Compare the2025 Mercedes G-ClassVS 2025 Land Rover Defender

The G-Class’ pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Defender doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Mercedes G-Class are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Land Rover Defender doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the G-Class are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Defender doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Mercedes G-Class has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Defender doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The G-Class has a standard Post Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Defender doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The G-Class has a standard Maneuvering Brake that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Defender doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

Both the G-Class and the Defender have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

There are almost 2 times as many Mercedes dealers as there are Land Rover dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the G-Class’ warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Mercedes vehicles are better in initial quality than Land Rover vehicles. With 8 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Mercedes higher than Land Rover.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Mercedes vehicles are more reliable than Land Rover With 50 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Mercedes higher than Land Rover.

The G-Class has more powerful engines than the Defender:

As tested in Motor Trend the AMG G 63 4.0 turbo V8 is faster than the Defender P400 3.0 turbo/supercharged 6-cylinder hybrid:

On the EPA test cycle the G-Class running on electricity gets better mileage than the Defender 110/130:

On the EPA test cycle the G-Class running its gasoline engine gets better mileage than the Defender 110/130:

The G 580 can travel with zero emissions for 239 miles. The Defender can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the G-Class AMG 63’s fuel efficiency. The Defender doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

Regenerative brakes improve the G-Class’ fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Defender doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The G-Class has 2.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the Defender (26.4 vs. 23.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certifies the Mercedes G-Class at emission levels ranging from “Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (ULEV) to “Super Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (SULEV). The Land Rover Defender is only certified to “Low Emissions Vehicle” (LEV) standards.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Mercedes G-Class, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Defender.

The G-Class AMG 63’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Defender doesn’t offer launch control.

The G-Class stops much shorter than the Defender:

For better traction, the G-Class has larger standard tires than the Defender (265/60R18 vs. 255/65R19). The G-Class’ optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Defender (295/40R22 vs. 275/45R22).

The G-Class’ standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Defender’s standard 65 series tires. The G-Class’ optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Defender’s optional 45 series tires.

The G-Class AMG 63 offers active sway bars, which help keep it flat and controlled during cornering, but disconnect at lower speeds to smooth the ride and offer greater off-road suspension articulation. This helps keep the tires glued to the road on-road and off. The Defender doesn’t offer an active sway bar system.

The AMG G 63 offers an available adjustable active suspension system, which counteracts cornering forces actively, limiting body roll and improving handling and stability. Land Rover doesn’t offer an active suspension on the Defender.

The G 580 handles at .80 G’s, while the Defender 110/130 pulls only .70 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The AMG G 63 executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.9 seconds quicker than the Defender 110/130 (28.2 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 30.1 seconds @ .54 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the G-Class has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Defender 90 (9.5 vs. 8.9 inches), allowing the G-Class to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The G 550 is 1 foot, 2.9 inches shorter than the Defender 110, making the G-Class easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The G-Class has a much larger cargo volume than the Defender 110 with its rear seat up (34.8 vs. 10.7 cubic feet).

While the Defender 130 V8 can only tow 6613, any G-Class can tow a minimum of 7000 pounds.

The G-Class 580 can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the G-Class can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Defender can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The G-Class’ standard easy entry and exit feature raises the steering wheel, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. An easy entry system costs extra on the Defender.

If the windows are left open on the G-Class the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Defender can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the G-Class has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Defender doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The G-Class’ sun-visors swivel front-to-side to block glare from the side windows. The Defender’s visors are fixed into the windshield header.

The G-Class offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Defender.

The G-Class’ Active Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Defender doesn’t offer an automated parking system.