Off-road naked Crawler with supercar performance

BRABUS is well known for taking MercedesBenz models and adding its own special engineering to boost performance, while keeping the cars road-legal.

Now, for its 45th anniversary, the German company has come out with its first supercar with an in-house developed chassis and buggy-style design.

Called the 900 Crawler, it’s strictly an offroader and cannot be registered for use on public roads. The 900 Crawler will be exclusive as only 15 units will be built for sale over the next 3 years.

Each unit will be priced from

€749,000 (RM3.45m) exfactory, with the first five delivered this year. Another five will be available in

2023, followed by the remained

in 2024.

While the Crawler uses the Mercedes-Benz G-Class as a starting point, it is almost “naked” as there are no body panels and the buggystyle body and roof are primarily designed to provide shade.

The structure, which serves as a roll-cage, is made from high-strength exposed carbonfibre while the underbody panels are made of aluminium and a tough carbon/kevlar composite material.

Extra-wide front and rear wheel arches suitable for the king-sized tyres are integrated into the exposed-carbonfibre bodywork. The roof skin provides not only shade for the occupants but also features integrated air ducts and vents for the riders in the

rear seats.

Two powerful LED panels are integrated in the roof skin at the front to the left and right of the central air intake. In the dark, they help the main headlights to light up the terrain ahead.

The chassis is formed using a tubular frame made from high-strength steel, painted the distinctive red colour of the brand.

Portal axles at the front and rear provide ground clearance of 530mm and there are matching height-adjustable special struts with adjustable damping which provide up to 160mm of spring travel. These give the

Crawler superior capability over extreme terrain.

The huge off-road tyres also play a role in the tremendous ground. Sized 40x13.50 R 20, they are mounted on 9.5Jx20 Brabus Monoblock HD Platinum Edition forged wheels.

To handle the enormous loads generated during off-road driving, the wheels are manufactured with an 8-hole bolt pattern to match the portal axles. A fifth, identical complete wheel is mounted as a spare at the rear.

To take the 900 Crawler over the toughest terrain is Brabus’ most powerful powerplant. This is the Rocket 900 V8 twin-turbo 4.5-litre engine with a peak output of 888bhp and a peak torque of 1,250Nm. The output is sent to the wheels through a 9-speed transmission and permanent all-wheel drive system.

The cockpit has been specially designed taking into consideration the needs of off-road travellers. It includes a modern intercom system for driver and passengers as well as a GPS-based off-road navigation system that is used by desert rally teams.