How do you make the legendary Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen stand out in a crowd after decades of OEM and aftermarket projects? The German tuning specialist Hofele Design has had a very simple idea that makes us think someone had an epiphany moment and decided to fit the off-roader with “coach doors.”
The ubiquitous “Geländewagen” has seen many crazy interpretations over the years – some of the best coming from Mercedes-Benz itself. The aftermarket community also caught wind of the ample potential from early on, with even Hofele recently treating us to a new interpretation that made room for six persons on board.
This makes it rather surprising to see the tuner return so quickly to the G-Class for another jab. Still, when you come up with something like this, it’s only natural to showcase it to the entire world as quickly as possible. This time around, we’re not dealing with the AMG derivative, as the Ultimate HG is based on a regular G-Class (the base version remains unspecified).
Also, throwing a quick glance at the restrained exterior treatment might be cause for rapid dismissal on account of this being yet another tuner’s interpretation. The genius stroke is that Hofele Design integrated the suicide/coach doors so neatly into the OEM+ design, it would be understandable if you missed them.
This is why the hero shot was specifically selected with the rear doors opened. They turn the Ultimate HG from Hofele into one of the very few models on the planet still making use of this particular setup (Rolls-Royce Cullinan and the defunct Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition are among them).
Of course, the goal for this project was to emulate the limousine treatment – and Hofele doesn’t' disappoint. As such, the company treats the Ultimate HG to “much-improved ease of entry and exit,” thanks to both the Coach Doors and its proprietary Full Length Electrically Deployable Side Steps.
Inside, there’s an individual VIP rear seating treatment (with touch-operated massage, heating, and ventilation functions), Nappa and Alcantara leather surfaces, with even the boot having a luxurious piano black lacquer/aluminum-trimmed floor.
On the outside, Hofele doesn’t forget to add proprietary touches such as a newly-styled front grille, carbon fiber touches, a unique dual-tone paint (Carpathian Grey by Range Rover/Crystal Black by Rolls Royce), along with 23-inch Turbine forged alloys, and even a roof-mounted light bar. As far as pricing and availability are concerned, they are naturally upon request.
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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