Showcasing a legend: "Stronger Than Time" - The new G-Class campaign

Stuttgart. Since 1979 the G-Class has been the Mercedes-Benz SUV icon. Its unique DNA is stronger than time; is unimpressed by short-lived fashion trends it remains true to its roots. This also holds true for the new G-Class. In the international 360-degree campaign for the world premiere and market launch, Mercedes-Benz presents the new G-Class as a ground-breaking legend in off-road performance. Beyond this, the G also shows its on-road strengths and presents its enduring, timeless design. The motto of the campaign is accordingly 'Stronger Than Time'. With this campaign, Mercedes-Benz makes it possible for customers and fans to enter the fascinating world of this iconic off-road vehicle and discover why the G-Class has been enthralling people around the globe for almost 40 years. The global campaign started on 15 January 2018 with the web special at: https://www.mercedes-benz.com/strongerthantime. The campaign mechanism is based primarily on digital media and social networks. It is accompanied by impressive motifs in the classic media. Striking images and videos show the product highlights of the new G-Class both on- and off-line.

'How do you stage the presentation of a new edition of a legend? We have found a compelling answer to that question with the campaign 'Stronger Than Time'. It demonstrates in an up-to-date manner the unmistakable DNA and the timelessness of the G‑Class: strong, self-assured and serenely superior', said Dr Gunnar Güthenke, Head of the Off-Road Vehicle product unit at Mercedes-Benz. 'In its impressive history, this iconic vehicle has evolved from a pure off-roader to an icon of the postmodern world. It is quite simply stronger than time and is souvereign above every fashion trend.'

At the centre of the digitally dominated campaign with its central hub at https://www.mercedes-benz.com/strongerthantime you will find three lifestyles: 'Amber Rock', 'Green Lava' and 'Blue Night'.

With 35 campaign motifs and a 2:45‑minute video with three cut-offs, Mercedes-Benz showcases the lifestyles with powerful images, radiating self-assurance and supreme mastery. Rich, metallic blue tones embody a modern, cool purist urbanity in the motifs of the 'Blue Night' lifestyle. These impressions are intensified by the reflected lights of the city at dusk on a rainy night.

Mercedes-Benz accompanied the world premiere of the new G-Class on 14 January 2018 at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit with the world's largest installation in synthetic resin. An amber-coloured block of synthetic resin weighing 44.4 tonnes encloses a G‑Class from the first year of production, 1979 - as an expressive image of the off-road legend's timelessness. The presentation establishes an association with insects preserved in amber. The DNA of the first G‑Class is permanently preserved this way and passed on from generation to generation. Following the Detroit Motor Show, the block will also be on show in other markets to tie in with the G‑Class market launch.

Milestones and superlatives of a legend - the web special

Since November 2017 people all over the world have been able to discover the uniqueness of the G-Class on social media platforms and at https://www.mercedes-benz.com/strongerthantime. Under the hashtag #strongerthantime you can become part of the campaign yourself. Selected stories are told in the web special 'Stronger Than Time', which is embedded in the G‑Class portal. The 'DNA of the G‑Class' feature provides interesting facts from around 40 years of the G‑Class. Under 'The new G‑Class' you can experience the new G in all its facets. The column informs about the improved off-road and onroad performance as well as the timeless design of the all-terrain vehicle. The chapter 'Strong Stories' tells the unique and varied stories of the old and new G‑C lass.

Iconic life worlds - moving images and print motifs

The 45-second trailer for the publicity campaign has been available on social media platforms since early January: https://youtu.be/QtkhrTeh1Sg. In impressive images, underscored by dramatic music, the video shows how the G‑C lass has kept its unique DNA intact over generations. This is how a timeless vehicle evolved from it to become a legend over the years. In the official campaign video, which can also be seen on social media channels at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iGFH5HbWGM, the different lifeworlds are focused on in individual image sequences.

In the classic printed media the G-Class is to be shown in impressive images as of 15 January 2018. As in the online communication, the printed media campaign with its varied imagery shows that the G‑Class is an icon for more than one life world. 'Amber Rock', 'Green Lava' and 'Blue Night': the imagery relating to off-road capability, design and onroad performance incorporates natural elements such as rock and lava formations, as well as water which - like the G‑Class - are 'stronger than time'. The tonality of the campaign reflects the character of the off-road legend: powerful messages in impressive visual worlds.

The idea and conception of the campaign is from Mercedes-Benz creative agency antoni. The elbkind agency was responsible for implementing the social media campaign.