Good news for tight-fisted billionaires: The new flat-plane V-8 is good enough to justify selection over the range-topping V-12 version.
Classic cocktails have staged a global comeback, in newly refined and artisanal forms. So why not old-school sedans? For its Maybach-branded concoctions, Mercedes reached back to a dusty recipe book that began with V-12 engines for Count von Zeppelin's airships and segued to fabulously expensive Maybach cars between 1921 and 1940.
The company's V-12s, displacing up to 23 liters, powered Germany's fearsome Panzer and Tiger tanks during WWII. Maybach then fell into obscurity for decades.
View Price on AmazonThe Maybach name may never resonate with buyers the same as Rolls-Royce or Bentley, British marques that also slogged through wars and depressions yet reemerged as top choices for ballers, brokers, and billionaires. But for people who prefer a Germanic approach to luxury sedans, as personified by the Mercedes S-class, there's much to be said for a stretch-limo version that undercuts Bentley or (especially) Rolls-Royce prices.
The 2027 Mercedes-Maybach 4Matic may be a bit less grand or titled than those royals, but it treats occupants just as well; that includes a 7.1-inch wheelbase stretch over a standard S-class. And it whips Rolls and Bentley in terms of leading-edge tech and features.
Examples include an industry-best augmented reality navigation system and an Airmatic suspension that can glean Car-to-X data transmitted from other Mercedes vehicles driving ahead to adjust damping in anticipation of potholes or pavement challenges.
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The 2027 Mercedes-Maybach is the gilded-lily version of the latest S-class, itself the most lavish mid-cycle upgrade in that flagship's history, with around 2700 new or reengineered components.
Illuminated accents include the frame surround of the 20 percent larger grille and its etched Maybach script, as well as the C-pillar Maybach emblems and the optional Mercedes standing-star hood ornament. High-design headlamps integrate twin Mercedes stars and rose gold elements.
Borrowing a cue from Rolls, self-leveling center wheel caps keep their Mercedes stars upright while in motion. Buyers can choose multispoke forged wheels in 20- or 21-inch sizes or more appealing monoblock designs.
Inside, the latest MBUX Superscreen sprawls from pillar to pillar. The vivid display integrates a 12.3-inch driver's cluster with handsome 3-D gauges and rose-gold dials, a 14.4-inch central infotainment screen, and a fully functional 12.3-inch passenger display. The latest MB.OS operating system runs the entire affair.
A clear sensor shield on the grille and camera slots below the A-pillars are warts on an otherwise streamlined look. But sometime after the Maybach's showroom arrival later this summer, those cameras will help run a new MB.Drive Assist Pro. The Tesla Full Self-Driving rival promises point-to-point semi-autonomous operation, albeit with a hand on the wheel at all times.
Source: roadandtrack.com
