Geneva Motor Show: 2016 Mercedes-Maybach Pullman

Guess I just do not get the allure of MB. The style outside and inside does nothing for me. I do like the spec of the TT V12 engine. Guess when you are so insecure you need a V12 when a V8 or V6 will do just fine.

Heck Corvettes V8 engine does better than this V12 without all the complexity, extra weight and over the top price. But then the Billionaires have to spend money on something.

It's truly a bizarre piece. MB shuffles the interior details, gives it a wheelbase stretch, then cuts the price IN HALF from a few years ago. Oh yeah; and they keep the name of a failed brand launch, but add another name no one remembers, assumedly to temper the situation.

Some of the changes, like the diamond-quilted upholstery, the tacky accordion-fold curtains (no smart glass here??) and the stand-up hood ornament strongly evoke the tastelessness of the 1970s. But overall, it looks pretty snazzy. I don't expect a single repeat sales from Maybach 1.0, and I hope MB doesn't either. Those buyers got royally F'd.

I still wish that Cadillac, Chrysler, or Lincoln had snagged the Pullman name before Benz did.  It is an iconic American name. 

The original Pullman came out in 1965, so Mercedes has had that name for a good while now.   I read elsewhere that this car was designed specifically for "governments, rulers, and royal families."  So in other words, dictators and monarchs. 

Clearly the best option is the possibly $500,000 upgrade for the VR9 ballistic protection, which let's be honest, the majority of people that buy this car are getting the armored version.

Also important to note that this car has a rear cabin speedometer, so that El Presidente can yell at Jeeves for driving too fast, or perhaps to make sure that Jeeves is traveling at a high enough speed to run over the ifedels.

How about that- you could get a rear speedometer in a 1930 Cadillac. 

Nuttin' like benchmarking...

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Question is, does the 'Pullman' name mean anything to today's buyers??

I only associate it with railroad cars, not mercedes.

This thing is about as big as a railroad car.  It is 3 feet longer than a Suburban.   They will sell every one of these they build I am sure, and probably at $1 million a pop.  And they have made previous versions of the Pullman and 6 door limos, I think this is just a better execution of it than what they did on the W140 and W220 chassis.

Guess I just do not get the allure of MB. The style outside and inside does nothing for me. I do like the spec of the TT V12 engine. Guess when you are so insecure you need a V12 when a V8 or V6 will do just fine.

 

Heck Corvettes V8 engine does better than this V12 without all the complexity, extra weight and over the top price. But then the Billionaires have to spend money on something.

Close to 10,000 lbs with armor, a V12 is needed. A V8 in this car would be like a 2.0T in an Escalade ESV Platinum. 

This thing is about as big as a railroad car.  It is 3 feet longer than a Suburban.   They will sell every one of these they build I am sure, and probably at $1 million a pop.  And they have made previous versions of the Pullman and 6 door limos, I think this is just a better execution of it than what they did on the W140 and W220 chassis.

Guess I just do not get the allure of MB. The style outside and inside does nothing for me. I do like the spec of the TT V12 engine. Guess when you are so insecure you need a V12 when a V8 or V6 will do just fine.

 

Heck Corvettes V8 engine does better than this V12 without all the complexity, extra weight and over the top price. But then the Billionaires have to spend money on something.

Close to 10,000 lbs with armor, a V12 is needed. A V8 in this car would be like a 2.0T in an Escalade ESV Platinum. 

WRONG! It is a little small 6 liter V12, The GM 6.2L V8 would do a better job than this engine with better gas mileage. Again you are hung up on the badge and not the real facts.

 

This thing is about as big as a railroad car.  It is 3 feet longer than a Suburban.   They will sell every one of these they build I am sure, and probably at $1 million a pop.  And they have made previous versions of the Pullman and 6 door limos, I think this is just a better execution of it than what they did on the W140 and W220 chassis.

Guess I just do not get the allure of MB. The style outside and inside does nothing for me. I do like the spec of the TT V12 engine. Guess when you are so insecure you need a V12 when a V8 or V6 will do just fine.

 

Heck Corvettes V8 engine does better than this V12 without all the complexity, extra weight and over the top price. But then the Billionaires have to spend money on something.

Close to 10,000 lbs with armor, a V12 is needed. A V8 in this car would be like a 2.0T in an Escalade ESV Platinum. 

WRONG! It is a little small 6 liter V12, The GM 6.2L V8 would do a better job than this engine with better gas mileage. Again you are hung up on the badge and not the real facts.

 

 That V8 could not produce the NVH standards needed buy a car like this.  They Maybach cars don't use Mercedes most powerful engine for a reason, they need smoothness and quietness.  The Mercedes-AMG V12 makes 811 lb-ft of torque, but the computer limits it to 738 lb-ft to protect the transmission and reduce wheel spin. 

The 6.3 is hella smooth. 

They will sell every one of these they build I am sure, and probably at $1 million a pop.  

Not particularly difficult when they are basically built to order. 

This car is going to set crazy records for depreciation.

Yes, because Billionaires care about depreciation or gas mileage or operating costs.   Not sure where you could even find one used.

Yes, because Billionaires care about depreciation or gas mileage or operating costs.   Not sure where you could even find one used.

Yes they do, because they can claim the depreciation, gas mileage or operating costs for tax purposes. Higher numbers for those means more tax deductions.

You could possibly find them in junkyards.

Have all the Maybach 1.0s evaporated into thin air?
Are the owners bound to lifetime ownership contracts?
How come I've seen the older Maybachs in classified ads?

 

 

This thing is about as big as a railroad car.  It is 3 feet longer than a Suburban.   They will sell every one of these they build I am sure, and probably at $1 million a pop.  And they have made previous versions of the Pullman and 6 door limos, I think this is just a better execution of it than what they did on the W140 and W220 chassis.

Guess I just do not get the allure of MB. The style outside and inside does nothing for me. I do like the spec of the TT V12 engine. Guess when you are so insecure you need a V12 when a V8 or V6 will do just fine.

 

Heck Corvettes V8 engine does better than this V12 without all the complexity, extra weight and over the top price. But then the Billionaires have to spend money on something.

Close to 10,000 lbs with armor, a V12 is needed. A V8 in this car would be like a 2.0T in an Escalade ESV Platinum. 

WRONG! It is a little small 6 liter V12, The GM 6.2L V8 would do a better job than this engine with better gas mileage. Again you are hung up on the badge and not the real facts.

 

 That V8 could not produce the NVH standards needed buy a car like this.  They Maybach cars don't use Mercedes most powerful engine for a reason, they need smoothness and quietness.  The Mercedes-AMG V12 makes 811 lb-ft of torque, but the computer limits it to 738 lb-ft to protect the transmission and reduce wheel spin. 

 

Totally and completely disagree with you. GM's 6.2 L V8 is silky smooth and you clearly have never driven one.

Also when did we start talking about the AMG, stick to the facts of the story above, this is about their normal Twin Turbo V12 which is heavier than GM's V8's. 

The 6.2 L Vi puts out 420hp 450lb-ft of torque and I am sure can easily move this beast of a car. Yet if you feel it needs the power of the TT V12 then I know just as smooth and superior would be the Supercharged Z06 Engine with 650HP.

I'd like to see Cadillac go after Rolls-Royce with a Covette/Silverado engine and see what happens.  Or Maybe Cadillac can build a Lamborghini Aventador or Ferrari F12 competitor with a Covette motor.  I think people would pay $400,000 for a Cadillac with the same engine in a $60,000 Corvette.  

^ '15 650 HP 6.2L Z-06 starts at $78K. Prior to that, the 638 HP 6.2L ZR1 started at $113K.

RR starts at $263K but only delivers 563 HP in a car that weighs 5500 lbs.

No one buys a Rolls for the power train anyway- as long as it moves out decently, no one in this demo cares what's under the hood. And yes, it absolutely could be a 6.2L GM engine- car would move out with even better authority.

No Cadillac in our lifetimes is going to sticker at $400K. Now, $150K, that I expect to see.

In a perfect fantasy world, Cadillac would build a modern equivalent to the Eldo Brougham and bury Rolls once again. Put that in the Ciel body and your half way there.

I'd like to see Cadillac go after Rolls-Royce with a Covette/Silverado engine and see what happens.  Or Maybe Cadillac can build a Lamborghini Aventador or Ferrari F12 competitor with a Covette motor.  I think people would pay $400,000 for a Cadillac with the same engine in a $60,000 Corvette.  

Actually, I would expect them to build a Aventador and F12 beater using the Corvette Z-06 motor as a base.  The Z-06 is within 75 horsepower of the F12 and 50 horsepower of the Aventador today and out torques the both by 141 lb-ft. 

Then there is also the fact that the Corvette's motor weighs substantially less than either of the V12s.....  the fact remains that one of the best upgrades one could do to either the Lambo or Ferrari would be to drop the Corvette Z-06 engine in the back hatch for an instant and substantial increase in torque with a significant decrease in weight.  Put an underdrive pulley on the supercharger and you'll even be ahead in horsepower figures as well. 

Why would anyone pay $400,000 for a car with a Corvette motor, when they could just buy a Corvette, for 1/6th the price.   All these high dollar cars have a V12 for a reason.    Cadillac couldn't even compete with the Mercedes SL, I can't see them pulling off a super car.

People buy Audi A6s with volkswagon engines in them- how do you explain that?

A Corvette is a Corvette, a very high perform— I feel like I'm talking to a 5 yr old.

The A6 isn't quite $400,000.

I'd like to see Cadillac spend $2 billion on a S-class/Maybach competitor and put their money where Johan's mouth is.

Neither is any Cadillac.

No earthly possibility Rolls is going to fit a Corvette engine into a $400K or a $260K car (tho they had zero issues putting a GM Powertrain automatic in their cars for 23 years because they lacked the engineering know-how to build their own, strong-enough).

No earthly possibility we're going to see a $400K or a $260K Cadillac ($150K is right around the corner, tho).

Try and keep your conversational feet on the ground, hmm?

Rolls was using pushrod V8s until like..last week.

Why would anyone pay $400,000 for a car with a Corvette motor, when they could just buy a Corvette, for 1/6th the price.   All these high dollar cars have a V12 for a reason.    Cadillac couldn't even compete with the Mercedes SL, I can't see them pulling off a super car.

Don't your feet get tired from all the running around you do moving the goal posts?

Why would anyone buy a Ford GT with the Ecoboost V6 out of a Raptor?  Yet, I bet Ford will sell every one they build at or above list price.

If Chevrolet did a mid-engine supercar, I'd expect it to have the Z-06 motor or an even higher tuned variant.  I would also expect that if it is similar weight and design to import mid-engine super cars, it will wipe the floor with them as it would have more power.

The XLR's issues were not what was under the hood, but even then, moving from the DOHC Northstar to the Corvette V8 would have been a substantial upgrade for the car.