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The new bull bar on the 2019 G is clearly different than previous G bull bars. It's immediately apparent that the bottom portion of the old BB's 2 vertical mounting posts have been eliminated on the 2019 BB, immediately below the top ridge line of the front bumper, and the BB is now apparently attached down through the top of the front bumper.
The old BB could very easily be removed, and the mounting "holes" were simply covered/plugged by the Euro cover plates, a readily available Mercedes part.
However, the new 2019 BB looks very different from the old style in at least 3 ways. First is the aesthetics, in that the new BB's top horizontal rail is lower down from the front of the hood. Secondly, the bottom portion of the 2 vertical posts on the new BB (below the top ridge line of the bumper) have been eliminated (as previously noted). Thirdly, the BB now apparently attaches to the bumper differently than with the previous BB. The new BB essentially mounts on top of the bumper.
Notice in the attached close up view (see below), you can see what appears to be some kind of a gray colored rubber gasket, at the rear base of the BB's attachment point, sitting on top of the bumper's horizontal surface, just ahead of the radiator front grill area.
Has anyone else noticed these gray gaskets, one on each side of the bumper, immediately beneath the rear mounting points of the new BB?
My concern is that if one were to remove the new style BB from a US 2019 G550, it looks like 2 holes would remain (one on the left and one on the right side of the bumper), back at the rear of the top of the bumper, where the 2 vertical posts ride on top of the bumper. I have not noticed any plugs or caps at these 2 points on the Euro 2019 G's that do not have BB's, albeit I do see vertically oriented cover plates at the bottom of the front grill on the 2019 Euro G's. Who knows, perhaps the Euro G's front bumper is now different than the bumper of US 2019 G's.
On the old BB, there were no such gaskets, and the mounting holes were very easily covered by simply using the Euro cover plates.
I hope someone figures out how to remove the new 2019 BB, without causing any issues with any holes that might be left in the bumper. Perhaps if we are lucky, Mercedes will issue a service bulletin detailing this, and how to proceed.
The new bull bar on the 2019 G is clearly different than previous G bull bars. It's immediately apparent that the bottom portion of the old BB's 2 vertical mounting posts have been eliminated on the 2019 BB, immediately below the top ridge line of the front bumper, and the BB is now apparently attached down through the top of the front bumper.
The old BB could very easily be removed, and the mounting "holes" were simply covered/plugged by the Euro cover plates, a readily available Mercedes part.
However, the new 2019 BB looks very different from the old style in at least 3 ways. First is the aesthetics, in that the new BB's top horizontal rail is lower down from the front of the hood. Secondly, the bottom portion of the 2 vertical posts on the new BB (below the top ridge line of the bumper) have been eliminated (as previously noted). Thirdly, the BB now apparently attaches to the bumper differently than with the previous BB. The new BB essentially mounts on top of the bumper.
Notice in the attached close up view (see below), you can see what appears to be some kind of a gray colored rubber gasket, at the rear base of the BB's attachment point, sitting on top of the bumper's horizontal surface, just ahead of the radiator front grill area.
Has anyone else noticed these gray gaskets, one on each side of the bumper, immediately beneath the rear mounting points of the new BB?
My concern is that if one were to remove the new style BB from a US 2019 G550, it looks like 2 holes would remain (one on the left and one on the right side of the bumper), back at the rear of the top of the bumper, where the 2 vertical posts ride on top of the bumper. I have not noticed any plugs or caps at these 2 points on the Euro 2019 G's that do not have BB's, albeit I do see vertically oriented cover plates at the bottom of the front grill on the 2019 Euro G's. Who knows, perhaps the Euro G's front bumper is now different than the bumper of US 2019 G's.
On the old BB, there were no such gaskets, and the mounting holes were very easily covered by simply using the Euro cover plates.
I hope someone figures out how to remove the new 2019 BB, without causing any issues with any holes that might be left in the bumper. Perhaps if we are lucky, Mercedes will issue a service bulletin detailing this, and how to proceed.
I realize the BB does not touch the grill. My point was that the two vertical mounting posts of the BB on US 2019 G's are contacting the top of the bumper, and there appears to be a rubber gasket between the bottom of the vertical post bars and the top of the bumper. My particular picture had a gray color gasket, whereas the one in your post has a black color gasket.
My concern is the 2 rubber gaskets (1 on either side of the bumper, so 2 total) at the bottom of the BB vertical mounts, and they are sandwiched in between the bottom of the vertical BB posts and the top of the bumper. This suggests there is hole there (one on ea side). There may be no Mercedes plugs to patch these holes on the top of the bumper (not the grill).
These 2 holes on top of the bumper at these areas may need patching, so body shop work will be in order, if one chooses to remove the US BB.
And, I see no plugs on the Euro 2019 G's, thus 2019 Euro G bumpers may now be different from 2019 US G's, unlike in the past when they were the same bumper. Euro bumpers had Mercedes plugs in them, since they did not have US BB's. Apparently this is no longer the case now.
This is a clear design change for 2019, which appears to complicate BB removal for US G's.
Yup, unfortunately for the new 2019 US G's, it is no longer the case that the BB can easily be removed, and simply install the Mercedes BB plugs in the resultant bumper holes. The new design negates this solution. I certainly have no intention to have to take a trip to a body shop so they can patch the 2 big holes at the top of the bumper, and repaint it. No thank you, Sir!
I don’t understand why it would be difficult to cover up the holes. They holes look to be about 2”x2”. The Euro G’s covers look like they would work to me, but any plug of the appropriate dimensions should work.
There is a big difference between the Euro bumpers and the new US bumpers. Notice the Euro bumpers have a vertically oriented black or silver plug, and it blends very nicely with the lower grill. In the pre-2019 G's, the Euro G's did not have the BB, so Mercedes simply put a rectangular, but vertically oriented, cap on the front vertical section of the bumper. No problem here, and it looks good.
However, the new US BB is different from the old one, in that its vertical posts are mounted on top of the bumper, and the mounting holes go down through the top of the bumper. So, a plug or cap would need to lay horizontally on the top of the bumper to plug it, should the BB be removed. Aesthetically, this would look like heck, if not even worse. You would have a cover plate literally laying very much out of place smack dab on top of the bumper's surface, parallel to the deck. Yipes, that would stick out like a sore thumb. Again, the pre-2019 protocol was an entirely different story, as the cap was mounted vertically to the front (not top) of the bumper, and it was immediately next and parallel to the bottom grill, so it did not look like a completely out of place ugly patch job.
The only way to get a patch plug to cover the 2 x 2 inch (just a guess as to their size) square holes (two of these, to boot) left behind from a removed 2019 BB, would be to patch them, and then paint them in an attempt to somewhat hide them. This would likely require the entire front bumper to be repainted, a non trivial event ($'s!). Otherwise, even if you painted them to match the bumper’s paint color, you would still see these weird looking patches sitting atop the bumper. Not really a Mercedes type look. Now, if a guy were to buy a used model 2019 G-wagon 5 or 10 years from now, and mod it with huge BFG mudder tires, and all sorts of Land Rover looking Defender parts, yes, such patches would be perfectly fine. I just don't see two horizontal big patches (2x2 inch, or larger) sitting atop a $175k Mercedes looking at all good. But, hey, to each his own, and there may be plenty of ppl who think such patch plugs would look just fine. Personally, IMHO the newly designed 2019 BB looks great, especially in black with the Night Package. Heck, I would want to add it on, if the US G's didn’t have the new BB as standard.
BTW, I am wondering if during the redesign of the new 2019 BB, Mercedes may have (hopefully, but maybe wishful thinking on my part?) gone several design steps further, and perhaps made the BB now at least somewhat shock absorbing. I surmise this may be the case because while the pre-2019 BB was essentially directly attached to the front of the frame, there were no grommet gaskets, etc. (at least ones that were externally visible). Any BB contact shocks (even very small ones) would be directly transmitted through to the vehicle, likely causing damage to both the BB and to the front fascia of the vehicle.
The new 2019 BB, with its rubber grommets at the bottom of the BB’s vertical mount rails, may signal a new shock mounted system located out of sight, possibly located underneath the bumper, perhaps with some sort of new mount system designed to allow a bit of movement to absorb minor contact shocks, at least up to some level.
I am very excited to see the new BB mount up close and personal. In my case, since I only ordered my G550 3 weeks ago, this will be a long wait, until maybe June 2019, if even that early. Arrrggggh… Better yet, as soon as the 2019 G-wagon body manual becomes available from Chilton, it will be great to see exactly how this new BB is attached to the vehicle.
I could very easily be wrong, and I may be over-playing the purpose of the new BB two mounting grommets atop the bumper (laying underneath the bottom of the vertical posts), but my guess is there is a functional reason for these grommets. Mercedes would not place two grommets atop the bumper for no reason. Hopefully, the purpose of these grommets is to cover up a larger than 2 x 2 inch square holes, so the BB can have a little bit of room to physically laterally move, without necessarily contacting the bumper, and breaking, or at least cracking, the bumper. The purpose of such grommets would allow enough room for a bit of BB movement, but of course the actual BB mounting system is likely hidden below, and out of sight. If any real time rotational movement of the BB would be "allowed" during a front end contact event, this gets very complex from an engineering aspect. Some sort of shock absorbing mount system would be needed, located somewhere underneath the bumper. Yipes, complicated and expensive, to be sure, so maybe unlikely! Who knows...
This approach could allow for perhaps a few degrees of minimal rotational movement of the BB, in the (sad) event of a low speed contact event involving the BB. Notice the rather large physical gap between the rear of the vertical mounting posts and the front of the bumper. This may be intentional to allow just a small amount of rotational movement of the BB, without necessarily damaging the bull bar, the front bumper, its mounts, or even the front of the vehicle (e.g., hitting a shopping cart whilst parking at Costco?).
We'll just have to give this some time to play out, and wait and see what we actually have here.
Hey Guys,
Just joined the forum. First post here.
After a long wait my G550 built finally arrived to dealer. So first the chrome Bull Bar was a serious disappointment. Ideally I would like to remove it ASAP or maybe wrapping would be temporary option?
Second the lease #s were very high. MF they asked was pretty crazy. My 129K built 36mo. with 7.5K miles a year is coming at $2526. Originally they were asking 3K over MSRP but thats down to 1k over.
Anyone has an idea on the MBFS money factor on '19 Gs?
Need to decide tomorrow to take it or leave it.
Its not the money factor that is driving the high payment. The two major elements are the capitalized cost (what the dealer is charging for the car) and the residual value assigned by MBFS. The residual value is non negotiable. The capitalized cost is. My position is that I refuse to pay anything over MSRP. That is just plain price gouging by an unscrupulous dealer. You also are requesting a very low annual mileage factor. That's a positive. Based on the up-charge over MSRP I would walk. My prediction is that the supply of these trucks will catch up with demand after the first quarter '19 and you will be looking at discounts. Lots of hype right now. Especially on these forums. Most of the early non special order G 550's are coming in at $144K range. Find yourself a reputable dealer. Good luck. Let us know what transpires.
Hey Guys,
Just joined the forum. First post here.
After a long wait my G550 built finally arrived to dealer. So first the chrome Bull Bar was a serious disappointment. Ideally I would like to remove it ASAP or maybe wrapping would be temporary option?
Second the lease #s were very high. MF they asked was pretty crazy. My 129K built 36mo. with 7.5K miles a year is coming at $2526. Originally they were asking 3K over MSRP but thats down to 1k over.
Anyone has an idea on the MBFS money factor on '19 Gs?
Need to decide tomorrow to take it or leave it.
Don't know the November program, but based on October , a 129K car (being sold for 130K) on a 36/7500 lease, should run about 2160 excluding taxes and inception fees. Using MF of .0029 and residual of 57%.
Don't know the November program, but based on October , a 129K car (being sold for 130K) on a 36/7500 lease, should run about 2160 excluding taxes and inception fees. Using MF of .0029 and residual of 57%.
That's pretty expensive money (7%)
The lease rate factor is calculated by taking the actual bank interest rate of the loan and dividing it by 2400, resulting in a decimal based number. For example an auto lease with a 7% loan has a Lease rate factor of .0029
Considering new car interest rates (without manufacturer support) are in 4's - sure .0029 MF is a bit high - but that's the way of the world in exclusive model's...
Dealers have been allocated G's thru May - I would say thru Jan MSRP if you're a existing/repeat customers of the dealership - and yes - dealer's will ask up to $10K over the further you are outside their local market...
Thanks!
The MF I got from the original dealer was .0036 for tier1 credit. Which made me walk out on them. So I called few dealers in LA and they all have few trucks available and seems very motivated to make some sales. So is .0029 the rate from MBFS for G's? is the best for now? One of the dealers threw .00190 on the phone today but it didn't seem realistic.
Thanks!
The MF I got from the original dealer was .0036 for tier1 credit. Which made me walk out on them. So I called few dealers in LA and they all have few trucks available and seems very motivated to make some sales. So is .0029 the rate from MBFS for G's? is the best for now? One of the dealers threw .00190 on the phone today but it didn't seem realistic.
But Still the Bull Bar dilemma is real.
I usually lease my cars, but my CU gave me a $125k (their max) loan with 7yr/1.99% terms. This turns into a ~$1,600 minimum payment. The 4 year monthly payment comes in ~$2,700.
the G550 configurator is now live on Mercedes Canada website. This shows the bull bar as an option. Can anyone confirm that the bull bar is optional in Canada?
In the US, currently you must get a bull bar on all G’s, thus option 996 is not available on the g550, and you are accordingly forced to get the upper BB.
OTOH, with the AMG G63, option 996 is available, so you must get the lower BB, thus leaving the 360 camera lens unobstructed.
The real issue becomes whether or not future g550 buyers will ever be granted the priviledge to have a 360 degree front camera, what with its bug eye BB that would otherwise block the 360 camera lens. Amazing penalty here, as option 996 costs a measly $400, yet for this chump change, you have an excellent front camera, plus the side cameras mounted underneath both side mirrors (without having to be robbed of the Mercedes logo symbol ground projector). This seems so unfair to g550 buyers!
Just a guess on my part, but Mercedes may want to put even another additional notch in their game (ur, uh, make that “marketing”), at least as it’s played in the US, to further differentiate the g550 vs/ G63, and never allow the US g550 to be equipped with the low mount BB kit. Or, perhaps this is some kind of DOT mandate for pedestrian safety, while the G63 somehow was granted a special waiver, as a limited production “special” model. Who the hell knows, other than Mercedes itself, but if the DOT scenario is the case, there may be no hope for g550 folks to ever get the all new low mount G63 BB. That is, unless Mercedes caves in, and grants g550 buyers the priviledge to also have the G63 kit. Nobody knows, and only time will tell.
Of course, in the good ol’ days, both models were fitted with the exact same BB, but hey, “...The times, they are a changin’...😁
I’d happily trade a 360 camera option for an option to permanently turn off the Lane Keeping Assistant.
Also, given the mountings bracket location, I suspect both bull bars mount to the exact same internal bracket. It is most likely the shape of the bumper fascia that is preventing one from putting either B.B. on the other model. Eventually, kits will be available to swap them out.
You’re fighting a losing battle. LKA and rear cameras are but a stones throw away from being mandated on all US cars. Won’t be long before that $14,000 Scion has both features as standard equipment. 😁
10-29-2018, 02:41 AM
