2017 Mercedes-Maybach S550 4MATIC

The automotive tastes of Car and Driver editors are varied, but if there’s one common thread to our lottery lists, it’s the Mercedes-Benz S-class. If ever we struck it rich, many of us would have an S-class of some sort as our daily driver. Sure, a Bentley or a Rolls-Royce might have more cachet, but the big Benz hits the sweet spot in terms of ride, power, luxury, comfort, and functionality, regardless of body style or powertrain.

But for some buyers, an S-class lacks the appropriate panache. If the world’s best-riding sedan isn’t good enough for you, clearly you live life on a different plane—your two cents are valued in whole dollars, you’re widely available for purchase as an action figure, and your name has been verbed. For those who live in this irrational world, there is the Maybach S550.

Cubic Dollars for Square Footage

The Maybach edition of the S550 4MATIC costs some $67,000 more than the regular ol’ Mercedes version, but that’s still a lot cheaper than other chauffeur-class sedans, and the Maybach incorporates all of the latest safety and infotainment technology from the S-class.

That hefty premium over a comparable S550 4MATIC nets a lot more space for rear-seat occupants. There are an extra 7.9 inches in the wheelbase, all of them allotted to the rear, where our 99th-percentile test dummy could comfortably cross his legs in what Mercedes claims is the quietest car interior on the market. (Our standard test measures noise levels in the front seat, where our meter recorded 70 decibels under full throttle and 63 at a 70-mph cruise, both among the lowest values we’ve seen.) Like a Rolls-Royce, the Maybach positions the rear seats so that the C-pillar blocks prying eyes from seeing who’s sitting there, particularly when those passengers lean back into the pillows fitted to the rear-seat headrests, which are so soft that we couldn’t help but close our eyes when lying back into them. Both outboard rear seats get the recliner treatment, with deployable leg rests, heating and cooling, and massage functionality. An airbag is embedded in each of the rear seatbelts—it’s a safety feature but an additional benefit is that it lends the impression of a softer, more luxurious belt. All told, the back of the Maybach is more spacious and comfortable than most first-class airliner accommodations, with the added benefit of not having to smell anyone’s feet, since the S550’s integrated air freshener perfumes the cabin with a Maybach-exclusive Agarwood scent.

A pair of screens in the front seatbacks and standard headphones allow rear-seat occupants to withdraw, Inception-style, even deeper into their own world within a world. And then there are the material upgrades, which include the leather headliner and the 1540-watt 24-speaker Burmester High-End 3D Surround Sound stereo with tweeters that spiral out of the doors on startup and a huge cheese-grater speaker mounted between the Maybach’s two panoramic sunroofs—featuring, on our car, the $4950 Magic Sky Control variable opacity.

Restraint Is a Relative Term

For all its frippery, the Maybach is fairly restrained for an aristocrat cocoon—in the case of this example, maybe too restrained. The modest black-and-tan interior is attractive, but it doesn’t show off the design and craftsmanship as well as some of the more adventurous palettes. And, as much as we’re amused by the presence of throw pillows in the Maybach S-class, who actually likes throw pillows? They exist to be in the way. Where do they go when you’re sitting in the seat? On the other seat? If you have two people in the back, the pillows either get stuffed at your feet or they take up space in the trunk, which is already smaller than that of a regular S-class because of the intrusion of the seat-adjustment hardware. We prefer to think of them as souvenir chew toys for the weaponized German shepherd that guards your garage.

The Maybach isn’t just an interior package. Along with the stretched wheelbase, it has an altered roofline that boosts headroom in the rear. Accented by chrome trim around the windows and on the B-pillars, the new lid lends this S-class an appropriately stately profile.

We Get It, You’re Driven

With 449 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque routed to all four wheels through a nine-speed automatic transmission, Mercedes’ twin-turbo 4.7-liter V-8 flings the S550’s 5189 pounds to 60 mph in five seconds flat. The quarter-mile takes just 13.5 seconds at 109 mph, while the governor steps in at 131 mph. Admirably, the 4.7-liter balances speed with efficiency. We saw an average of 18 mpg, with a couple of tanks on the highway approaching 21 mpg despite our interminable game of “How Fast Can We Go Before the Passengers Notice?” When they did, the brakes restored order promptly. The Maybach’s 157-foot stop from 70 mph is only four feet longer than was needed by the last Audi R8 we tested.

Those numbers are a lot more enjoyable from the driver’s seat than from any of the passengers’ seats. And in the lottery fantasy, most of us are buying an S-class intending to drive it ourselves. But even if we intend to be driven instead, there’s still an S-class on that list.

Specifications >

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, all-wheel-drive, 4-passenger, 4-door sedan

PRICE AS TESTED: $177,485 (base price: $167,125)

ENGINE TYPE: twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection

Displacement: 285 cu in, 4663 cc
Power: 449 hp @ 5500 rpm
Torque: 516 lb-ft @ 1800 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 9-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 132.5 in
Length: 214.7 in
Width: 74.8 in Height: 58.7 in
Trunk volume: 12 cu ft
Curb weight: 5189 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 5.0 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 11.6 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 19.9 sec
Rolling start, 5–60 mph: 5.4 sec
Top gear, 30–50 mph: 2.9 sec
Top gear, 50–70 mph: 3.7 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 13.5 sec @ 109 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 131 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 157 ft

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA combined/city/highway driving: 19/16/24 mpg
C/D observed: 18 mpg