How Does Mercedes-Benz"s New Pickup Stack Up To The Chevy Silverado?

There are some things you never expect to hear about in your lifetime, and when they happen, you can’t help taking notice – for example, that Mercedes would be making a pickup truck. They’re not supposed to make pickups, are they? They’re all about clean lines and precise engineering, as delicate as they are ingenious. Surely, a brand that has spent decades making itself synonymous with luxury wouldn’t build a machine meant to do dirty work, would they?

It turns out they have. Maybe Mercedes just wants to prove to the world that they can build whatever vehicle they want and do it better than anyone else. Heck, maybe they’re even right about that. But when it comes to pickups, nobody makes them like America. Wouldn’t it be fun to see how German engineering can measure up to American power?

We’ve seen their boxy SUVs stalking mall parking lots, and now the Germans are making a pickup truck.

As if dominating the luxury market for decades wasn’t enough, Mercedes has their eye on the pickup truck market, too. The venerable automaker sent shockwaves through the industry when they announced their intention to produce a mid-size pickup back in March 2015, and finally, we’re getting a look at their vision of a pickup. 

Mercedes tried to make pickups back in the ’70s, but they didn’t exactly take the market by storm. 

Can you imagine picking up a load of drywall in this thing?

This time around, they’re more serious. Mercedes unveiled their X-Class pickups in two forms: the “Powerful Explorer” and the “Stylish Adventurer.”

They’re just concepts for now, with the idea being that the best features of the two will combine when it goes into production to be the kind of truck that people will want to drive to the cabin or to the office. 

No surprise, the Powerful Explorer shows off what Mercedes can do for the mudder crowd.

If you can even say “Mercedes” and “mudder” in the same sentence without picturing insane repair bills.

The Stylish Adventurer, on the other hand, has more of a “cruising down the strip on Saturday night” vibe.

Sadly, at this point, it looks like American drivers won’t get a chance to buy the Mercedes X-Class, so we have to wonder, are we really missing out? How does the German foray into the pickup market measure up to good old Detroit steel?