The new AMG GT sports car saw Daimler launch a new subbrand: Mercedes-AMG. And now another has been confirmed: Mercedes-Maybach. Maybach? Twelve years ago, the name was revived on a precious upper-luxury sedan that was launched on the platform of the Mercedes-Benz W140 S-class using many W220 components. It didn’t do well on the market and was mercifully killed off a few years ago.
Now the Maybach name denotes the highest-spec S-class, in the form of the Mercedes-Maybach S600. The car will be unveiled simultaneously at the Guangzhou and the Los Angeles auto shows this month. This time around, the hyperluxurious four-door has been aligned more closely with the regular S-class but will go beyond that imperial sled with extremely high levels of equipment as well as several unique styling elements. Available as both the Mercedes-Maybach S550 and S600, it is more spacious with almost eight additional inches of wheelbase. China will also get an S400 version powered by a turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6.
A six-cylinder Maybach? “The concept of Maybach does not depend on cylinder count,” says Daimler marketing chief Ola Källenius. The brand itself further explains: “In the S-class segment in particular, customers have very high expectations with regard to exclusivity and individuality. Mercedes-Maybach is not an equipment line—it is a subbrand that in the future will deliver Mercedes-Benz vehicles in an even more exclusive form.”
Vehicles? Indeed; there will be more than just a mildly stretched and especially well-equipped S-class sedan. It’s not official yet, but sources tell us to expect a longer version of the Maybach—in the spirit of the Pullman—to be launched at next March’s Geneva auto show. Farther down the line, Daimler may also offer a Mercedes-Maybach S-class convertible and perhaps a Mercedes-Maybach version of the successor to the current GL-class SUV.
Meanwhile, the Mercedes-Maybach S600 will compete with the Bentley Flying Spur and the Rolls-Royce Ghost by matching their luxury content and exceeding them in terms of state-of-the-art technology.
Source: caranddriver.com
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