Daimler will take the next two years to decide whether to invest more in its failing Maybach flagship marque or else shut it down. This comes from the mouth of Daimler and Mercedes chief Dr. Dieter Zetsche, who inherited the problem-child brand from his predecessor, ex-CEO Juergen Schrempp.
After ditching Chrysler, another deal that was orchestrated by Schrempp, Dr. Z may be inclined to shut down Maybach, too. By all accounts the ultra-premium brand has not been a sales success, barely reaching ten percent of its original sales forecast. In speaking with TheCarConnection.com, however, Zetsche insisted that Maybach's profitability "does not matter" in the face of demonstrating Mercedes' capability of competing with archrival BMW's pinnacle Rolls-Royce (and Volkswagen's Bentley), but that may prove to be all talk if Maybach doesn't present a solid business case. Zetsche confirmed that there are currently no plans on the table for new Maybach products – cutting short speculation over a new baby Maybach positioned between the current 57 and the Mercedes S-Class – and that even the outrageously-priced 62 Landaulet was unlikely to make much headway in turning the brand's fortunes around. We guess P.Diddy and his crew will have to find another ride.
[Source: The Car Connection]
Audi A3 TDI Clubsport Quattro concept
Spy Shots: Production Audi TT Clubsport Quattro
Chevy Camaro getting early unveil at Indy in September
James Garner recovering from mild stroke
VIDEO: God's ringtone is a V10-powered Audi R8
First Drive: 2009 Ford Escapes, more of almost everything
Autoline on Autoblog with John McElroy
In the Autoblog Garage: 2008 Ford Shelby GT500 Mustang
Future Classic: 1984 Chrysler Minivans
_thumbnail.jpg "Lamborghini Reventon unboxed in Las Vegas")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Mercury Mountaineer 06 @ Mar 17th 2008 1:05PM
I hope they don't shut it down. I would hate to see such a nice brand just fade away.
Andrew @ Mar 17th 2008 9:57PM
Maybach needs its own design - the current car looks like a giant S-Class with headlights from a MB prototype that was shown at some car shows in the mid 90s.
They need an all new design on par with RR and Bentley. There is a reason why RR and Bentley are having record sales - their products are diffrent enough and worth the price.
Schmeltz @ Mar 17th 2008 1:14PM
I bet the 3 people that bought these cars over the years are going to be upset when they can't find parts for them!
ET @ Mar 17th 2008 1:14PM
MB didn't do enough to differentiate the brand. The car was seen as the glorified S-Class that it was, and considering that Maybachs were sold in MB dealers, people could easily compare the two and so they wondered aloud why there was such a premium for the Maybach when the S-Class was pretty much just as good. Additionally, when you pay $300,000 for a car, you don't want it confused for a "lowly" S-Class.
BMW, on the other hand, mandated that BMW and Rolls-Royce's cannot be sold under the same roof and that the two brands should be as distinct as possible. That worked. I'm glad the Maybach is dying.
ronnie schreiber @ Mar 17th 2008 2:44PM
"MB didn't do enough to differentiate the brand."
MB made two critical errors. The first was not giving the Maybach a distinctive style, instead of just looking like a slightly upmarket S Class. The second was coming out with the gorgeous CLS. As a CLS owner told me, "why buy an S Class? My kids are grown, I don't really need the headroom in back, it's got pretty much the same mechanicals as the S Class but in a much more attractive car."
So they made the Maybach look like an S Class and proceeded to make the S Class look dowdy in comparison to the CLS. If you notice, the revised S Class shown in '06 picked up a lot of cues from the CLS.
People like to pick on the US carmakers, but when I look at the Germans and Koreans, it's obvious that there's plenty of cluelessness abundant in the industry all around the globe.
akatsuki @ Mar 17th 2008 1:24PM
I say kill it dead. Saw one roaming around today near Bryant park, and it was still ugly. Rolls are just so much nicer it is ridiculous.
They should take their frosty windows and seats, come out with an S600u (for uber) and stick it all in there and call it a day.
ronnie schreiber @ Mar 17th 2008 2:50PM
"Rolls are just so much nicer it is ridiculous."
Well maybe if you never look at the front end of the RR. While I like the new RRs back of the grille, the Phantom front ends are garish, vulgar and just plain funny looking to me.
OTOH, both the RR and Maybach are built to ridiculous levels of fit and finish. Maybach is now trimming out cars in marble, in addition to wood, leather and metal trim. I'm guessing that when the SEMA crowd gets tired of color tinted carbon fiber they'll switch to stone to imitate the luxoboats from BMW and MB.
akatsuki @ Mar 17th 2008 2:58PM
That just reminds me of Clarkson kitting out a Mercedes with cobblestone and a fireplace.
I agree that even the Rolls is a bit over the top, but frankly the lines are just so much better overall. I see plenty of both here in Manhattan, and no question that the Rolls is the nicer looking car, although I am sure the finish is excellent on either.
Then again, I would rather do my own driving and would probably just buy a QP.
Mattias @ Mar 17th 2008 1:24PM
Ditching Maybach won't hurt anyone. Just keep the too large versions as Mercedes Benz and revive the Pullmann line. The sheiks will go for that.
BTW: The last time I encountered a Maybach it was an Maybach with german number plates in Austria close to the german border where a gallon is approximately 50¢ cheaper than in Germany. The Maybach driver invested maybe 15 minutes queueing to save let's say $20?
Taylor @ Mar 17th 2008 1:38PM
Aww, I _>;
JayP @ Mar 17th 2008 1:40PM
The reason MB revived Maybach was that the Mercedes Benz name had been whored out to SUVs, minivans, microcars and sub-$30k sedans.
Had they stayed with the sedans and coupes that brought them to the party, Maybach would have been irrelevant.
Mattias @ Mar 17th 2008 1:49PM
Whored out?
There were alway MB trucks and vans and taxis. Forty years ago this went together well with the Pullmann line. It should go together well today too. At least here in germany it is totally normal to buy your €100.000 S-class at the same dealership that sells you €20.000 Vitos in the dozen.
Eddie @ Mar 17th 2008 1:43PM
I think you're better off with a Brabus SV12s over a Maybach. They should build the Exelero, im sure that would sell very well.
PJ @ Mar 17th 2008 2:05PM
Well that was quick.
Not surprising, though. The cars looked like post-"Pimp-My-Ride" S-Classes, circa 1998, and to American buyers unaware of the brand's history, the Maybach badge didn't command much (if any) more cachet than the three-pointed star.
The '07 S-Class was the nail in the coffin.
JMC 3 @ Mar 17th 2008 6:28PM
Especially since the Maybach looks like a last-generation S class.
If I'm not mistaken the S class is available with a 12 cylinder for 100k or so less.so why a Maybach?
Then they're the depreciation on a Maybach.Yeesch.
John P. @ Mar 17th 2008 2:07PM
At least they are learning from their mistakes. They bought Chrysler and tried like hell to kill it off. Now the stinker called Maybach is on the chopping block, good riddance.
Focus on your own quality problems already and build us the best mercs you can Daimler.
Michael D. @ Mar 17th 2008 2:13PM
I do hope that it's decided that Maybach is to stay and flourish, especially with Rolls Royce and Bentley growing and having great success, and others like the impending growth of Bugatti (perhaps using Bentley componentry). If anything, or worst case scenario, I would accept it if Maybach becomes part of Mercedes Benz instead of a stand-alone division (Mercedes Maybach—I believe that was the original intent) and base the vehicles on extended (current) S-Class platforms and become limited production flagships. Of course, I would recommend bolder, more expressive and possibly aggressive styling and coachwork for the Maybach line.
This has been done in the past: Chrysler, Imperial was a stand alone division, then it was later merged into the Chrysler division, even with Ford, decades ago Lincoln and Continental were separate division lines, later merged into one, of course the Continental name is no longer used by Lincoln, Bentley uses it for a series. So Maybach could be merged into the MB range.
vLane @ Mar 17th 2008 2:20PM
The concept of Maybach: take a $148,000 car, jack the price to $340,000, style it to look exactly like an S-class, and slap a name on it no one born after World War I would recognize.
Gee, wonder why it didn't work.
Tool @ Mar 17th 2008 2:22PM
While there is certainly a market for these ultra-premium vehicles, Daimler totally screwed the pooch on Maybach.
Michael D. @ Mar 17th 2008 3:09PM
Of note (and to build onto my earlier post) The recent Mercedes-Benz Ocean Drive concept, basically a 4-door S-Class convertible, which was recently green-lighted for production, was originally supposed to be a Maybach, according to some news-sources. It, of course, wound up as a Mercedes, perhaps it is a sign that decisions are taking place.
My gut feeling: Maybach may wind up as part of Mercedes-Benz as a limited halo/flagship limo, and not a stand-alone division. I'm still OK with that. Also, if they're based on S-Class underpinnings, albeit extended, it wouldn't require a too major an investment.