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Opulent rear seating area and ultraquiet cabin distinguish Maybach S600 Mercedes-Benz photo
<p><strong>Opulent rear seating area and ultra-quiet cabin distinguish Maybach S600. </strong></p>

Maybach Designed for Moguls, Not Enthusiasts

Put yourself in the place of a wealthy businessman in China who uses the car as a rolling office in giant, traffic-choked cities and it makes perfect sense. &nbsp;

Automakers love to call a new product “a driver’s car,” but the ’16 Mercedes Maybach S600 is a different kind of driver’s car, as in: “Driver, take me to the club.”

Sitting behind the wheel of most vehicles with a base sticker price of $190,000 usually is an ego-enhancing experience, filled with appreciative stares from fellow car enthusiasts. But if you are piloting the new Maybach, it’s likely you’ll be mistaken for a chauffeur.

That puts a different spin on a test drive. But bruised egos aside, the new Maybach already is a success for the German automaker in China, the most important market for pricey, long-wheelbase luxury sedans.

Ola Kaellenius, sales chief for the Mercedes sub-brand, tells Bloomberg the new ultra-luxury model is selling 500 units a month in China since its introduction in February. Even if sales fall due to China’s economic slowdown, it still will be a winner. In its best year, the old Maybach saw global annual sales of about 600 units, according to industry reports. Mercedes does not officially break out Maybach numbers.

The previous model was introduced in 2002 with a base price of about $350,000 and hopes of competing with Bentley and Rolls-Royce. It never caught on. By the time it was phased out in 2012, Mercedes reportedly had annual deliveries of only 200 to 300 units globally.

Mercedes has taken a more pragmatic approach with the Maybach S600, which went on sale in the U.S. in April.

The limousine is based on the new S-Class, one of the most technically advanced platforms in the world and loaded with the latest driver-assist and self-driving features. The wheelbase is stretched almost 8 ins. (200 mm), which adds 6 ins. (152 mm) of legroom in the already spacious back seat.

The design seems dedicated solely to adding an optimized limousine experience to the world-class style, functionality and driving dynamics of the standard S600.

Among the options on our $203,635 tester were silver champagne flutes ($3,200), rear center-console refrigerator ($1,100) and an executive seating package with two rear seats that have foot rests and recline like business-class airline seats ($1,950). Other add-ons include $3,900 for a brand-specific 20-in. wheel package and a $1,700 gas-guzzler tax.

Mercedes didn’t forget the details. Run-of-the-mill cupholders won’t do for silver champagne flutes, so instead the second row of the Maybach has two spring-loaded discs. Press down with the flute, and three arms clamp down to hold the stemware steady while Jeeves explores the powerband of Mercedes’ potent 525-hp V-12.

The 12-pack is standard on the U.S. version (a V-8 and V-6 are available in other markets), with 612 lb.-ft. (830 Nm) of torque available at just 1,900 rpm. It has a claimed 0-60 mph (97 km/h) time of 5 seconds, although it feels slower. Weight is 5,269 lbs. (2,390 kg), not bad for a car this size. The Magic Body Control air-suspension system is standard, and it does a superb job of electronically sensing potholes and smoothing the ride.

Quietest Cabin in Production

The most distinguishing feature of the Maybach S600 is the almost sound-proof nature of the cabin, which Mercedes claims is the quietest of any production car.

This was accomplished by improving the rigidity of the S-Class body-in-white and adding an extra layer of insulation below the rear seats to muffle noise. The doors are sealed so tightly a special vent is needed to let air exit the car through the trunk so the doors can be closed easily. Road noise is reduced further by tires that have a special inner layer of insulation.

“First time in the car, just close the door and sit and listen as routine noise you just heard seconds ago will suddenly seem to be a mile away. The Maybach takes the bank-vault reputation for Mercedes to another level,” says WardsAuto Editor Tom Murphy.

“The guy next to me was beeping his horn at something on the freeway and I barely heard it. Maybe it’s just my imagination, but I almost felt like I was on an airplane and my ears needed to pop,” adds Editor Dave Zoia.

The rear-seating area is extravagant even by S-Class standards, including deep-pile lamb’s-wool floor mats and airline-style fold-out personal tables. The Burmester 3D surround-sound system delivers a spectacular listening experience.

Despite the car’s opulence and over-the-top luxuries, WardsAuto editors agree the Maybach would not be their first or second choice if they won the lottery.

Despite all the advanced driving features and stump-pulling torque, the car’s exterior design doesn’t stand out like any of the Bentley or Rolls-Royce models. Instead it looks like what it is: an S-Class limo. Inside, the interior isn’t much different from a standard S-Class from the B-pillar forward.

And the car’s extended length of 18 ft. (5,486 mm) make it a bit of a handful to park, even with park-assist features.

But instant zillionaires are not the target market. Put yourself in the place of a wealthy businessman who uses the car as a rolling office in giant, traffic-choked cities (China has a dozen cities as big as New York with names few Americans would recognize, including Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Tianjin), and it makes perfect sense.

Clients can be entertained and deals celebrated with a glass of fancy champagne without having to step out of the car. The night-vision, active-parking and lane-keeping assistants all make your chauffeur a better, more-efficient driver. Time is money, especially when you are a billionaire.

And, with shareholders worrying about China’s economy, the Maybach S600 is less ostentatious and looks like a bargain on the balance sheet compared with competitors that cost almost twice as much and are less technologically advanced.

Even so, this doesn’t mean Mercedes is giving up on winning over the world’s sultans, kings and Russian plutocrats as customers. Next year, the S-Class-based Maybach Pullman will go on sale in select markets. It is 21.3 ft. (6,499 mm) long, and the base price will be $567,000.

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'16 Maybach S600

 
Vehicle type 4-door, 4-passenger rear-wheel-drive car
Engine 6.0L all-aluminum DOHC V-12
Power (SAE net) 523 hp @ 4,900 rpm
Torque 612-lb.-ft. (830 Nm) @ 1,900 rpm
Bore x stroke (mm) 82.6 x 93
Transmission 7-speed auto
Wheelbase 132.5 ins. (3,366 mm)
Overall length 214.7 ins. (5,453mm)
Overall width 83.9 ins. (2,283 mm)
Overall height 59.0 ins. (1,499 mm)
Curb weight 5,269 lbs. (2,390 kg)
Base price $189,350 not incl. $925 destination and handling fee
Fuel economy 13/20 mpg (18.0-11.8 L/100 km) city/highway
Competition Bentley Mulsanne, Rolls-Royce Ghost Series II
Pros Cons
Ultra-quiet cabin Requires Chauffeur
Lavish rear seating Long and heavy
Great S-Class platform Ho-hum exterior styling

 

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