The new Mercedes Maybach concept is a 20-foot-long convertible
It’s the first full-sized, open-top, true Maybach the company has produced in decades
But you won’t be able to buy it. The car is a one-of-one example of Mercedes’ vision for the cars it’ll make in 2035 and beyond.
In terms of performance, Mercedes says the Maybach 6 Cabriolet will be able to go from zero to 60 mph in fewer than four seconds, with a top speed of 155 miles per hour. Using a special new “super” charger Mercedes has developed, the car can achieve 60 miles of range in just five minutes’ charging.
All of that would make it the most luxurious, grandest electric car on the planet. But it’s the design that really distinguishes the Maybach 6 Cabriolet. “It’s about beauty,” said Dietmar Exler, the president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz, noting that while the car will not go into full production, it’s certainly possible that, given time, it could end up on an awards stand of its own. “It’s not difficult to imagine that 30 years from now, our car might take top honors at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.”
The concept car is the first full-sized, open-top, true Maybach—not an S-Class variant, like this one—the company has produced since the Maybach Zeppelin, which the company made from 1929 to 1939. So-named for the zeppelin engines Maybach made before World War I, it was a massive hulk of a machine, weighing more than 6,000 pounds with a V12 engine.
This latest version is meant to embody classic Art Deco proportions, with a curved body, swooping sidelines, and an astonishingly long, stretched hood. A radiator-style grille across the front is inspired by the pinstriped suit. The rear is meant to look like the boat tail of a yacht, with white nappa leather that contrasts with a dark paint finish described as “nautical blue metallic.” A wooden floor inlaid with aluminum underscores the yachting connection.
