INSANE car transformation: Humble Mahindra Bolero to legendary Mercedes G-Wagen

Want a Mercedes Benz G-Wagen but can’t afford one? Your best bet is the Mahindra Bolero, and a few lakh rupees to spare. Well, Jeep Studio of Coimbatore is the latest car customizer in India to build a Mercedes G-Wagen replica based on the Mahindra Bolero.

How much?

7.35 lakh rupees for the exterior customization. Doing up the stock Bolero’s interiors will cost extra. Meanwhile, if you’re wondering why so many people in India are using the Bolero to build G-Wagen replicas, it’s simple really.

The Bolero has butch lines, similar to that of the G-Wagen. Also, it uses a body-on-ladder layout, which means that the body shell can be customized endlessly, and can then be simply bolted onto the ladder frame.

What’s changed?

Coming to the changes on this particular replica from Jeep Studio, the front end is completely customized and this includes the projector headlamps, the LED DRLs, bumper, grille, bonnet and the works. The front and rear tracks have been matched, and alloy wheels have been added.

Also, the front bumper seamlessly flows onto the flared fenders to give the vehicle a sense of width, a-la-G-Wagen. On the flanks, thick rubbing strips finished with chrome break the monotony of the slab sides. At the rear, new fender flares, a reprofiled bumper, the repositioned tail lamps and a prominent spare wheel housing round off the changes, giving the Bolero a proper G-Wagen look. Expert eyes will straightaway make out that the profile of the vehicle is still very close to that of the stock Bolero.

If you look more carefully, you’ll see that the bonnet is profiled a tad too much, the indicators look afterthoughts, and so do the wing mirrors. But apart from little details, there’s little that gives away the fact that this SUV is a replica and not the real G-Wagen. Essentially, 99 % of people will be convinced that it’s a G-Wagen they’re staring it.

Under the hood of the Bolero is the tried and tested 2.5 liter M2DiCR turbo diesel engine that puts out about 63 Bhp-195 Nm. Torque transmission to the rear wheels is through a 5 speed manual gearbox. While these power and torque figures are a far cry from those of a real Mercedes Benz G-Wagen, the Bolero’s engine is very rugged and reliable, and is known to last without trouble for lakhs of kilometers.

Mahindra also offers a 1.5 liter-3 cylinder turbo diesel engine on the Bolero, with similar outputs of 70 Bhp-195 Nm. The smaller motor is offered on the sub-4 meter version of the MUV. The vehicle starts at 6.61 lakh rupees, going all the way up to 8.13 lakh rupees. Mahindra’s best seller, the Bolero is the country’s most popular MUV, and monthly numbers average over 6,000 units. It’s particularly popular in India’s semi-urban and rural areas.

Images courtesy JeepStudio