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2019 Mercedes-Benz G-Class vs big luxury off-roaders: How they compare on paper

During our first drive of the 2019 Mercedes-Benz G-Class, the all-new SUV's product manager was asked to identify competitors that might have been benchmarked in its development. The look on his face was about the same as if someone had asked him to recite King Lear in Klingon. As far as Andreas Hoeppel was concerned, the G 550 and AMG G 63 doesn't actually have a rival, or at least something the engineers and designers thought to compare it against. The G-Class is a G-Class, who cares what the other guys are doing? Well, in case you care, we figured we'd plug the new G-Class' specs into the old Autoblog Comparo Generator 3000 (TM) to see how the G 550 and AMG G 63 compare to the Range Rover and its mightiest SVAutobiography Dynamic model, plus the Lexus LX 570 and Bentley Bentayga V8. Frankly, Heir Hoeppel was onto something as each of these is wildly different. But, they do share some common elements: giant size and weight, ultra-lux interiors, and far more off-roading capability than other luxury SUVs offer and any of its owners are likely to ever utilize. Sad. So enjoy this trip down specification lane, and if you're still left hungry, you can always check out our Range Rover comparison or create your very own comparo. Off-Road Clearances and Capability All the fancy off-roading software and special cameras in the world won't do you a lick of good if your SUV is too close to the ground or has low-hanging body work that'll get easily ripped off. As such, check out each of these uber-SUV's ground clearance, approach and departure angles, and wading/fording depths. In this case, the Range Rover has an advantage due to its air suspension that can raise itself into an Off-Roading height that's a whopping 2 inches higher than the new G-Wagen. Sadly for itself, Lexus only provides figures for its air suspension when in normal height. It could match or surpass the Range Rover for all we know (but doubt it). As Land Rover does provide figures for the Range Rover's approach and departure angles in normal and Off-Road height, you can get an idea of just how much clearance the new G-Wagen has without any fancy (and expensive to fix) raising and lowering air suspension hardware. In fact, its departure angle is better than even the Range Rover's Off-Road height. Bentley doesn't provide any such information despite touting the Bentayga's surprising off-roading talents.

Bentley marks 95th anniversary with special Mulsanne

The top end of the new car market seldom seems to need much justification for rolling out a new special edition - other than bringing in a few extra bucks and making its customers feel extra special in the process. Bentley, for its part, is celebrating its 95th anniversary this year, and to mark the occasion has released a special edition of its top-of-the-line Mulsanne saloon.
Called the Mulsanne 95, the limited-edition limo gets three very British color options, dark-tint finish for the Flying B hood ornament and special 21-inch wheels. Step inside and you'll find two-tone blue and white leather with red top-stitching, with a 95 motif embroidered into the seats and special illuminated treadplates, all offset by special Fulbeck Walnut panels that come from a single, giant walnut tree some 300 to 400 years old that came down in a storm in Lincolnshire in 2007.
Buyers will be able to choose between Britania Blue, Empire Red or Oxford White, but only 15 examples will be made available, and all exclusively in Bentley's home UK market.

Bentley Bentayga flops around on the 'Ring

Bentley CEO Wolfgang Durheimer said the coming W12 Bentayga SUV will be the fastest SUV on the market, drawing a response from Porsche R&D chief Wolfgang Hatz that the next-generation Porsche Cayenne will outdo the Bentley on the road, and with a smaller V8 engine. We're going to assume that post and riposte is over top-speed honors, because judging by video of a prototype Bentayga lapping the Nurburgring, it won't be a Continental GT with a lift kit and it won't even be a current Cayenne GTS. In this video the Bentayga looks built for luxury, not cornering speed, as the body rolls over to the outside and the nannies shift the nose back into line when the driver pushes it through curbs. Or it could be that like the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, the Bentayga comes with some intense off-road chops that preclude tight-ship turning. And admittedly, we have no idea how this prototype is set up, but Porsche will probably take it as more reason to be smug anyway. Related Video: The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience.