Two-tone G 320 Has Us Ready for One Epic Adventure
G 320 has four-wheel drive, a trio of locking differentials, brush guards and smooth straight-six power to get it over rough terrain.
In the United States, the Mercedes-Benz G-Class is a luxury off-roading icon and the vehicle of choice for celebrities and lesser-known people with deep pockets. Officially, it’s been that way for 18 years, well after this 1998 G 320 rolled out of the factory in Graz, Austria. Key word: officially.
The G-Wagen has been around since the late 1970s, but Mercedes-Benz only started offering it in its U.S. showrooms in 2002. Some wealthy and patient Americans still got the boxy brute in those gap years thanks to importers. That explains this 1998 G 320 we found for sale on Bring a Trailer.
We’ve been lucky enough to get a variety of V8– and V12-powered Gs here in the states, but we were never meant to get one with Mercedes’s 3.2-liter I6. According to the listing, this rig was “brought to the US by Europa International, Inc. in Santa Fe, New Mexico and was acquired by the selling dealer 15 years ago” (an article from Auto Trader explains that Europa became the official U.S. importer and distributor of G-Wagens in the early 1990s).
In stock form, the G 320 is very much like its more powerful siblings. It has four-wheel drive, three locking differentials (front, center and rear) and a two-speed transfer case. The main difference is the I6 up front, which is connected to a four-speed automatic transmission. This particular G-Wagen has additional hardware designed to make it more functional off of paved roads. Brush guards protect the front end, taillights and even the front fender-topping turn signals. The 18-inch wheels are wrapped in all-terrain rubber (the fifth wheel hanging on the rear door wears a mud-terrain tire).
A rear ladder leads up to the roof-mounted cargo basket. There’s auxiliary lighting up front and at the top of the rear end to make nighttime trails a little easier to follow.
This G 320 also sports some aftermarket style. The base color, Brilliant Silver Metallic, is the perfect backdrop for the black front and rear bumpers and AMG wheels and the black wrap covering the center of the hood and the roof.
The interior is a simple combination of gray leather and dark wood trim. Overall, it appears to be in good condition, although the rear cargo area’s carpeting could stand a little extra cleaning.
The current owner has racked up approximately 36,000 miles over the past 15 years, bringing the total odometer reading to 113,000 miles. Back in 2013, the seller had a valve job done and the head gasket replaced. They had the oil and filter changed in 2018. Other maintenance is documented in the extensive amount of receipts shown in the listing.
If you want to get your hands on this unusual adventure vehicle, you have four days left to place your bid – and, as of right now, $12,500 to beat. This may not be the fanciest or most powerful G-Wagen, but it’ll definitely stand out next to 99 percent of the other ones out there, whether they’re mall crawling or mountain climbing.
Photos: Bring a Trailer
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