Before Joining Mercedes, AMG Swapped The Face Of G-Class With Lights And Grille From An S-Class

Before its partnership with Mercedes, AMG swapped the face of G-Class with lights and grille from an S-Class.

Commissioned by Tennis legend Ivan Lendl, this 1983 Mercedes-Benz 300GD was customized by the then independent tuner AMG. 

Tuned-300GD by AMG marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of the SUV into today’s high-performance Mercedes-AMG G-Class.

One of the first ever AMG-tuned Mercedes-Benz G-Class’ (G-Wagons) was recently on display at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, as part of the Totally Awesome installation celebrating cars and culture from the 1980s and 1990s.

Commissioned by Tennis legend Ivan Lendl, this 1983 Mercedes-Benz 300GD was customized by the then independent tuner AMG before the German tuner officially partnered with Mercedes-Benz in 1993.

“Tennis legend Ivan Lendl purchased this 300GD—a variant of the G-Class—which was customized by independent tuner AMG with a front fascia from the luxurious S-Class sedan,” said Petersen Automotive Museum.

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“The two brands formed an official partnership in 1993, which saw AMG-tuned models, including upscale variants of the G-Class, sold directly by Mercedes-Benz,” it added.

To customized it to Lendl’s tastes, AMG swapped the front end of the 300GD with lights and grille from a S-Class (W116) sedan. Also fitted includes AMG bumpers and bodykit, BBS wheels and blue leather Recaro seats.

Still powering it is 300GD model’s 3.0-liter six-cylinder diesel engine, which churns out just 87-horsepower and a 127 lb-ft (172 Nm) of torque. It can 60 mph (96 km/h) from rest in almost 25 seconds reach a top speed of 79mph (127 km/h).

This 300GD marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of the SUV into today’s Mercedes-AMG G-Class – which is the high-performance and upscale variants of the already impressive off-road-ready Mercedes-Benz G-Class SUV.

Photo Credit : Petersen Automotive Museum

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