Then there's the AMG version

Of course, if you have more money than sense there's the G 55 AMG for $10 short of a quarter-million. The 5.5 litre V8 offers 373kW and 700Nm for an 0-100km/h time of 5.5 seconds. Why oh why would someone buy this thing? Evidently, it's the preferred model in Australia; please don't let it be so here! It's neither a good off-roader nor a good performance car; it's just an exercise to see how far the engineers could push a vehicle on a heavy ladder chassis with beam axles and suffering from a high centre of gravity. As Alistair Sloane said in the NZ Herald: "Misjudge even moderate speeds into a corner and the G55 gets top heavy, pushing on and fighting turn-in until you hastily scrub off speed. Big vehicle, big engine, big wheels, big foot can add up to big mistake."  Apart from its 19-inch rims and badges, the other quick giveaway that it's an AMG is the exhaust that comes out the side (below).