Maybach 57 and 62
Encyclopedia
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
models of the Maybach
Maybach
Maybach-Motorenbau GmbH is a German luxury car manufacturer. It was founded in 1909 by Wilhelm Maybach and his son. The company was originally a subsidiary of Luftschiffbau Zeppelin GmbH and was itself known as Luftfahrzeug-Motorenbau GmbH until 1912.Today, the ultra-luxury car brand is owned by...
brand since the brand's revival by DaimlerChrysler AG (now Daimler AG). They are derived from the Mercedes-Benz Maybach concept car presented at the 1997 Tokyo Motor Show
Tokyo Motor Show
The is a biennial auto show held in October-November at the Makuhari Messe, Chiba City, Japan for cars, motorcycles and commercial vehicles. Hosted by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association , it is a recognized international show by the Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs...
. The concept car was based on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Mercedes-Benz W140
The Mercedes-Benz W140 was a series of flagship vehicles manufactured by the German automotive company Mercedes-Benz. The car premiered at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1991, with the first examples rolling off the production line on August 6, 1991. Short and long wheelbase sedans were offered...
sedan, as are the eventual production models. The Luxury Brand Status Index 2008 voted the Maybach 1st place, ahead of Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is a British manufacturer of luxury automobiles based at the Goodwood plant in West Sussex, England. It is the current producer of Rolls-Royce branded automobiles, whose historical production dates back to 1904. The factory is located across from the historic Goodwood Circuit...
and Bentley
Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley known as W.O. Bentley or just "W O". Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later...
. The models will cease production in 2013, due to continued financial losses for the marque, and sales at one fifth the level of the profitable Rolls Royce models.
History
DaimlerChrysler AG attempted to buy the Rolls-RoyceRolls-Royce Motor Cars
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is a British manufacturer of luxury automobiles based at the Goodwood plant in West Sussex, England. It is the current producer of Rolls-Royce branded automobiles, whose historical production dates back to 1904. The factory is located across from the historic Goodwood Circuit...
/Bentley marque when Vickers
Vickers
Vickers was a famous name in British engineering that existed through many companies from 1828 until 1999.-Early history:Vickers was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by the miller Edward Vickers and his father-in-law George Naylor in 1828. Naylor was a partner in the foundry Naylor &...
offered the company up for sale . When this attempt failed (they were outbid by Volkswagen
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
, and BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
later exercised an option to acquire the Rolls-Royce car brand) they introduced the Maybach as a direct challenger in 2002, to the other companies' Bentley Arnage
Bentley Arnage
The Bentley Arnage is a large luxury car produced by Bentley Motors in Crewe, England from 1998 to 2009. The Arnage, and its Rolls-Royce-branded sibling, the Silver Seraph, were introduced in the Spring of 1998, and were the first entirely new designs for the two marques since 1980.Another break...
and BMW Rolls-Royce Phantom.
Design
Both Maybach models are variants of the same ultra-luxuriousLuxury vehicles
Luxury vehicle is a marketing term for a vehicle that provides luxury — pleasant or desirable features beyond strict necessity—at increased expense ....
automobile. The model numbers reflect the respective lengths of the automobiles in decimetre
Decimetre
A decimetre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one tenth of a metre, the SI base unit of length. In simple words there are 10 cm in a decimetre....
s; the 57 is more likely to be owner-driven while the longer 62 is designed with a chauffeur
Chauffeur
A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.Originally such drivers were always personal servants of the vehicle owner, but now in many cases specialist chauffeur service companies, or individual drivers provide...
in mind.
Features
Standard features of all models include, but are not limited to: a navigation system with voice recognition; air conditioning with 4-zone climate controls; power rear sunshade; rear-seat DVD entertainment system; interior air filter; front and rear seat massage; 21-speaker premium sound system; power tilt/telescopic heated wood/leather-wrapped steering wheel with radio and climate controls; power trunk open/close; voice-activated AM/FM radio with 10-disc CD changer; keyless start; heated front and rear seats; cooled front seats; power panoramic sunroof; adaptive cruise control; premium leather upholstery; 18-way power front seats; 14-way power rear seats; heated cupholders; rearview camera iPodIPod
iPod is a line of portable media players created and marketed by Apple Inc. The product line-up currently consists of the hard drive-based iPod Classic, the touchscreen iPod Touch, the compact iPod Nano, and the ultra-compact iPod Shuffle...
adapter; wireless cell phone link; outside-temperature indicator; universal garage door opener; night vision.
Options for the Maybach 57 and 57S and standard for the Maybach 62, 62S, and Landaulet include: 18-way power rear seats (replacing 14-way); 5-zone climate controls (replacing 4-zone); power side sunshades; cooled rear seats; wireless headphones; voice-activated power panoramic sunroof (replacing power panoramic sunroof); steering wheel mounted navigation controls; heated glass windows; and 30-speaker premium sound system (replacing 21-speaker).
The company offers various options for customers to personalise their vehicles, and provides various equipment combinations.
Performance
The engine is a Mercedes-sourced 5.5-litre twin-turbo V12V12 engine
A V12 engine is a V engine with 12 cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of six cylinders, usually but not always at a 60° angle to each other, with all 12 pistons driving a common crankshaft....
, generating 405 kW.
The Maybach 57 accelerates from 0 mi/h in about 5.1 seconds; the Maybach 62 and 57 S, about 4.8 seconds; the Maybach 62 S, 4.5 seconds, and the Landaulet, 4.5 seconds. Though not extraordinary by today's sports-car standards, such acceleration is impressive for cars weighing well over 6,000 pounds. Maybachs in general are extremely powerful: the 57 has 518 bhp; the 57 S, 559 bhp; the 62, 570 bhp; the 62 S, 612 bhp, and the Landaulet, 633 bhp.
Price
As of early 2008, European and United States prices were as follows:- Maybach 57 - € 366,934 / $ 341,750
- Maybach 57 S - € 417,402 / $ 381,250
- Maybach 62 - € 431,055 / $ 392,750
- Maybach 62 S - € 492,602 / $ 432,250
- Maybach Landaulet - € 900,000 / $ 1,350,000
Introduction
On June 26, 2002, a Maybach 62 enclosed in a glass case on the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2RMS Queen Elizabeth 2
Queen Elizabeth 2, often referred to simply as the QE2, is an ocean liner that was operated by Cunard from 1969 to 2008. Following her retirement from cruising, she is now owned by Istithmar...
departed from Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, en route to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, with the media and company officials staying in the luxury suites on board.
The ship arrived in New York on July 2, welcomed by geysering fireboat
Fireboat
A fireboat is a specialized watercraft and with pumps and nozzles designed for fighting shoreline and shipboard fires. The first fireboats, dating to the late 18th century, were tugboats, retrofitted with firefighting equipment....
s and a motor boat. A helicopter lifted the car off the liner and onto a dock. It was then driven to the Regent Hotel, Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
.
Maybach 57
The Maybach 57 is the base designation and comes with 7 spokeSpoke
A spoke is one of some number of rods radiating from the center of a wheel , connecting the hub with the round traction surface....
, 19 inch wheels.
Maybach 57 S
Daimler revealed the Maybach 57 S at the 2005 Geneva Motor ShowSalon International de l'Auto
The International Geneva Motor Show is an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva. The show is hosted at the Geneva Palexpo, a convention centre located next to the Geneva Cointrin International Airport...
, with the S standing for "special." It uses a 6.0 L version of the V12 engine manufactured by Mercedes-AMG
Mercedes-AMG
Mercedes-AMG GmbH, commonly known as AMG, is a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz car company specializing in high-performance luxury cars....
. Power output is 450 kW and 738 lbft, providing a sub-5 second sprint to 60 miles per hour (96.6 km/h). It also rides 0.5 in (12.7 mm) lower on 20 inches (508 mm) wheels. The North American unveiling was at the Los Angeles Auto Show in January 2006.
Maybach 57 and 62 "Zeppelin"
Maybach revealed the "Zeppelin" on the 2009 Geneva motor show as an additional luxury package that can be ordered on both the Maybach 57 and 62. The name "Zeppelin" was also used for the pre-war models Maybach DS7 and Maybach DS8. The package consists of special California beige leather with Stromboli-black stitching, piano black lacquer finishes and silver "Zeppelin" champagne glasses. Next to the interior changes the exterior has exclusive 20" chrome wheels and dark-red taillights. The engine is the "standard" 6.0L V12 Twin-Turbo with 640 bhp (which is 28 bhp more than the S versions). The word 'ZEPPELIN' is also incorporated into the triangular 'M' hood ornament.Maybach 62
The Maybach 62 also includes an array of additional features such as Cockpit Management and Navigation System (COMAND), which includes DVD navigation, CD changer in rear seats, DVD players and TV tuners front and rear, two rear LCD TV screens including remote control and two sets of headphones, and automatic closing doors.
Even though the Maybach 62 has all these features included, optional extras are available. Some of these are a panoramic glass sunroof at a cost of $11,670, and an external communication system, a loudspeaker and microphone system which allows the occupant in the rear of the Maybach to converse with people outside the car. This option comes at a cost of $1,780. Additionally, there is a retractable electrotransparent partition screen between the driver and the rear occupants, at $23,780 and, most expensive, a high protection GUARD B4 Package for an additional $151,810.
Maybach 62 S
The Maybach 62 S appeared in November 2006 at the Auto China 2006 exhibit in BeijingBeijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
. It features the same engine as the 57S, a 612 PS twin-turbo
Twin-turbo
Twin-turbo refers to a turbocharged engine, in which two turbochargers compress the intake charge. There are two commonly used twin turbo configurations: parallel twin-turbo and sequential twin-turbo...
V12
V12 engine
A V12 engine is a V engine with 12 cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of six cylinders, usually but not always at a 60° angle to each other, with all 12 pistons driving a common crankshaft....
made by Mercedes-Benz AMG. However, the suspension remains untouched.
Maybach 62 Landaulet
The Maybach 62 Landaulet, based on the Maybach 62S, revives the classic landauletLandaulet
A landaulet or landaulette is a car body style, "an enclosed sedan or coupé with a folding top at the extreme rear quarter, over the rear seat."...
car body style, which was popular in the 1920s and 30s. Powered by the 62S's 612 hp biturbo V12, the Landaulet's front seats are fully enclosed and separated from the rear passenger compartment by a power divider window. A sliding soft roof allows back seat passengers to take in the sun from the comfort of their seats. The chauffeur's area is finished in black leather, while the rear is done in all white with piano black and gold-flecked black granite inserts. Also, the opacity of the glass partition separating the driver from the passengers can be electronically controlled.
Maybach publicly unveiled the Landaulet
Landaulet
A landaulet or landaulette is a car body style, "an enclosed sedan or coupé with a folding top at the extreme rear quarter, over the rear seat."...
at the Middle East International Auto Show around the end of November 2007 as a concept car. Limited production was confirmed in January 2008.
Brabus Maybach
The tuning firm BrabusBRABUS
Brabus, founded 1977 in Bottrop , Germany , is a high-performance aftermarket tuning company which specializes in Mercedes-Benz, Smart and Maybach vehicles....
, famous for high-performance and stylistic aftermarket modifications to Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
and Smart
Smart (automobile)
Smart is an automotive branch of Daimler AG. Smart is a German manufacturer of microcars produced in Hambach, France, and Böblingen, Germany...
automobiles, produced a version of the 57/62 in 2004 which adds significant performance, features and style to the models. Electronically limited to a 300 km/h (186.4 mph) speed limit, these large vehicles produce 1026 N·m (757 ft·lbf) torque
Torque
Torque, moment or moment of force , is the tendency of a force to rotate an object about an axis, fulcrum, or pivot. Just as a force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist....
and accelerate
Acceleration
In physics, acceleration is the rate of change of velocity with time. In one dimension, acceleration is the rate at which something speeds up or slows down. However, since velocity is a vector, acceleration describes the rate of change of both the magnitude and the direction of velocity. ...
from standstill to 100 kilometre per hour in 4.9 seconds.
Sales
| Calendar Year | US Sales |
|---|---|
| 2003 | 166 |
| 2004 | 244 |
| 2005 | 152 |
| 2006 | 146 |
| 2007 | 156 |
| 2008 | 119 |
| 2009 | 66 |
| 2010 | 63 |
Initially, Daimler-Chrysler predicted annual sales of 2,000 global units with 50% coming from the United States; however, such lofty sales expectations never materialized. In 2007 Mercedes bought back 29 US dealers, reducing the total from 71 to 42.
2013 cessation
With less than stellar sales expectations and heavy impact of 2008 financial crises, Daimler AG undertook a review of the whole Maybach division. These included talks with Aston MartinAston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a British manufacturer of luxury sports cars, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The company name is derived from the name of one of the company's founders, Lionel Martin, and from the Aston Hill speed hillclimb near Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire...
to engineer and style the next generation of Maybach models along with the next generation of Lagonda
Lagonda
Lagonda is a British luxury car marque, founded as a company in 1906 in Staines, Middlesex by a former opera singer from Ohio, but of Scottish ancestry, named Wilbur Gunn . He named the company after a river near the town of his birth, Springfield, Ohio, United States...
models.
However, on 25 November 2011, Daimler announced that sales of all Maybach models and the brand would cease in 2013.
The line will be replaced by Mercedes-Benz S-Class Pullman models. An executive told a Frankfurt newspaper that: "(Daimler) came to the conclusion that the sales chances for the Mercedes brand were better than that of Maybach."
One suggestion for Maybach's struggles was that parent Daimler had failed to differentiate it from its Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
brand. While all three ultra-luxury marques share platforms and engines with other luxury brands from their parent auto company, Maybachs are built alongside the Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is a series of luxury sedans produced by Mercedes-Benz, a division of Daimler AG. The classification was officially introduced in 1972 with the W116 S-Class, which succeeded previous Mercedes-Benz models dating to the mid-1950s...
flagship sedan, whereas Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars
Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is a British manufacturer of luxury automobiles based at the Goodwood plant in West Sussex, England. It is the current producer of Rolls-Royce branded automobiles, whose historical production dates back to 1904. The factory is located across from the historic Goodwood Circuit...
and Bentley
Bentley
Bentley Motors Limited is a British manufacturer of automobiles founded on 18 January 1919 by Walter Owen Bentley known as W.O. Bentley or just "W O". Bentley had been previously known for his range of rotary aero-engines in World War I, the most famous being the Bentley BR1 as used in later...
are assembled in England (separate from the rest of BMW
BMW
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...
and Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen Group is a German multinational automobile manufacturing group. , Volkswagen was ranked as the world’s third largest motor vehicle manufacturer and Europe's largest....
's production plants) and thus are regarded as being more "exclusive". Furthermore the Maybach's pedigree was virtually unknown outside of Germany unlike its British rivals which have long enjoyed renown worldwide; indeed the 2006 Rolls-Royce Phantom
Rolls-Royce Phantom
Rolls-Royce has used the Phantom name on luxury cars over the past century:* Rolls-Royce Phantom I, 1925–1931* Rolls-Royce Phantom II, 1929–1936* Rolls-Royce Phantom III, 1936–1939* Rolls-Royce Phantom IV, 1950–1959...
's interior evokes memories of a 1930s car while the Maybach 57S's inside makes no reference to its marque's history.