Mercedes-Maybach

Mercedes-Maybach

 Introduction
A Mercedes-Maybach expands the pleasures of motoring to new dimensions. Its lengthened wheelbase heightens your comfort. Exquisite appointments reach beyond accommodating. And with distinctive new details, it's travel in one of its most distinguished forms.


 
design

A Mercedes-Maybach carries itself as elegantly as it carries its passengers. It's not merely stretched but artfully, and aerodynamically, sculpted to command the eye as well as the road. And exclusive styling envelops a cabin at the pinnacle of luxury.


Unmistakable presence. With an eye to the future.
What makes tomorrow's classic is how captivating it is today. A new, bespoke grille cascades with fine chrome vanes. And rich new paintwork can drape its sweeping yet majestic body in impossibly deep gloss or dramatic new two-tones.



Unmatched comfort. From precisely matched elements

Industry-first Energizing Comfort Control can rejuvenate your senses and relax your body with a symphony of climate, fragrance, ambient lighting and music. Even the massaging seats are included in the range of treatments you can select.



Unparalleled accommodations. In a choice of configurations.

The Mercedes-Maybach rear cabin raises first-class travel to great heights without leaving the ground. Heated, ventilated, massaging and power-reclining Executive rear seats are standard. Individual power seats with calf rests and folding tables are available.


 Unique appointments. Tailored to suit you.

Diamond-quilted, button-tufted Exclusive Nappa or designo semi-aniline leather is hand-fitted to each seat, with new color offerings and matching throw pillows. Exotic, hand-finished wood, satin aluminum and more Nappa leather cover nearly every other surface


 In tune with your desires. And your devices.

Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto expand your choices in entertainment and navigation. Their unique interfaces work like your phone because they integrate with it, even its voice controls. You can even charge your phone wirelessly.



Adapts to the road. Responds to the driver.

Fully active MAGIC BODY CONTROL suspension generates its own forces at each wheel to take corners and bumps in stride. It continually scans the road ahead with a camera, to counteract bumps and dips proactively. It can even lean into curves much like a slaloming skier does.

Mercedes-Benz G500 4x4²

Mercedes-Benz G500 4x4²

For many years, killing off the Mercedes-Benz G-class was a recurring topic at Daimler board meetings. The boxy off-roader, an offspring of a vehicle developed for military applications, simply came from another era. Weren't there better, modern SUVs in the lineup?

More recently, the topic has disappeared from agendas. As luxury customers seek vehicles that are both distinctive and which exhibit some actual authenticity, G-wagen sales are better than ever. Indeed, with 14,000 units sold last year and some hefty profit margins built in, Daimler has started having fun with the G—so much fun, in fact, that it has authorized a considerable budget for low-volume derivatives.

Two years ago, the world was flabbergasted by the G63 AMG 6x6, a non-U.S.-market variation based on a project for the Australian armed forces. There was one problem: Impressing folks with the 6x6 may be a breeze in the deserts of the Middle East, but not so much in European inner cities. It takes considerable skill to direct that three-axle behemoth with anything resembling grace.

It will be far easier to pose and maneuver in the G500 4x4², a prototype of which we just drove. Daimler won't yet officially confirm series production, but with more than 100 units of the hyper-expensive 6x6 having been sold—far beyond expectations—before production ended, the potential for this similar new model is considerable.

The exclusive, common denominator between the G63 AMG 6x6 and the G500 4x4² is the portal axles, which use gears in the hubs to allow the axle to sit higher than the wheel centers in the name of increased ground clearance. The result is a vehicle that can clear 17.7-inch-high obstacles, versus the 8.3 inches of a stock G, as well as ford water up to 39.4 inches deep. The front and rear tracks are also wider by 11.8 inches, and while the standard G-wagen is relatively narrow, this variant comes in at 82.7 inches wide—still not so much that urban driving becomes a chore. On the other hand, its height of 88.6 inches will render many parking structures forbidden territory.

The regular G-wagen seems hard to beat off the road, but thanks to the portal axles, the 4x4² pushes the boundaries of capability to new extremes. We tested the prototype in a half-dry riverbed and on steep, rocky slopes that forced the regular model to throw in the towel—the mega ground clearance and the massively superior approach, departure, and breakover angles of the 4x4² allow for scrambling over even the gnarliest terrain. And thanks to the wide track, it feels stable and planted, with a tip-over point virtually unchanged from the basic G. Helpfully, you can opt for off-road-sized 37-by-12.5-inch mud-terrain tires on 18-inch beadlock wheels; these can be swapped out for 325/55 rubber on 22-inch wheels for on-road pursuits.

On pavement, of course, the G500 4x4² can't perform miracles. Its electronically controlled dampers can be switched between Comfort and Sport settings, and doing so makes a discernible difference in ride and handling, but the steering remains as vague and imprecise as in any other G-wagen. In a straight line, however, the thing moves out with alacrity, thanks in large part to the brand-new, twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8, which is derived from AMG's M178 engine. It will show up in many Mercedes-Benz cars in the future, and launching it in a G-class prototype speaks volumes to the importance of this SUV model. Rated here at 416 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque, the new V-8 is likely to yank the 4x4² to 60 mph in less than six seconds, while top speed is rated at 130 mph (Daimler advises that you keep it under 100 mph with the off-road tires fitted). The near-explosive power is underscored by a soundtrack worthy of an AMG, which is trumpeted by dual side pipes that exit ahead of the rear wheels on both flanks.

These side pipes merely accentuate the ultra-aggressive styling, which comes as a welcome result of the jacked-up, wide-track suspension. The wheel arches are made of carbon-fiber composite, and the front fascia is taken directly from the G63 AMG and the G65 AMG. Pricing, by the way, will be somewhere between these two models—if the board decides to move forward on building the thing. We would be very surprised if they don’t—it’s too impressive and bad-ass not to.

Mercedes-Benz G550 4x4²

Mercedes-Benz G550 4x4²

 Perhaps the auto industry’s most unlikely icon, the Mercedes-Benz G-wagen was originally developed for the German military way back in 1979. The civilian model gained popularity for its rugged chic and anti-style style. Then AMG got its hands on the G-wagen, and the muscled-up variants including the G63 and the twin-turbo V-12–powered G65 eventually eclipsed the standard G-class in sales. It became clear that the more outrageous Mercedes made the G-wagen, the more buyers loved it. That realization led to vehicles such as the triple-axle G63 AMG 6x6, the Mercedes-Maybach G650 Landaulet, and this: the G550 4x4². Although we’ve just driven the all-new G-class, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to strap our test gear to this final iteration of the (nearly) original G-wagen, which literally towers over the standard model. The additional height—the 4x4² is almost exactly a foot taller than the pedestrian G550—as well as a set of portal axles and 36.1-inch-tall 325/55R-22 Pirelli Scorpion ATR off-road tires are the defining elements of this extreme G.

Naturally, with its 17.2 inches of ground clearance, we had to take the 4x42 off-road. The portal axles, which use in-hub gears to locate the wheel centers below the axles’ driveshafts, combine with the massive wheels and tires to deliver 7.9 inches more air between this G and the ground than in a standard model. Factor in the steep approach and breakover angles (not so much the departure angle, owning to the comparatively low-hanging rear bumper), and there wasn’t an obstacle this Benz couldn’t overcome. At least, not at ground level. We had to back out of some trails when overhanging branches threatened the roof-mounted LED light bar—this beast towers seven feet four inches high. And other trails proved too narrow for this machine’s 82.7-inch girth, which is more than nine inches greater than the width of a regular G550. With its three locking differentials (as in all G-class models—except the 6x6, which gets five), it can really dig in and crawl like a tank. Good thing, since there are no recovery tow hooks that we could find. Really, though, rather than on the trails, a better place to experience this machine’s incredible off-road prowess would be blasting across the open desert or clambering through the detritus of a post-apocalyptic landscape.

The G550 4x4² proved less at home on the blacktop landscape of our test track, although by a lesser degree than you might expect. Powered by Mercedes-AMG’s twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8, which musters 416 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque—the latter sent to all four corners via a seven-speed automatic transmission—the 4x4² will launch itself from zero to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds. That’s just 0.4 second behind the standard G550 (with the same powertrain), which is a pretty narrow difference given that the tall-boy version is 753 pounds heavier, vaulting past the three-ton marker to crush the scales at 6635 pounds. The quarter-mile comes up in 14.8 seconds at 93 mph, again just a shade behind the regular version’s 14.4 seconds at 97 mph. Stay with it, and the 4x4² will keep accelerating past 100 mph—although it seems imprudent to do so—eventually topping out at 121 mph. Hauling it back down, we recorded a 196-foot stop from 70 mph, which is heavy-duty-pickup territory; then again, this thing is heavy-duty-pickup heavy. (The regular G550 comes to a stop in 183 feet.) On the skidpad, stability control intervened early and often as the 4x42 generated 0.69 g of grip; thanks in part to its additional width, that’s actually better than the standard G’s 0.66 g, and it tied the recently tested two-door Jeep Wrangler JL.

Somehow, the 4x4² acquits itself better on the track than it does on the street. There, we noted that every time you accelerate from rest, it makes a sort of grinding noise likely due to internal friction in the portal axles. The engine isn’t terribly loud inside (although the exhausts exiting at roughly head level on each side ensure bystanders get an earful), but once you reach highway speed, there’s plenty of tire roar and wind rush. Characteristic of the G-class, there’s all kinds of play in the recirculating-ball steering, which is exacerbated by the tall-sidewall tires and the towering body’s susceptibility to crosswinds. Despite the suspension’s long travel, bumps seem transmitted directly to the cabin. Come to a stop, and the body rocks back and forth.

As in other G-class models, the cabin has been kitted out with modern-Benz infotainment and luxuries, but it’s narrow and the cramped rear seat has barely enough room for adults. What’s different here is that the climb aboard is challenging enough that this is the first SUV we’ve ever thought would benefit from grab handles near the doorsills. But unlatch the door and that mechanical click is so awesomely old-school Mercedes.


Mostly, though, the 4x4² is just absurd out among ordinary traffic. It might seem fun to take it through the Starbucks drive-thru, but keep in mind that you may have to hop down from your perch to grab the proffered mocha Frappuccino. Drive-up ATMs prove tantalizingly out of reach. With its towering ride height, LED roof lights, side-exiting exhaust, and massive 22-inch wheels outlined with carbon-fiber fender extensions and pushed outward on a much wider track, the 4x4² couldn’t scream “Look at me!” any louder if it were lit up in neon and shooting flames. “It’s a Swarovski-crystal-encrusted brodozer,” as one editor opined. And yet for all that, we can’t help but fall for its absurdist appeal. We’ll miss the old G, but at least it went out as it lived: with near-obscene brashness.