ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Do you just like the Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class, however simply don’t assume it’s fancy or costly sufficient as it’s? Perhaps the AMG model is just too audaciously sporty otherwise you’d desire a very totally different taste of garish. Perhaps you don’t wish to be seen driving the GLS in any respect. Should you’re on the lookout for the proper GLS to be pushed in, however must be sure you look extra like the kind of fats cat to blow cash on lavish, boozy dinners and ornamental fountains than the professional baller who splurges on a house health club and tennis courts, Mercedes lastly has the enormous SUV only for you: the Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600.
Is that this tongue-in-cheek straw man in any method indicative of an precise Maybach proprietor? Who is aware of. We will barely comprehend how wealthy somebody is likely to be who can afford this $161,525 ultra-luxury SUV (earlier than any choices) not to mention really know somebody of such largesse. However, the GLS upon which it is primarily based is definitely no stranger to us. We first drove the GLS 470 in Austria’s Tyrolean Alps, sampled the AMG GLS 63 within the Columbia River Gorge, and nominated its bouncy E-Lively Physique Management suspension for Autoblog’s 2020 Know-how of the 12 months Award. Many of the identical elements are current within the Maybach 600, however only one take a look at this two-tone luxurious liner requires you to rethink the scope of what the GLS can do.
Whereas the general physique fashion appears to be like kind of the identical, there was no mistaking our tester for an abnormal GLS, and even a unprecedented AMG mannequin. The 2-tone paint — Lunar Blue Metallic beneath, and Iridium Silver Metallic from the beltline up — shouts to passersby (in an aristocratic German accent, presumably) that there’s one thing totally different happening right here. The non-obligatory wheels, which get their very own Maybach design, measure a fully large 23 inches. Perched on the nostril is the almost extinct Mercedes hood decoration. The ultimate giveaway comes while you transfer in somewhat nearer and see the Maybach badging on the grille, tailgate and D-pillars.
However critically, that paint job is one thing else.
The outside doesn’t fairly do justice to what awaits inside. The driving force’s door opens to a wealthy, inviting and clearly technologically superior cockpit. The twin display sprint housing the instrument panel and infotainment touchscreen is changing into acquainted from GLS all the way down to GLA, as are the multitude of controls on the wheel and middle console with which one can simply work together with them. The ambient lighting not solely units the temper, but in addition accentuates options just like the seize handles on both aspect of the middle console, and the shiny Burmeister audio system on the A-pillars. Mixed with the quilted black Nappa leather-based upholstery, the cockpit has a lounge-like ambiance, full with massaging seats, and heated and cooled cupholders.
The entrance seat doesn’t do justice to the last word ranges of luxurious reserved for the rear passengers. In contrast to the remainder of the GLS line, there is no third row within the Maybach. As an alternative, the second row will get a number of extra inches of legroom. The 2 chairs — our tester was decked out within the four-seat configuration — have energy legrests that may assist benefit from that additional area. They’re exceedingly comfy, and so they, too, present warmth, air flow and therapeutic massage features. Additionally they have matching leather-based throw pillows, due to course they do, however you’ll should retailer them elsewhere if you wish to set up a baby seat. Between the rear seats is a heated armrest with a detachable 7-inch Samsung pill that has its personal local weather, seat and infotainment controls.
Essentially the most extravagant possibility on our Maybach GLS, aside from that two-tone paint (which, by the way in which, prices an additional $18,500) is the inclusion of a fridge ($1,100) between the rear seat backs. And it’s not just a few bland dice of a factor both. Reducing the quilt to the fridge, there’s a velvet-lined holder ($800) for a pair of champagne flutes. Simply be sure you purchase the right-sized champagne flutes or purchase those Mercedes gives — ours didn’t quite fit. Open the fridge itself, and it’s clear this complete outfit is particularly meant for champagne, with the underside molded into grooves to retailer two bottles on their aspect. Up in entrance of the armrest, simply behind the heated and cooled cupholders, are two smaller holders that may clip the bottom of the flutes in place. The one disadvantage is that the fridge impedes deep into the cargo space, limiting the room for baggage.
Whereas the VIP part could also be within the again, a livelier celebration is happening out entrance. The Maybach GLS 600’s 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 is tuned to a meaty 550 horsepower and 538 pound-feet of torque, a rise of 67 horses and 22 pound-feet over the GLS 580, however not as raucous because the AMG’s 603 hp and 627 lb-ft. Although its claimed 0-60 time is 4.8 seconds, or 0.4 seconds faster than the 580, the Maybach doesn’t really feel all that totally different while you look away from all of the fanciness and go by your different senses. The Maybach does a superb job of maintaining all the things feeling calm and remoted throughout full-booted maneuvers.
Our time with the Maybach GLS got here throughout a major snow bathe adopted shortly by rising temperatures. We had been in a position to take pleasure in its surefootedness within the snow, however the ensuing slush-filled potholes meant that exterior paint was shortly dirtied, and inconceivable to maintain clear. Maintaining it in Consolation mode more often than not, the GLS’s electronically managed suspension — full with E-Lively Physique Management together with cameras that learn the street forward and alter accordingly — gives an appropriately easy trip for these champagne-sipping shoppers within the again (assuming you’re in a locale the place passengers are allowed to imbibe).
Whereas it’s a superb automobile to drive — as is the remainder of the GLS lineup — the Maybach model is actually the one you wish to be pushed in. Alas, as my fellow editors and I are sequestered from one another through the pandemic, there was nobody to commandeer into chauffeuring me round. Nonetheless, I did discover time simply to recline again there in my driveway, get a therapeutic massage, take pleasure in soothing music from the implausible Burmeister sound system and watch the sky by way of the panoramic sunroof. Whereas I relaxed with a cupholder-chilled Weight loss program Coke, I may let my thoughts drift and ponder my most well-liked ornamental fountain.
