The Maybach 57 S chassis will be provided by Daimler and the coupe will house four seats. To make it a two-door, modifications to the A, B and C pillars, doors, fenders, front and rear section are needed. Compared to the limo, the coupe’s B pillar will be moved 20 inches rearwards for easier access to the back seats. The car’s width has been increased by about 20 cm to fit extended wheel arches. Other changes seen are the new front and rear apron, tail lights and exhaust pipes.

The coupe will be powered by a twin-turbo 6.0-litre V12 engine as in the Maybach 57 S. With 612 bhp and 999 Nm of torque, this giant coupe should breach 100 km/h in just 5.0 seconds on to a top speed of 275 km/h.

Xenatec is said to be considering a sportier version of this car if there’s demand for it. The car will be sold in Asia, Middle East, US and Russia and it will come with a 4-year warranty that will be honoured by Maybach authorised dealers. Only 100 will be produced and prices are expected to start from 650,000 euros.

Picture gallery after the jump.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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The latest (and possibly last) facelifts of the Maybach 57, 62, 57 S and 62 S will be unveiled at Auto China 2010 in Beijing. The Maybachs have been updated with a a more powerful 630 horsepower V12 engine for the “S” models, a new front grille, a reshaped engine hood, LED daytime driving lights on the front bumper, dark red tail lamps, a new paint shade called Bahamas Blue, and new 20 inch and 21 inch wheels.

The 57 and 57 S will also now be able to be equipped with the reclining seat from the 62 models. There are now even more customisation options for the cars including Swarovski crystal, a flacon perfume atomiser and a WLAN router for wireless internet access which uses HSDPA/UMTS/EDGE/GSM for mobile data access.

That last option should be very very useful for the businessman who wants to work while slowly crawling through Beijing’s traffic congestion, otherwise there is also a new DVD player. You’d better be making the most of your time in the car considering you’ll be burning as much as 15.8 litres per 100km for the S models and 15 litres per 100 km for the non-S models on the combined cycle.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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We got news earlier this year that BYD and Daimler AG would be teaming up to develop electric vehicles and EV-related components in China. BYD is a Chinese company and is best known for coming from a battery manufacturing background, thus giving it an advantage in the new world of electric vehicles as well as being backed by famous investor Warren Buffet.

“We continue to push ahead as a global leader in electric mobility. Daimler’s know-how in electric-vehicle architecture and BYD’s excellence in battery technology and e-drive systems are a perfect match,” said Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Daimler’s Chairman of the Management Board.

But apparently being in the same ‘electric bed’ has led to some more discussions and word is that BYD is considering buying Daimler’s Maybach luxury brand. Maybach hasn’t been doing very well compared to Rolls-Royce and Bentley, although I have to admit that its scarcity on the road lends it a far more superior presence compared to its rivals, at least here in Malaysia. I have never seen a Maybach with civilian plates here in Malaysia – only royal seals, while you can see lots of rich people driving Bentley Continental GTs around.

But the Maybach itself is based on a really old W140 S-Class platform – the same one as the famous Princess Diana car. It is of course updated and refined to Maybach standards but the fact remains that Maybachs still look like giant S-Classes. Rumours are that Maybach’s sole model will probably undergo one last facelift in April and then once that model runs out, it will be shut down. If BYD buys over Maybach it may be able to do something with it – a big Maybach with massive in-wheel electric motors and batteries may end up being the fastest, quietest and most advanced luxury cruiser around.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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Daimler-owned Maybach has unveiled the Zeppelin 57 and 62 flagship luxury sedans at the Geneva Motor Show. Essentially based on the aging W140 S-Class chassis, both models are now powered by the Mercedes/AMG 6.0 litre V12 biturbo power plant that is capable of 640HP, which has an extra 28HP, and 1000Nm of torque. 0 – 100 km/h sprint figure for the 57 is rated at 4.9 seconds, while the 62 model achieves it in 5.1 seconds. The 57’s top speed is electronically limited to 275 km/h while the latter is set to 250 km/h.

The slightly dull looking Zeppelin features a two tone body colour finish and 20 inch wheels in a Chrome Shadow finish while the interior is finished in the highest quality California beige leather and high-gloss piano lacquer trim. It also comes with a perfume atomizer which is located in an internally illuminated Plexiglass sphere on the rear centre console. You can select two different fragrances (one light and refreshing, the other woodier, richer and heavier), both of which are specially developed with Givaudan.

Orders can be placed now and buyers can expect deliveries by September this year. Pricing wise, the Maybach Zeppelin 57 costs 406,000 Euros while the Maybach Zeppelin 62 carries a price tag of 473,200 Euros. Continue reading to view an image gallery of the Maybach Zeppelin.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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Built on the old W140 S-Class tank chassis resized with updated tech and with half W220 front and half W221 rear styling cues, the Maybach 57 and 62 are getting a little old. Sales figures are not up to expectations. What’s this – a new Maybach model we see? Not exactly. The Maybach Zeppelin series are basically the same old 57 and 62 with a more powerful version of the 6.0 litre V12 from the 57 S and 62 S, a two-tone exterior and a built-in perfume spray (the Peugeot 308 also has something similiar).

Power is up only 28 horses to 640hp while torque remains at a massive 1,000Nm, thanks to the V12′s twin turbocharged technology. The interior gets some high-spec California beige leather and shiny lacquered piano black trim. The car’s carpeting are made of genuine lambskin. The earlier mentioned perfume spray uses two scents (one light and refreshing and the other is heavier and woodier) developed for Maybach by Givaudan.

The price? €406,000 for the Maybach 57 Zeppelin while the 62 Zeppelin costs €473,200. The perfume spray is optional, costing an extra €3950.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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You’ve seen photos and text on what the Maybach Landaulet is all about, but here’s a video allowing you to see the semi-open top luxury barge in motion.

Check out the video after the jump.

Related Posts:
Maybach reveals the Maybach Landaulet Concept

Video: Maybach Landaulet

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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Some of you may be wondering what exactly a Landaulet is. Its basically a term for a simulated convertible, carried over from the days of carriage coachbuilding.

Basically, a simulated convertible landaulet has fixed roof rails, with a convertible top for the back seats only. The Maybach Landaulet concept based on the Maybach 62 S features a landaulet-style black soft top roof which exposes the rear passengers to the open air while the chauffeur compartment remains completely enclosed.

When the black soft top is closed, it rests on the frame formed by the roof bows and is wind and weather proof. When open, it is deposited on the parcel shelf in the rear together with its rear window made of single layer safety glass. Opening and closing takes 16 seconds.

The car’s automatic climate control systems have also had their parameters tuned to ensure open air travel remains a comfort in adverse climatic conditions.

Under the hood is an AMG-tuned version of the engine in the Maybach 57 S and 62 S. The 6.0 litre V12 is twin turbocharged to make 612 horsepower between 4,800rpm and 5,100rpm, and 1000Nm of torque between 2,000rpm and 4,000rpm, rather turbodiesel-like performance stats.

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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As luxurious and exclusive as Maybach is, it seems the buyers are not swayed by the other superluxury brands like Bentley and Rolls Royce, with trade estimates putting 2006 production at a paltry 280 units.

The Maybach 57 and 62 is estimated to sell 175 units a year by the year 2010, greatly overshadowed by Rolls Royce’s 3,000 cars and Bentley’s 10,000 cars.

DaimlerChrysler is going back to the engineering drawing boards with the Maybach brand, with possible new models including a Mercedes Ocean Drive Concept-like convertible Maybach as well as a Maybach SUV based on the Mercedes Benz GL (shown above). The Maybach GL SUV would be sold only in the US, and would be limited to a run of 1,500 units in total.

A Maybach based on the Mercedes Benz CLS is also being conceptualized, which would give Maybach it’s much needed mid-sized model.

Source

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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They’ve recently outdone themselves with a special concept luxury coupe – The Maybach Exelero.

The car is basically a Maybach 57 chassis but shorter, but width and height remains the same. The car was developed in a joint venture between Maybach and Fulda, a tyre manufacturer who wanted to use the car to test whether it’s tyres could withstand high speeds.

The particular tyre tested for this car was it’s 315/25/ZR23 series tire that is capable of speed of over 350 kph. Notice the 25? Super thin sidewall means a very low profile look. Note that this is not a racing tyre but it’s street legal!

For this crazy application, the 5.6 litre Maybach V12 was upped to 5.9 litres and the twin-turbo system was optimized for top-speed, along with other tweaks.

The result is 700bhp and 1000Nm of torque. Top speed achieved so far is 351.45kph. Well, they managed to test the speed limit of the tyres alright!

Fulda also teamed up with Maybach back in 1938 fo the exact same reason. This was the old Maybach that Fulda used to test it’s tyres back in 1938. Top speed was over 200kmh. The car was lost in World War 2.

You gotta love that sporty red trimmed interior! The dash sports a huge speedometer to show the high top speed that the car can go?

© 2012 Paul Tan's Automotive News. All Rights Reserved.

This story originally appeared on Paul Tan's Automotive News on Sun, 27 May 12 12:53:02 +0000.

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