Mercedes-Maybach S 600 – all about the wheelbase!

It’s all about the wheelbase with the new Mercedes-Maybach S-Class, which debuts simultaneously at the 2014 LA and Guangzhou shows. We’re talking about 5,453mm in length and a 3,365 mm long wheelbase here – figures that are both 200 mm longer than that of the the long wheelbase S-Class.

The new extended wheelbase S-Class (codenamed X222) will be available with two engine options, with the flagship being the 530 horsepower, 830 Nm 6.0 litre twin turbo V12. There are also S500 and S500 4MATIC options, powered by a twin turbo 4.7 litre V8 engine producing 455 horsepower and 700 Nm. Both the S500 and S600 are rated to hit 100 km/h in 5 seconds.

The new X222 has 963 mm of effective headroom and 325 mm of effective kneeroom, compared to 951 mm and 166 mm in the V222 long wheelbase S-Class. Other than the additional room, the rear passenger seats have a different ambiance because the seat backs are positioned behind the door cutout, which creates a feeling of privacy. Because your head is positioned next to a pillar instead of a window, you don’t hear as much of the outside.

Mercedes-Benz claims the new Maybach S-Class is the quietest car in the world, with wind noise levels lower than even the new S-Class Coupe, a car which Mercedes-Benz claims previously held the title. Special seals optimise the noise insulation, thereby ensuring excellent aeroacoustic performance in the rear. These include seals over the C joints in the rear doors, which have a hose profile rather than the usual lip seal, as well as bonded triangular windows with a special seal.

Other measures in the rear compartment are a generous area of insulation around the single seats extending from the seat cushion over the rear panel to the parcel shelf. Intelligent air ducting around the parcel shelf reduces the intrusion of noise, and sealed inertia reels on the seat belts prevent possible disturbing sounds. The textile underbody and wheel arch lining have an insulating and absorptive effect, which reduces high-frequency tyre noise in the interior.

The door itself has no triangular window because this has been relocated into the C-pillar. The doors themselves are actually shorter by 66 mm compared to those on the long wheelbase S-Class. The seat backs for the rear passenger can be adjusted from a 19 degree angle all the way to 43.5 degrees.

So then, if you can’t bring yourself to ride around in something as ostentatious as a Rolls-Royce but still want something better than an S-Class, this might be what you’re looking for. Mercedes-Benz’s brief for the W222/V222 was to create the best car in the world. The X222 is set to be even better version then?