Mercedes-Benz Ener-G-Force: Off-road into the future

Is this a glimpse into the future of SUV design? This could be the G-Class of the future. Maybe.

Standing on four, 20-inch, off-road tyres, the Ener-G-Force Concept car is a G-Class adapted to the requirements of a possible future. The concept is the work of the Mercedes Advanced Design Studio in Carlsbad, California and, judging by appearances, the team behind it clearly expect leisure pursuits to become vastly more challenging.


But that’s not all. As part of the prestigious design competition for this year’s Los Angeles Motor Show, opening at the end of November, designers have been asked to come up with a police car of the future or (to give the competition its correct title) ‘Highway Patrol Vehicle – 2025’. A version of the Ener-G-Force Concept in police livery is one entry in the competition; and it certainly looks capable of taking law enforcement to the remotest corners of the earth.


The very small windows will protect, apparently, the forces of the future against external attacks from the outside, while flashing lights are integrated into the roof. Not many suspects would argue with the driver of this vehicle.
Meanwhile, because dwindling oil reserves will perhaps require an ‘alternative’ source of propulsion, a hydrogen fuel cell has been installed in the Ener-G-Force Concept – and the vehicle can run for up to 800km with the only emissions being water. Not bad for a no-holds-barred four-wheel-drive machine like this.

As per today’s SUVs, the torque delivered to individual wheels can vary depending on the surface… but, more unusually, a rotating topographical scanner analyses the environmental conditions ahead.
Commenting on the concept, Mercedes said, “We wanted to introduce it as a design study for the future of Mercedes-Benz SUV design language. We wanted to see the public reaction.”
Text: Classic DriverPhotos: Daimler