Tour confirms: Where there’s a G, there’s a way

When Gunther Holtorf and his wife Christine set out in their Mercedes-Benz 300 GD to visit as many countries around the world as possible, the G-Class was just 10 years old. Today, some 26 years, just under 900 000 kilometres, and 215 visited countries later, Gunther Holtorf drove his cherished G – christened “Otto’’ – back home to Swabia.

The marathon vehicle will take pride of place in the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim, where it will go on show to visitors in the classic cars section. As a world-record holder, ‘Otto’ will also be immortalised in the Guinness World Records. Since the end of this unique journey around the world will coincide with the 35th anniversary of the G-Class, the occasion will be marked with the launch of the highly exclusive G 350 BlueTEC Edition 35 and G 500 Edition 35 special models.

For 77-year-old Gunther Holtorf, his Mercedes-Benz 300 GD is quite simply the expedition vehicle par excellence for this kind of (torturous) tour. “In 1988, when I bought the car I was a bit more sceptical about the promise made by Mercedes-Benz, namely “Where there’s a G, there’s a way”. After all, I’d already seen something of the world beforehand and had a rough idea of what the vehicle would have to endure on this kind of tour!” This initial scepticism gave way though to an unreserved trust in Otto’s capabilities as the years went by. Especially in precarious situations, the symbiosis between the Holtorfs and the G-Class grew.

The 300 GD covered more than 250 000 of the just under 900 000 kilometres off-road, perfectly in tune with its innate characteristics. On gravel or washboard roads, in mud, on pot-holed roads or rocky uphill stretches in the mountains – for the suspension and chassis this punishing workout is equivalent to around 2,5 million kilometres under normal central European conditions. In addition to the challenging terrain, there were also the disparate meteorological conditions to contend with, which Otto took in its stride throughout all the world’s climate zones – from the unforgiving searing heat of the desert, through steaming jungle regions to the freezing cold of the Arctic climes.

As if the demands on the 300 GD were not already high enough, Otto actually always had to contend with overweight. Including expedition gear and food, with jerry cans, operating supplies, tools, recovery gear, spare parts and spare wheels, the expedition vehicle fully tipped the scales at 3,3 tonnes – around 500 kilograms in excess of the permissible gross vehicle weight.

The roof alone of the cross-country vehicle had to take 400 kilograms. But according to the Holtorfs even that could not faze the world-record vehicle: “Actually the G was always overladen, which is why I fitted it with reinforced springs and bad-road shock absorbers. Otherwise, Otto remains like any series-production vehicle.

The entire drivetrain with the engine, transmission and axles is still original. Neither the frame nor the body has shown any signs of fatigue.”
By the time the vehicle crossed the finish line in Stuttgart, Gunther and his now deceased wife Christine, Holtorf will have travelled around 215 countries in Otto.