Mercedes G-Wagon Restomod Is Its Military History

This might be one of the nerdiest car-collector things we’ve seen. UK and Austria-based Arcade Cars specializes in restoring Mercedes G-Wagons, but this one is a full restomod of an unusually rare specimen. It’s Mercedes-Benz 240 GD, a diesel variant of the Mercedes G-Wagon introduced in 1980, but also one of only 60-70 airdrop-ready military vehicles ever produced by Mercedes-Benz for the Singaporean Army. In other words, we have a very niche off-roader built for a very specific purpose for a very specific army. Everyone got that? Good, because there’s more.
 

Arcade Cars wants to go full Inception on this, taking the niche even deeper by turning 10 of these vehicles into restomods. They will retain their military features while “incorporating personalized luxury features.”
 
Designed To Be Tossed Out Of An Airplane
As this 240 GD was designed to be dropped out of an airplane, its original spec was basically to be as light, reliable, fuel efficient, and packed as flat with as low a center of gravity as possible. Hence, you’ll see the 240 GD here has no roof, no side windows, no solid doors, and the front windshield folds flat to the hood. They would literally be strapped to a platform, ideally packed with airbags to soften the landing, and launched/pulled out of a plane using a drag parachute, which would then pull out the full parachute to lower the package to the ground.
 

The vehicles would be packed tightly full of gear for the personnel using them on the ground, but they wouldn’t feature high-end paintwork, leather throughout the cabin, or a premium audio system. The versions from Arcade Cars have that, though – they source the vehicles, extensively repair the metal fatigued by years of military slog, then use anti-corrosive treatments before being given premium finishes in climate-controlled facilities. When that is done, then comes the aforementioned interior upgrades.
 
The airdrop restomod will debut at the Audrain Concours in Rhode Island in October. The restomod company is the “Bespoke Sponsor of Newport’s Audrain Motor Week,” and will also show its Arcade Racing Green Mercedes-Benz Puch 230 GE. However, anyone wanting to check out the company’s work will find them earlier at Bridgehampton racing circuit in New York on September 13, as they look to enter the East Coast collector market.
 
“Beyond being a world-class event, The Bridge allows us to connect with a market that truly appreciates both the elegance and versatility of our vehicles. An Arcade G-Wagen is designed for family adventures. It combines striking design with the capability to handle everything from dunes to everyday journeys, all while providing uncompromising comfort for its passengers.” – Arcade founder Rishav Kanoria.
 

On The Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon
While the G-Wagon is mostly known as a luxury vehicle, it was developed as a military vehicle and with lore claiming it was at the commission of the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, before his revolution and subsequent exile. Development began in 1972, and the G-Wagon went on sale after being built initially by hand in 1975 to the public. The Singapore army mainly used the G-Wagon in its soft-top truck form, while the shortest wheelbase versions were used as personal field transports for military leaders.
 
The first military use was by the Argentinian military in the Falkland Islands conflict with the UK. As far as we can count, around fifty countries have used the G-Wagon in some form for its military, including the UK, but in an extremely limited capacity as it already had the Land Rover Series and Defender models, including special Lightweight versions to drop out of airplanes.