Monday, November 19, 2012

Mercedes Ener-G-Force Concept Goes Back To The Future

What would happen if the Mercedes-Benz G-Class was still around by 2025, and somehow, the California Highway Patrol enlisted the iconic SUV for off-road duty? You might have never found yourself wondering about this particular hypothetical, but Mercedes has.

This bulbous behemoth, the Ener-G-Force concept, is Benz's response to this year?s police-themed LA Auto Show Design Challenge. The creation of the California-based Mercedes-Benz Advanced Designed Studio seemingly traveled backward to go forward; it looks a little like 2002's idea of what a 2025 police off-roader would look like.

Gone are the G-Class?s iconic angular lines, replaced by sweeping, flowing curves. The most explicit alteration is a complete facelift, swapping the perfect rectangular grille for this rounded front end. The concept features flashy exterior lighting in the form of roof-mounted emergency lights integrated directly into the car's body's, which the German automaker lauds in a press release as "are impossible to ignore." And, of course, the retro-futuristic ride features plenty of features we've come to expect from concepts that carmakers won't actually have to build, including a cutesy name and a hydrogen-powered drivetrain.

Radical as they may be, it is hard to ignore the Ener-G-Force's looks. The 20-inch wheels look functional, and the low-profile windows are a welcome departure from the massive greenhouse on the present-day G-Class. In fact, the company says, the concept could signal a shift in Merc design.

"Modern and cool, [the Ener-G-Force] could also be a clue about a new beginning for the off-road design idiom of Mercedes-Benz," Gorden Wagener, Merc?s Director of Design, said in the release. If it?s true, then we could see a G-Class that moves away from rectangles and jagged lines toward undulating and smooth curves?something like the look of Range Rover?s Evoque and the new Ford Explorer.

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/auto-blog/mercedes-ener-g-force-concept-goes-back-to-the-future-14757578?src=rss

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