Saturday 30th September 2017

Maybach 57: Spotted

Yes, it might be a bit ghastly, but it's cheaper than a new E350 diesel...

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Alright, there's no escaping the fact: even 15 years after its reintroduction, the 21st century Maybach cannot be considered a success. At all. The 57 and 62 models flopped, quite frankly, never hitting sales targets (falling quite short, in fact) and representing a rare misjudgement from Mercedes.

They didn't look very good, they didn't drive especially well and, to compound the Maybach's issues, it was up against the Rolls-Royce Phantom; you probably don't need us to remind you what formidable rival that was.

So why on earth bring up what can only be considered a four-wheeled failure? Because it's cheap, that's why. And let's not forget this is Mercedes' attempt at being the world's best luxury saloon, not some dubious upstart. So there might be some potential...

Of course this isn't cheap in the traditional sense, though £48,750 is half the price of an equivalent Phantom; for cars that were separated by a few thousand pounds at launch, that's remarkable really. And while car technology may have moved on a fair bit since the middle of the last decade, there's no denying the equipment, space and material quality here - 'uber S-Class' isn't an ideal nickname at a quarter of a million, but at 20 per cent of that money it's not such a bad place to start. What a shame it's been specced in white with cream...

Despite that this one looks pretty decent, perhaps implying that Mercedes' mid-2000s quality issues didn't make it as far up the chain as the Maybach. The leather still looks fresh, the wood lustrous and the paint - even in a poor colour choice - is gleaming.

Lord knows how much a Maybach actually costs to run - you do get the cheaper road tax here at least - though probably factor in a considerable annual budget. On top of the fuel for a twin-turbocharged V12s, there's all manner of electrical items that are on the cusp of a teenage strop (if they haven't had one already).

Oh, OK, it's pretty hard to make a convincing case for the Maybach. This might be half the price of a Phantom, but it's double the money of a Bentley Flying Spur. Or four times as much as a contemporary S500. Erk. That being said, its combination of rarity, performance and luxury is pretty difficult to match, and there's little danger of seeing another one any time soon. Should make quite the story for whoever does take the plunge!

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MAYBACH 57
Engine: 5,513cc, twin-turbo V12
Transmission: 5-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 550@N/A rpm
Torque (lb ft): 664@N/A rpm
MPG: 18
CO2: 350g/km
First registered: 2005
Recorded mileage: 82,000
Price new: £277,500
Yours for: £48,750

See the original advert here.

[iwantagta]

Jesus. That is fking hideous.
The front end reminds me of US sedans from the early 2000's.
In profile its difficult to see just how ugly it is but get to the rear and you are back to a gopping turd of eye based offensiveness.

[Fetthobler]

This car looked already dated when it was launched...

Today it looks like a sad, unemployed, clown.

[Cold]

Good family car if you have a couple of tweenagers.

[ZX10R NIN]

The colour absolutely kills this car.

[BlackLabel]

Looks like something Kim Jong-un would be seen in.

[pigeonskirt]

Looks like a car off Grand Theft Auto, or one of those cheap Chinese copies.

[TooMany2cvs]

I'm utterly relaxed about the white paint. Sure, it's hideous, but a wrap won't cost that much.

£50k for a 12yo S-class, though...

(Gotta love the emphasis on it being cheap VED in the ad!)

[J4CKO]

Are these an S class base or a separate platform ?

Not sure who would buy it, too expensive for barge enthusiasts and anyone wealthy wouldnt have an old one, just not sure who the hell would want it, and what for ?

[Murphy16]

Why does the interior and rear look like they're from different S class generations?

[Yipper]

That's in with a shout for being the worst car ever made in the history of the motor vehicle.

[MJK 24]

Advert says it has been wrapped in white. I wonder what the factory colour underneath is? Hopefully something darker!

[Cold]

MJK 24 said:

Advert says it has been wrapped in white. I wonder what the factory colour underneath is? Hopefully something darker!

Some of the online checkers that aren't dotgov give it as being grey.

[northwest monkey]

J4CKO said:

Not sure who would buy it, too expensive for barge enthusiasts and anyone wealthy wouldnt have an old one, just not sure who the hell would want it, and what for ?

Same here. I can understand the "Barge Bargains" thread on this site - you could get lucky and buy an absolute peach of an old 7-Series or S-Class for £6k, or be unlucky and buy a dog. Buy a peach & you can drive something relatively flash for not much cash. If you were unlucky & bought a dog, you could probably offload it & it's not the end of the world.

Once you get into £50k territory though, it's proper money and that's where the problem with this car is. Even a wedding chauffeur place isn't going to be interested - 99% of people wouldn't even know what a Maybach was, let alone want one picking them up for their big day.

At £10k - £15k I could see the point in this car. At £50k I'd rather poo in my hands and clap.

Just noticed the ad also claims the car to be an "appreciating classic".

Edited by northwest monkey on Sunday 1st October 15:16

[mwstewart]

I like it but not in white. The original grey would be great.

[DBRacingGod]

Looks like a Chinese copy of a Crown Vic with interior decoration by Liberace.

[Hub]

These were supposed to be the height of luxury car travel - but used the tech dates, so at 12 years old it's probably all feeling quite old inside. Not worth the price then - a nearly new S Class would be loads better.

[anonymous-user]

Yipper said:

That's in with a shout for being the worst car ever made in the history of the motor vehicle.

..says the person who has never been in one, owned one and, quite likely, even seen one.

Good job there.

[Burwood]

BlackLabel said:

Looks like something Kim Jong-un would be seen in.

And Peter jones and Theo Paphitas. I recall he has his wrapped gold. What a plank

[kmpowell]

Advert said:

Appreciating Rare Classic

Advert said:

Drastically Reduced to Sell

[rare6499]

I can imagine that because the mechanicals are essentially S class it would be quite easy to maintain if you were prepared to do so. But if you ever needed a specific maybach piece of trim you might struggle. God knows what sort of provision Mercedes made for it them all. If at all!