Mercedes G-Class Expedition Desert Edition Sounds Like A New German SUV

As one of the largest carmakers in the world, Mercedes-Benz is offering a bit of something for all sorts of customers. It is the people who go for the carmaker’s most potent vehicles, though, that are treated not only with exciting machines, but also with tailored experiences to enjoy them.
 

Five years ago, back in 2020, the Germans kicked off something called the G Class Experience. As the name says, it’s a program meant to take owners and potential G-Class customers out on the road and off of it, in a bid to showcase the capabilities of the SUV.
 
In the five years that have passed since launch, the G Class Experience has always been based in Graz, Austria, on a test track there called Schockl. It’s a place that offers a little bit of everything, from 35-degree slopes to deep mud.
 
The demand for the program is simply huge, says Mercedes, and the event is fully booked each year – in 2024, for instance, around 3,000 people took part in this. In a bid to expand the offering, the Germans announced this week an expansion of the program through something called the G Class Expedition Desert Edition.
 
I have to admit, the name got my blood pumping a bit, and as I headed into learning more about it, I was not-so-secretly hoping we’re dealing with a new kind of G-Class. Sadly, that’s not the case, but even so, the name hides something pretty exciting.
 

The G Class Expedition Desert Edition is a replica of the Schockl experience, but, for the first time, one that takes place away from home. I’m talking about a five-day event that takes a maximum of 20 paying customers on a trip to the Moroccan mountains and deserts.
 
And it’s no picnic, even if it kind of starts like one, with an exclusive welcome dinner, and despite the fact the 20 guests will be staying at a 5-star hotel in Marrakech on their first night out. The Expedition Desert Edition is actually a very long off-road course, spanning 504 miles (811 km) and covering portions of the Atlas Mountains and the Merzouga Desert.
 
The route chosen by Mercedes will take people at altitudes of 9,186 feet (2,800 meters), over not-so-friendly trails, through water crossings, and all sorts of other challenges. The highlight of the route will be a stopover at the Gara Medouar crater, where, among other things, sequences of the ‘Spectre’ James Bond movie were shot.
 
The journey will end somewhat dull, with the guests reaching the Errachidia airport, abandoning their vehicles, and boarding a flight back to Marrakech, where another dinner will put an end to the entire thing.
 
Mercedes was kind enough to share what type of G-Class vehicles will be on location for the trip, and the lineup is something to drool over. There will be the G 450 d, G 500, and even the all-electric G 580 EQ Technology. The stars of the fleet will undoubtedly be the Mercedes AMG G 63 and the Mercedes AMG G 63 4×4².
 
The German carmaker plans to run the experience several times each season. This year, the G Class Expedition Desert Edition will head out into the wild six times in October and November. And if you were thinking the whole thing would be really expensive, think again: Mercedes will only ask 14,990 euros, which is almost $17,400 at today’s exchange rates, for a ticket.
 

The G Class Expedition Desert Edition is not the only new thing that comes along in the world of G-Class lovers. Back in Austria, the usual program is expanded with something called Private Coaching, which should allow more time on the track for fans.
 
The standard program is a one-day event, but the Private Coaching experience doubles that for a total of six people. It should also be a bit more challenging than the existing version, and it includes a tour of the Mercedes factory there.
 
Above all, the Private Coaching will place customers, for the first time, in the driver’s seat, not in the passenger one, so people will have to take on the entire 3.5-mile (5.6 km) of the track, over asphalt, gravel, and rough terrain, using their own powers.
 
Mercedes will run the Private Coaching experience until November, and it is asking 9,950 euros ($11,500) for a pair of G-Class fans. That includes two nights’ accommodation with breakfast at the partner hotel in Graz and a welcome dinner in the center of the city.
 
The 5-year-old G Class Experience will still be on deck, taking 24 people out on the track and at four test modules in three groups. Each group is accompanied by instructors, who will teach people everything from how to operate the three differential locks to how to apply extreme braking and perform evasive maneuvers.
 
This year, the G Class Experience runs from April to November, and it is the cheapest way you can enjoy a German SUV in its natural element: 2,490 euros per person (almost $2,900). For the first time, Mercedes allows corporations to book events for the needs of their employees this year.