The Maybach 57 and Maybach 62 were ultra-luxury sedans built by DaimlerChrysler from 2002 to 2012–2013 to revive the historic Maybach name as a rival to Rolls-Royce and Bentley. The numbers referred to their approximate length in decimeters — 5.7 and 6.2 meters. They were superbly engineered and extraordinarily expensive, but sold far below expectations, and Maybach was folded back into Mercedes-Benz, reappearing in 2015 as the Mercedes-Maybach sub-brand.

At a glance
Produced 2002 to about 2013
Models Maybach 57, 57 S, 62, 62 S, Landaulet, Zeppelin
Engines 5.5-litre twin-turbo V12; 6.0-litre V12 in S models
Built Sindelfingen, Germany
Lengths About 5.7 m (57) and 6.2 m (62)

Why revive Maybach?

In 1998, Volkswagen and BMW split Rolls-Royce and Bentley between them. DaimlerChrysler, without an ultra-luxury brand, looked to its own history: Maybach, whose founder Wilhelm Maybach had designed the first Mercedes, had built magnificent cars in the 1930s. Read the history of Maybach.

A New York debut

The Maybach 62 made a memorable U.S. entrance in 2002, crossing the Atlantic to New York aboard the liner Queen Elizabeth 2 in a glass display case ahead of its unveiling. The theatrics reflected the brand’s ambition to reach the world’s wealthiest buyers.

The cars

  • Maybach 57 — the “shorter” car, designed to be driven by its owner or chauffeured.
  • Maybach 62 — a limousine with vast rear legroom, reclining rear seats with leg rests, a glass roof that could turn opaque at the push of a button, refrigerators and champagne flutes.
  • S versions with a 6.0-litre V12 tuned by AMG.
  • Landaulet (2007) — with a folding roof over the rear seats, in the tradition of ceremonial cars.
  • Zeppelin (2009) — a final, more exclusive edition honouring the 1930s Maybach Zeppelin. See the Maybach Zeppelin DS8.

Why it struggled

The Maybach 57 and 62 were based on an evolution of the older W140 S-Class platform, and critics felt they looked too much like large Mercedes-Benz sedans despite costing far more. Rolls-Royce’s new Phantom, launched the same year, had stronger presence and heritage. Sales totaled a few thousand cars across the model’s life, and Daimler ended production.

What came next

In 2015 Mercedes revived Maybach as the top version of its S-Class — a much more successful strategy. Read the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class.