I know this is 6 years old but to not hear the THIS..... hurt my heart lol

Doug deserves a G wagon more than any of the people he mentioned

@Doug: The "G" stands for German "Gelände", meaning "offroad". You should definitely take this car into a offroad park and compare it against e.g. a land rover. It is _just great_ for offroading.

M = medium frequency U = UKW (Ultrakurzwelle, very high frequency in german)

Did you think in 2020 you would be still doing this? congrats and thank you.

SWB plus canvas on w460 would cost around USD150.000 in my country. And collectors are buying them

Good years of demuro

Here after four years... Thisssssss Issss Fletcher Jones Motorcars, here in Newport beach California!!!!

What are the different shifters in it? There is a smaller one that says SA-S. and SA-N-GA

Actually, Mercedes G-240 not that slow. I had one for a year, Wolf edition, and I was able to keep up with traffic, without any problem.

OMG a white vintage G Wagen with a Ralph Lauren sweater??? You will totally RULE New England ( Martha’s Vineyard) So awesOME!!!

Dont forgot, the G-Class was build as a military vehicle for the german army.

That thing is seriously cool.

Your "black switch of unknown function" is the diesel engine's choke and the "black plastic thing" is the ashtray. Hope you liked driving it... that 240GD only has about 65 hp. My 300GD is the one with 88. And don't forget the mileage! You're probably getting 23 mpg with that 4-cyl diesel!

that diesel sound is heavenly

*grabs flip-phone* "I could kill you with this" -Doug DeMuro 2015

I like the bare honesty of this car. It's a workhorse, not a luxury SUV. The only thing I like about the latest G-Class are the AMG body kit and the improved interior. But if I owned one I would not take it offroad. This 240GD? Anyday!

min 4:58 you've said Ceausescu. That man was driven with an ARO 243 which looks like a G Mercedes, but it was released long before Mercedes.

You didn't warned us it will be so wild with throwing turns, screaming tires and crazy snow stunts. I was unprepared. Now I'm scared.

You got this from Selden motors, that guy always has cool stuff

Now that's a cool car , you don't see that on the streets anymore!

Amazing

I can't believe that no one has mention the body is made by PUCH yes mopeds. The axle made by Styler and the engine and transmission be MBZ. You can by the same vehicle with PUCH emblem in Austria!