Refined Restomod Gets Turbo Power: EMC G-Wagon Wolf Review

When Expedition Motor Company (EMC) originally started building G-Wagen Wolf restomods, the engine stood out as the only cause for customer hesitation. The diesel inline-five on offer delivered plenty of character but a total lack of top-end power. Highway speeds, therefore, presented something of a struggle, despite all the other updates that totally transformed this former military vehicle.

Now, EMC builds a turbodiesel version of the Wolf and offered me a test drive ahead of Monterey Car Week. The truck was destined for customer delivery immediately following various appearances on the Monterey Peninsula, so I drove respectfully. But still, I can confirm that adding boost absolutely transforms a 250GD restomod into a much more daily drivable rig.

In short: There’s a reason almost every internal-combustion car, truck, and SUV on sale these days uses turbochargers. Bolting on a turbo makes EMC’s impeccable G-Wagen Wolf much more approachable for clients accustomed to driving modern cars. All without sacrificing any of the G-Wagen’s quintessential, rugged appeal.

EMC 250GD Turbo G-Wagen Wolf Review

I actually drove a non-turbo EMC build last year in Malibu. On the Pacific Coast Highway, even climbing the short grade toward Pepperdine, the N/A Wolf struggled to go much more than 45 mph. I concluded then that due to the lack of power, it was very much a beach town or ranch truck. But a fun one, nonetheless.

Now, as then, EMC still builds an absolutely immaculate restomod. The job starts with a 1990s two-door, which undergoes thousands of hours of restoration.

The new 250GD Turbo Wolf I drove wears EMC’s Racing Green paint, with chestnut leather and mahogany trim on the interior. That bimini soft-top roof is a new option, added since my first introduction to the brand.

But the much more serious attempt at updating this restomod lurks under the hood. The previous truck used a naturally aspirated SOHC inline-five diesel known by Mercedes-Benz’s internal code OM602. That N/A mill put down enough torque to get moving, or putter around town. But at just 93 horsepower and 120 pound-feet of torque, reaching the top speed of 65 mph took a stiff tailwind on a downhill.

That old-school appeal was clearly what EMC’s customers wanted, though. The company sold around 160 N/A trucks since 2017. But adding the turbocharger option entirely changes the game.

This one specifically bolts onto an OM605a DOHC inline-five that would have originally powered an E250 or C250 from the W202 or W210 generations. Venerable, reliable, bulletproof — it’s still not overly powerful, in fairness. But a completely rebuilt 53mm Garrett boosts output up to a healthy 225 horsepower and a stout 300 pound-feet of torque.

Driving the EMC Turbo Wolf

Paired to a Mercedes 5G-Tronic torque-converter automatic, all of a sudden, the Wolf becomes totally daily drivable. It’s even peppy up to around 40 mph. Driving through the picturesque hills of Monterey, I never felt like I needed more power. Even on gentle uphill climbs, highway speeds arrived with ease.

Dipping into the throttle brings on a healthy rush of turbo spooling sounds, which EMC’s custom airbox purposefully emphasizes. The inline-five still clatters away, like any good diesel, but that’s kind of the point — just with more power available anywhere in the rev range.

Sometimes at medium to full throttle, the 722a gearbox shifted a little clunkily, dropping the engine out of the power band until it caught up after some turbo lag. But most of the time, the two Mercedes components worked well together.

EMC also reprograms the W button next to the gearshifter. It allows for quicker or slower torque converter lockup rather than second-gear starts (“W” stands for Winter in stock form). 

Since EMC introduced the Turbo earlier this year, almost every customer chooses it — and it’s very easy to see why. That translates to about 20 Turbo Wolfs on the order roll. Choosing the Turbo adds “only” $25,000 to the N/A truck’s $185,000 “base” pricetag. Talk about a no-brainer, since the little snail transforms a vacation house cruiser into a real-world driver.

Everything Great About EMC Carries Over

Meanwhile, all of EMC’s expertise since 2017 carries through to the Turbo Wolf, too. The suspension and brakes in particular remain the same, since the truck weighs about the same at just shy of 6,000 pounds.

That steering wheel almost looks schoolbus-sized in diameter, yet drives about as precisely as any solid-front-axle truck can. And the suspension uses new Bilstein shock dampers and Eibach springs to bridge a fine gap between firm and compliant. A bit of body roll during cornering comes as an easy sacrifice for smoothness over rough roads.

The setup cancels most of the awkward dynamics of a short-wheelbase solid-axle rig. The Turbo Wolf doesn’t squat under power too much while accelerating at full throttle. Hammering the brakes also never causes any gnarly nose-diving that might upset the chassis. Of course, it’s still not a modern independent-suspension SUV by any means.

Once again, that’s the point. The interior continues the retro theme, with all-new leather that’s nice and textural in a very 1990s fashion. No overly anesthetized faux brushed aluminum that’s actually plastic, as on so many modern SUVs. The lights on the dash get refreshed, the gauges all work — including a little digital odometer — and the mahogany flooring in the back with jump seats all looks perfectly period correct.

I still wouldn’t expect much more than the low-20 mpg range, even on the best days. But Apple CarPlay and a Harman Kardon sound system, air conditioning of course, and heated seats — everything makes this build more of a legit daily driver option than the N/A version.

EMC has also continued subtle refinements, including additional sound insulation in the firewall, engine bay, doors, and floors to reduce some of the diesel’s less appealing soundtrack. A USB plug even replaced the cigar lighter on the dash!

My Dream EMC Wolf

I’d love to test an EMC Wolf off-road, where, admittedly, the turbo might make less of a difference. Until you really need it, anyhow.

In the dirt, with the updated suspension supporting solid-axle articulation, much more than Malibu or Monterey roads. Try out the triple lockers, which activate via cables, on this little short-wheelbase billy goat. And take advantage of the G-Wagen’s unique transfer case, which can shift between 4Hi and 4Lo on the fly.

Very few EMC customers seem likely to do any serious off-roading in such a pristine restomod. And apparently only about 30% spec their builds with the optional manual transmission. I’d definitely go with a stick shift on my truck, and maybe even narrower tires on those steelies.

A slightly reduced diameter might help even more with the turbo torque pickup. I figure 235mm-wide pizza cutters, probably just a big 31-inch BFG K03, might also further improve the handling, given the wheelbase.

So I’d stick with the turbodiesel manual. Definitely in a dark green or maybe silver over black, my favorite color combo for most German vehicles. Matte black or even primer gray steelies would look great. I love the wood deck, but don’t need jump seats (to make room for a bike). And, I bet an EMC build looks even better after racking up a few thousand miles of wear, too.

Expedition Motor Company Turbo Wolf: Conclusions

Obviously, the biggest deal for EMC’s customers is the turbo option. And it’s hard to understate how much of a difference the bump in power makes. This rig all of a sudden blends classic style with truck utility, refreshed reliability, and modern creature comforts.

EMC will also do an LS-powered build now, too. But they detune the V8 to “just” 350 horsepower because it’s so unnecessary to have more grunt given the sheer physical limitations of this type of vehicle. I’d happily rip that LS around with the available Tremec 6-speed stick shift, without a doubt. But in reality, I suspect V8 power makes less than no sense — still, EMC is a business, and I completely understand that you gotta give the customers what they want.

Of course, for me, any EMC Wolf is simply too nice for a rough-and-tumble solid-axle truck that I’ll inevitably want to beat on. Compared to values for a nice used 250GD that will still probably need everything worked over, though, I struggle to imagine any full restoration winding up cheaper than EMC’s polished, thorough job.

I love the big power, egregious aesthetics, and carbon fiber everything on wild builds like a Gunther Werks Porsche. But this right here is much more my kind of restomod.