One of the biggest trends in fashion this year has been “quiet luxury,” high-end clothes that look classically chic and subtle, avoiding announcing to the general public how expensive they actually are. More than just a clothing trend, the quiet luxury ethos has been applied to some luxury cars for decades, as many enthusiasts and customers of high-end cars have traditionally preferred an understated design.
I am not one of them. My favorite luxury cars have always been extravagant and in-your-face, the shinier and shoutier the better. Enter the Mercedes-Maybach EQS SUV, the first electric car from the Maybach subbrand. Aimed at an increasingly younger customer base in top-selling countries like China that are more open to EVs and progressive designs, the Maybach EQS is exactly the kind of luxury car I want from our new electric era.
[Ed note: Part of being Pro-Car is understanding not all cars are for everyone. Just as it might be difficult to explain the allure of a GR Corolla to a person whose ideal car is a Lexus ES, so, too, can it be difficult to appreciate the upper stratosphere of luxury cars. The good news is that we know a guy who loves this stuff, and we’re excited to have Daniel here to explain the importance of these cars. – MH]
Look, I don’t care about trying to convince anyone to love how the Maybach EQS looks, or any Mercedes EQ car for that matter. Their aero-optimized shapes and soft surfacing are too blobby and amorphous for some, but to me they look like the future, and that’s what really draws me to a design these days. Love it or hate it, at least the EQS stands out and makes a statement.
This is the first electric Mercedes to feature a standing three-pointed star hood ornament, aerodynamics be damned, and head of the Maybach brand Daniel Lescow notes that it helps underscore the car’s branding. The light bar running across the top of the “grille” gets a new chrome bar with a Maybach script, so when looking at the front end you read “Mercedes” from the hood ornament and then “Maybach” from the trim.
That black grille panel has vertical chrome slats with a 3D effect that adds some depth, and they’re echoed by slats in the lower bumper intake. Mercedes says it has figured out how to hide radar sensors behind the panel without having them be visible thanks to the use of indium for the surface, which is then covered in black lacquer. The side intakes have what must be the most outrageous mesh design ever conceived: the double-M Maybach logo is repeated over and over, alternating between normal orientation and upside-down to create a pattern much like that of a Louis Vuitton handbag. And these intakes are chrome, of course.
The EQS’ existing chrome window trim is augmented by a chrome B-pillar, a Maybach signature, and anodized aluminum running boards are standard. The center taillight bar has more LED helix twists than the normal EQS SUV, and the tailgate and rear bumper have additional chrome trim. Each D-pillar is adorned with the Maybach logo, though they sadly aren’t illuminated like on the S-Class. Mercedes nerds will notice that all of the exterior badging uses a classy Maybach-specific font, as opposed to the futuristic font used by other normal EQ cars (AMGs included).
Five different two-tone paint schemes are available, my favorite of which pairs Cirrus Silver on the lower half with Nautical Blue on top. The base 21-inch wheels are inspired by champagne flutes and look pretty good, but I’d never consider them. In fact I don’t understand why anyone would, when you can instead go for a forged wheel with a polished five-hole monoblock design that has thick spokes and a wheel hub cover. Coming after launch will be a 22-inch monoblock wheel with a more futuristic and chunky 7-spoke design, but I think I still prefer the five-spoke monoblocks.
If you really want to amp up the branding you can select the Night Series package, which is also newly offered for the Maybach GLS and S-Class. Essentially Maybach’s equivalent of a black appearance package, the Night Series exchanges all of the car’s chrome exterior trim for bits with a dark chrome finish, which looks much nicer and more high-end than the typical gloss black of a pack like this. Night Series cars also get rose gold headlight accents with the Maybach logo, the repeating Maybach pattern on the B-pillar trim, and special 21-inch wheels that have the repeating pattern between the spokes. If you include those that are halfway cut off, the Night Series EQS has somewhere around 950 Maybach logos just on the outside—yes, I actually counted.
Like most people, a frequent cause of stress and exhaustion in my life is manually opening car doors, and the Maybach EQS has a solution. All four doors are powered and can be opened or closed via the infotainment screens or key, or by brushing your hand against the door handle. But even that is extra work, so the driver’s door can also open automatically from five feet away if you approach with the key in your pocket, and a press of the brake pedal closes it. Ultrasonic sensors will stop the doors from opening into obstacles like curbs or other vehicles.
Once in the driver’s seat the Maybach looks and feels much like a normal EQS. The dashboard-spanning Hyperscreen is standard, and the MBUX infotainment system has Maybach-specific graphics and animations with tons of repeating Maybach logos. There’s a Maybach gauge design with a simple appearance inspired by a silk scarf blowing in the wind; as the digital needles sweep across the speedo and power gauge the nearby numbers grow larger and then fade out of view.
No matter what color scheme you choose, the Maybach EQS is the first Mercedes to use leather that is sustainably tanned using coffee bean shells and other vegetables. That leather feels suitably luxurious and covers far more surfaces than in a regular EQS SUV, especially if you go for one of the fancier Manufaktur options like the Crystal White of my test car, and there’s nice quilting and contrasting stitching and piping. The Maybach also has a number of special trim options, including natural grain wood and piano black with flowing aluminum lines, and the front seatbacks have a unique design that features the same veneer and more badging.
For now, there is just a single powertrain configuration that Mercedes denotes as the EQS680. Its two electric motors put out a total of 649 horsepower and 700 pound-feet of torque, making the Maybach the most potent version of the EQS SUV. Those figures match the output of the AMG EQS sedan (not including that car’s launch control boost function) and is 113 hp and 67 lb-ft more powerful than the EQS580 SUV. The Maybach will hit 60 mph in 4.1 seconds, almost half a second quicker than the EQS580, and it certainly feels much punchier off the line and when accelerating to pass at freeway speeds.
The Maybach uses the same 107.8-kWh as the standard EQS SUV. Range hasn’t been announced yet, but the EPA rating will likely land at around 300 miles; when I hop into a fully charged Maybach the gauge cluster shows a max range of 318 miles. Like other EQS SUVs, the Maybach can charge at up to 200 kW, good enough to go from 10-80% in 31 minutes or gain about 100 miles of range in just 15 minutes of charging. Plugging in with the 9.6-kW onboard charger will fully replenish the battery in under 13 hours.
One of the biggest annoyances plaguing the existing EQ lineup is a brake pedal that physically moves when the car’s regenerative braking kicks in, but the issue seems to have been solved with the Maybach EQS—or at least the one-pedal driving provided by the highest regen setting is strong enough that I never notice, as I almost never need to touch the brake pedal. The Maybach’s pedals are metal and feature the Maybach logo, which is a nice styling flourish.
The Maybach is noticeably quieter than a regular EQS SUV, with only the slightest whispers of wind from the side mirrors entering the cabin. A fixed parcel shelf in the cargo area acts as a bulkhead, suppressing unwanted noises from the rear wheels and other mechanical components, and two surround sound speakers are integrated on top. The Maybach also has acoustically laminated glass and more sound insulation than the normal EQS, and it can decouple the front motor for better efficiency and less noise.
Rear-wheel steering that turns up to 10 degrees is taken from the regular EQS, and it’s an absolute game-changer when it comes to maneuvering the Maybach around city streets and making u-turns. Its 36.1-foot turning circle is even tighter than that of a C-Class sedan, and seeing the huge monoblocks twist around at the rear always makes me giggle. This is definitely not a car you want to throw into a corner or drive briskly at all, but the light steering is at least direct and accurate.
Unlike Maybach versions of the GLS and S-Class, the Maybach EQS isn’t offered with Mercedes’ fancy E-Active Body Control road-scanning suspension—that means it doesn’t get the GLS’ bouncing party trick. Air suspension and continuously adjustable dampers are standard, and the Maybach has its own tuning compared to the standard EQS. Ride quality is phenomenal, soaking up road imperfections and potholes with only the tiniest shudders from the biggest bumps ever making their way into the cabin. There’s some body roll, sure, but the low center of gravity ensures it doesn’t feel top-heavy despite a curb weight that will surely exceed the EQS580’s 6,200-ish pounds.
Sometimes the ride can be a bit bouncy or pitchy from the front seats, but that’s actually on purpose. In place of the standard EQS’ default Comfort drive mode is a new Maybach mode that is engineered to provide the optimal ride for rear-seat passengers. After all, this is a car that’s meant to be chauffeur-driven, with Lescow saying most Maybach customers really do use chauffeurs, whether for special occasions, weekday commutes or even 24/7. At the launch in Vancouver, I have many opportunities to be chauffeured in the back of the Maybach, and while driving the car myself is lovely, being driven is far better. From the rear seats I notice none of the body movements present up front, the ride always feeling perfectly smooth and level. In fact, I notice barely anything at all, as the Maybach’s rear cabin is like the world’s fanciest isolation tank.
While the Maybach S-Class has a longer wheelbase to provide increased rear-seat space, the Maybach EQS is identical in size to the regular EQS SUV, instead tossing out the optional third row and moving the second-row seats further back like in the Maybach GLS. A five-seat configuration is standard, though it’s not your typical bench seat. The outboard seats have heating, ventilation and massage functions, including a calf massage and neck and shoulder heating. An 11.6-inch touchscreen is attached to both front seatbacks, and the center armrest has an additional removable tablet that can control either screen’s functions.
Check the four-seat Executive Rear Seat Package Plus option box and the EQS gets what Maybach calls the First-Class Rear setup. This adds a fixed center console that connects all the way to the front, and a waterfall-like design that cocoons the rear seats in the chosen wood trim. A powered storage lid hides a pair of heated and cooled cupholders, while the center armrest hides two HDMI ports and four USB-C ports, a wireless charging pad and optional fold-out tray tables. Also optional are a refrigerator (which can be removed for more cargo space) and silver-plated champagne flutes. The console actually has a floating effect similar to the front center console, with empty space below and a Maybach logo projected onto the carpet.
You can’t go wrong with either rear seat, but for maximum luxury you need to be in the one on the right. Press the max recline button and the front passenger seat slides all the way forward, letting you fully raise the calf rest and extend the footrest integrated into the front seatback. It really is like being in a business-class airplane seat, just with far more luxury and fewer unruly passengers. The Maybach even comes with a pair of handmade pillows cut from the same leather used for the interior, and each headrest has a super soft cushion that is, of course, branded with the Maybach logo.
I’m already a huge fan of Mercedes’ active ambient lighting, and the Maybach takes things up another notch. There are 253 individually controlled LEDs in total throughout the interior, with the Maybach getting lights that wrap around the roof and seatbacks, and there’s a new rose gold color scheme to choose from. Lescow’s favorite design touch is the square lamp setup positioned at eye-level in the C-pillars, a nod to opera lights from the 1920s, and their brightness can be individually adjusted. Rear-seat passengers also have precise control over different spotlights throughout the cabin to illuminate things like a book in your lap or the tray tables.
Using the rear MBUX touchscreens I can control nearly everything in the car apart from driving-related vehicle settings. Different user profiles can be logged into from any seat, which makes the number of adjustable settings and functions much less daunting to deal with every time you get in—everything from your seat position, climate control preferences, audio settings, ambient lighting colors and more can be saved. Wireless headsets can be paired to any of the passenger seats, so each occupant can listen to their own music or watch their own videos. There are also a bunch of games, some of which have multiplayer functionality.
The standard Burmester 4D surround sound system is one of the best on the market, with 15 speakers in total and two exciters in each seat. Dolby Atmos integration makes for truly cinematic sound, especially with the seat exciters set to their maximum intensity, and I hear details in the production and vocals of songs that I’ve never noticed before. The Dolby tech is also a boon for watching a movie on one of the many screens, and it works with the headphones.
A new scent called No. 12 Mood Ebony has been developed for the Maybach EQS’ onboard fragrance dispenser, with Mercedes describing it as “an exclusive composition of longing, attraction and devotion,” and a HEPA filter provides ultra-clean air inside. There are a few driving sounds to choose from that are played inside and out of the car, with the Maybach getting a new Aerial Grace sound. The doors project animated puddle lights onto the ground, and the headlights project an animation on the road ahead when the car is unlocked. An Off-Road drive mode raises the suspension and uses the exterior cameras to make the hood appear see-through, with an infotainment page that displays tons of data that Maybach owners will never care about. You can upload your own images to be used as screensavers for the passenger display. I could go on.
Is any of this stuff really necessary? Not really. But luxury cars have never been about necessity. What’s far more important is desire. I want to live in the Maybach’s ultra-fancy rear seats. I want to listen to that crazy sound system. I want those automatic doors. I want to look at its flashy exterior every day. I want to step out of my car always feeling relaxed and refreshed, and that’s what the Maybach EQS does.
When the Maybach EQS goes on sale later this fall it should carry a starting price of around $200,000. It will be built alongside the GLE, GLS, EQE SUV and EQS SUV in Alabama, making it one of the most expensive series-production cars ever built in the United States. In 2022 Mercedes-Maybach delivered nearly 22,000 cars globally, up 37% compared to the previous year, and so far through Q2 2023 sales of Mercedes EVs have more than doubled. The Maybach EQS is teed up to be the subbrand’s most important and potentially successful model yet, and from both the driver’s and passenger’s perspectives, I think it deserves that crown.
All photos by the author unless otherwise noted.
That exterior is just so bafflingly bad. The window trim and the two tone look like a dealer added it on to a GM Bankruptcy era car to sell it to an unfortunate retiree. Not to mention the overall shape is just… honestly it kind of reminds me of that garish blue convertible SUV thing that some crazy doctor was trying to make a few years ago
Thank you for counting the logos. I sincerely appreciate this factual evidence of excess because sometimes beauty is in the numbers.
I’m thrilled to see you at The Autopian and look forward to more articles!
And don’t worry, I double-checked my counting work with my drive partner. We were going to count the number of logos on the inside too, but if you include those in the screen backgrounds it would have taken an extremely long time. Maybe when I get one of these for a longer loan I will.
Meh. I bet it’s comfortable as heck. But to me, the problem is that Maybach is now/again a trim package and not a truly bespoke or largely unique vehicle. Im sure the regular EQS is just about as comfortable and inviting. This is just a “slightly better” version of a “normal” vehicle. As much as I hate to give GM credit because I feel like they peddle so much crap, at least their EV Cadillacs actually appear to transcend the General’s parts bin with the Celestiq. Also on the tech front, I don’t care who is designing the infotainment, it will always be easier to use whatever smartphone interface it is that you interact with daily. Sure you can learn the cars features and train your brain, but again that’s extra work, and luxury should be effortless.
The Maybach versions of the S-Class, EQS and GLS are more than just slightly better compared to the regular models, especially for people in the back seat. And according to some recent reports (plus things employees have told me), Mercedes is working on Maybach models that will be even more exclusive and differentiated from the Mercedes cars, including some that will have no Mercedes-Benz equivalent.
Ed note: Part of being Pro-Car is understanding not all cars are for everyone. Just as it might be difficult to explain the allure of a GR Corolla to a person whose ideal car is a Lexus ES, so, too, can it be difficult to appreciate the upper stratosphere of luxury cars. The good news is that we know a guy who loves this stuff, and we’re excited to have Daniel here to explain the importance of these cars. – MH]
Man what a silly disclaimer. Apologizing for liking expensive cars? To whom is this apology directed? A baby, that’s who. A baby with a chip on his shoulder.
Have you been reading a lot of these comments? The disclaimer is perfectly placed for this audience.
Well the comments section is a not at all a randomized section of readers. And catering to the whiners is not a good business strategy.
That is, if anyone still cares about making making a successful business or making money? Or should The Autopian apologize for that too? Should the Autopian be ashamed of breaking off from the old site, and making a crack at capitalism. Does this shameless pursuit of profit also offend those who are offended by expensive cars? Must be very confusing.
BTW I don’t like the car, and certainly can’t afford it. But it’s ok.
And just to hammer my point in a little more, I’ve deduced these editorial rules in place at The Autopian.
Acceptable article topic requiring no apology:
cheap cars
cheap motorcycles
expensive motorcycles
cheap RVs
expensive RVs
free cats
free cats with expensive vet bills
Automotive esoterics, cheap or expensive
Cheap car repairs
Expensive car repairs
Cheap membership levels
Expensive membership levels
expensive trains
cheap planes
expensive trains
cheap buses
expensive buses
Topics allowed but requiring disclaimer:
Expensive cars
LOL I love how “expensive trains” shows up twice.
I think this disclaimer may be counterproductive to its own mission. An introduction to DSG and the fact that he somehow has an in reviewing the upper stratosphere of cars may have been more helpful.
I don’t like it. Period. But then I wanted to figure out WHY I don’t like it and it’s two things.. first is the price, obviously. The second, a little more importantly, is that I would never in a million years use all the features, gadgets, ahem.. bullshit, this car has on it.. if I was given one I’d spend half the day figuring how to turn off all the stupid lights and projectors. Hell, I don’t even connect my phone to the stereo in my Ram!
I totally see your point, but DSG summed it up pretty perfectly: luxury is about desire, not necessity. Do I need doors that open and close themselves? No. Do I want a door that closes itself when I put my foot on the brake to start the car? Absolutely.
And dude, when did those crappy logo puddle lights from Amazon become the norm? That’s just tacky.
Oh and I get that 100%, this car and cars like it were not built for me in any way, shape or form. Where people see neat features, I see stuff I won’t use that will inevitably break and stay broken because I won’t fork out the money to fix them. I enjoy my relentless simplicity!
I agree with you that cars and pretty much every other consumer product should be as simple as possible in the pursuit of their goals. Even a luxury car can accomplish ridiculous things in simple ways that are easy to use and simple to engineer. For example: how do you open the back glass in a Land Cruiser? With up and down buttons! Simple! They’re right there and they’re big enough that the person driving behind you can see them.
I’ve seen this one two-tone Maybach SUV driving around my work neighborhood in Denver and man is it the tackiest thing I’ve ever seen. Not only is it an ostentatious display of wealth, it also looks undeniably worse than the normal Mercedes GLS model upon which it is based. I think these pieces of crap are only for tiktokkers and you tubers – maybe ballers. It just shows these people have more money than sense.
My 950 logos outside let you know that I’ve sprung for the coffee shell “sustainable” tanned leather. While I consume 2000% more of earth’s resources to be relaxed while being driven around in my tacky richie-rich pod.
Sorry, I should have been Robin Hood in a past or future life.
I don’t mean to brag, but I have coffee tanned leather in my car, too, but that’s only because I spill my Starbucks all the time.
Springing for the fine open-pore rosewood guillotine, I see.
You do you, I still consider the Toyota Century V12 the epitome of luxury with its,obsessive details and lack of ostentation
I’m with you. I saw one and it was amazing because I only saw it- none of my friends even noticed it in slow traffic and none of us could *hear* it. Amazing considering it had to be at least 25 years old to be where I saw it.
Mercedes-Benz owner here.
Damn this is so fucking tacky.
I can’t believe they stopped building the S Class Coupe and Cabriolet for this over-logoed mess.
It is outrageous, kinda tacky and too flashy to my taste. Still, I like it, exactly because of that.
But I don’t have the pocket to be less then 100ft from it, and even if I have, I would not be the target audience, unless I could order a landau version, brown colored with golden monoblock wheels, roof wrapped in a vinyl with LV or Gucci logo.
Rear passengers get treated to a UI reminiscent of a $30 Alibaba MP3 player, or maybe a prototype menu for a PlayStation 2? I’m not sure why this is a pet peeve of mine, if you’re paying $200k for something you shouldn’t have to deal with a menu that reminds me of old inflight entertainment.
I don’t mind the infotainment’s appearance, and MBUX is actually my favorite system on the market to use, but one thing that is hilarious to me is the removable tablet in the rear center armrest—it still has Samsung branding on the back!
They couldn’t just add a little MB engraving? interesting
I wonder if part of Samsung’s deal to supply the tablets is that Mercedes has to keep the branding on the back? I dunno. They’ve had these tablets for years now. The only time you ever see any non-Mercedes visuals on the screens is if there is an error message or the system is rebooted.
I assume so, funny
OMG fuck this stupid car. It’s so tacky I can’t believe it.
On a scale of “de-badged” to “Will.I.Am”… this is just to the right of the Jeep Wrangler with its easter eggs.
The outside looks like someone slapped a bunch of Mercedes badging all over their generic shitbox CUV as a joke.
That’s what I was thinking. I’m generally a fan of “generic” styling (like Audis or any RWD GM sedan from this century or 2010s Mercedes) but this almost looks like a comment on how lame crossovers are.
The infamous @dsgolson now has an Autopian byline? Will miracles never cease?!
I just could not be any more not into Merc’s new designs. The exterior was crafted in the image of a used bar of soap, and the interiors look like their focus groups consisted wholly of TikTok influencers.
How do you say, revolting, in German?
Ekelhaft
This car just screams “hi fellow rich people” to me. I assume this is the kind of car one buys if one is deeply proletarian but came into money suddenly. The only thing it’s missing is a siren that goes “I’M RICH” instead of “wee woo”.
Imagine rocking up in this at the local 17-star-restaurant, smacking Lord Sandwich on the back and going “what’s up fellow millionaires”. Meanwhile all the old money is sitting there, knowing full well you don’t need 24587 Maybach badges and platinum-plated sunglasses to convey your wealth if you’re rolling up in a quarter of a million bucks driven by your personal chauffeur. By the end of the evening they’re probably planning how to make you take a fall for the tax fraud they’ve been committing for the last decade and a half before you devalue the Chez Arrogante even more with your peasant presence.
The automotive equivalent of the
GucciDouchey Bag.That image of the open door projecting multiple logos looks like someone spilled a big bag of fancy M&M branded cough drops.
There was a Maybach engine for sale on ebay last year that took my fancy, I wonder how difficult it would be to swap a Tiger Tank engine into this thing?
Is this writer on the Maybach payroll? There isn’t a single downside mentioned that isn’t immediately followed by a “But actually, here’s why this is a good thing”.
This review screams of “I enjoy being treated to all-expenses paid trips to drive $250,000 luxury vehicles and I dare not write anything that will jeopardize me getting future invitations to said trips.”
Quite frankly, it’s disappointing to see such a review published here. As most here probably know already, I have zero beef with Maybach, luxury vehicles, large SUVs etc. I do have issues with articles like this one.
As I said in my editor’s note, Daniel covers these cars extensively and seems to have a genuine appreciation for them. I’ve driven the non-Maybach version of this and, while I think this car is extremely silly, the regular EQS SUV is a pretty good car. It’s not to my taste and has some issues (that were noted here). I think it’s uncool to suggest that just because he likes a car you don’t that he’s suddenly on the take. If he’d have said the same thing about a $20k car I doubt anyone would complain, and the launches for those can be just as luxurious (if not more so).
I was careful to note that I *do* in fact like the Maybach vehicles and I would have greatly enjoyed reading an evenhanded review of them.
My criticism would be the same (and in fact I’ve made it both here and elsewhere) if the vehicle cost less.
First, go read the VinFast review from the German Lighting site. That dude got an all-expense paid trip to Vietnam and was still completely fearless in his scathing review.
Now read this review.
Honestly, your example follows directly from my point.
Vinfast is presumably powerless to fight back against bad reviews since they have an uphill path to relevance and even continued existence. In a very real sense, they depend on journalists/reviewers to build awareness. It’s easy to slam them and carries no professional downsides, so why not do it to build some “fair-handed” cred? With large, established automakers, the balance of power is very much on the other side.
True fearlessness is not hiding the downsides of a vehicle from an established manufacturer that you want to continue to work with. To be clear, there’s no need to make stuff up, there’s no need to exaggerate faults, there’s no need to hunt for things most people won’t notice in the pursuit of evenhandedness. I’m not naive, I’m aware a quarter-million dollar flagship SUV is going to have more good qualities than bad ones, and an honest review is likely going to be quite positive. This one went too far, IMO.
Sometimes cars are just that good and there’s nothing really negative to say. I love the styling, I love the interior, I love the tech, I love how it drives. Obviously some other people might have different feelings about those things—though styling aside, every other review I’ve read has been positive—but this is my opinion, after all. I’ve driven every other EQ and Maybach model, plus every car the Maybach EQS competes with aside from the Rolls-Royce Spectre, so I’ve got the competitive context too. What could I have criticized or said that would make you trust my review more?
Believe me, I wish I was on Maybach’s payroll. Or Hyundai’s, or BMW’s, or Rivian’s, or any other brand that people regularly accuse me and other journalists of paying off to say nice things about. But it’s only The Autopian who is paying me for this!
While I haven’t written professional reviews, I’m pretty sure I’ve never written a review longer than a paragraph or two without at least mentioning something I didn’t like about the product or service. Or something expected that’s not included. It doesn’t even have to be strongly negative, but it does have to be serious.
Is there really nothing at all you didn’t like about it? Is there really nothing at all missing from the experience?
That’s what seems odd and stretches the reader’s trust. Finding no “other side” to the coin makes it read like a paid placement.
I mean, I guess I don’t like that the monoblock wheels are only 21 inches, I wish they were 23s. The running boards are kind of pointless. Oh, and I wish you could have the calf massage on at the same time as the other massage programs. But there really wasn’t anything to actually dislike or find missing about this thing, at least not from a first drive experience, but even if I spend a week with one I doubt my opinion would change.
There doesn’t always need to be an “other side” or subversive take for a car, IMO. Forcing yourself to find things to be negative about on a car that you overwhelmingly enjoy doesn’t really serve the reader either. I’ve driven tons of cars in all sorts of different segments and price ranges that I’ve really loved, plenty that I’ve found just fine, and more than a few that I’ve really hated.
There are always negatives in every product and service, and an honest reviewer will uncover them.
It’s not a matter forcing yourself to dislike the overall product, it’s simply doing your job as a reviewer to find the negative points as well as the positives.
This is a very short review, but it’s long enough that I sort of expect at least one shortcoming pointed out… I would even consider the things you just mentioned to be little things worth including to make this read less as a press release and more like a real person sitting in a car.
There really were not any negative points to find that were not very minor or extremely subjective! Sorry if that’s hard to believe, and that the rest of my first-hand opinions didn’t land as a real person’s experience and not just a press release. I’m at least glad you found it to be a very short review at ~2600 words, usually I feel like I’m always far too wordy when I go above 2500, especially for a first drive.
First of all, an honest thank you for replying.
As I said in my earlier post, I agree that making things up or exaggerating faults in the interest of fairness is not serving the reader either. If you really can’t find a negative aspect of this vehicle, then I’m certainly glad you got to drive it. I’ve driven plenty of expensive machines myself and still have not found one that was free from downsides.
The real test I suppose will be when the next generation model comes out and the current one becomes fair game for criticism. After all, if this one is perfect, how could it be improved?
My chauffeur will love driving me around in this.
Funny that Matt mentions the GR Corolla. I’d rather have one of those than a Maybach. Heck, for $200K you could have two of them (including dealer extortion fees), plus enough gas and insurance to have a lot of fun.
“Fragrance dispensers”? I can only imagine what fragrance they’d dispense if you didn’t keep up your subscription or buy the Exclusive Maybach Smell Juice.
The fragrance turns fart flavored.
Cons: Shaped like a suppository. Crazy money now, $3200 in six years.
Pros: Smooth shape will slide right up a rich guys backside. Isn’t connected to Elon Musk.
Counterpoint:
Pro: $3200 in six years 🙂
Just make a luxury minivan already. Sliding doors are the original falcon doors.
Stop making sense. A minivan would actually look better than this does.
Gotta give it to the Japanese on this one.
The dude is crazy in pretty much every other aspect of his life, but Mark Davis, Al Davis’ kid who inherited the
OaklandLos AngelesLas Vegas Raiders, gets driven around in a tricked out minivan, and while it’s not flashy, I think the concept is just about as comfortable an automotive choice as one could possibly make.Luxury minivans are on the come-up! There are tons of lux vans in Asia, and the new Lexus LM will even be available in Europe. Volvo is coming out with an EV van later this year too, and then there’s the new Toyota Century SUV that is available with sliding doors.
I also have a feeling that Maybach will be jumping into the minivan fray at some point. There’s already a pretty big market for Metris and V-Class vans with aftermarket “Maybach” conversions, which add fancier interiors and Maybach styling, none of which is a factory thing. But the general public don’t know that they aren’t factory, and I doubt most of the customers care (or even know) either. The facelifted V-Class and electric EQV have already turned the luxury factory up a notch, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the next-gen vans get an official Maybach variant.
I’ll never understand why they didn’t put sliding doors on large American SUVs. A Suburban is 19 ft long and 6000 pounds. Size and weight are obviously not a concern. So it weighs 6200 lbs. Big deal.