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ReprintsMaybach: A soft-top limo for U.S.
Rick Kranz
Automotive News
April 7, 2008 - 12:01 am ET
SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Do you want motorists to think you're a rock star? Or your neighbors to believe you bought the popemobile? Either way, the convertiblelike, four-door 2009 Maybach Landaulet will fill the bill. The Landaulet, which debuted as a show car late last year at the Dubai auto show, will go on sale in the United States in December, said Hans-Dieter Multhaupt, vice president of program management for Maybach and the Mercedes-Benz S class, SL, SLK and SLR. "The Landaulet is for a superrich individual who wants something that is extremely extraordinary and enjoys being driven in a car with acres of sky above them," Multhaupt said. The car will have a $1.35 million sticker price. The Landaulet is designed as a chauffeur-driven limousine. The soft partial convertible top above rear-seat passengers opens from the B-pillar back so passengers in the rear seat can be seen and enjoy the sunshine. The Maybach's rear doors and side windows remain intact. The driver's compartment is covered by a nonremovable hard top. "Over 60 years ago, we had many cars like this," said Multhaupt, who was interviewed here at a Mercedes-Benz event. The last Landaulet from Mercedes was based on the W100 Pullman body style and produced from 1965 to 1981. The passenger compartment's roof flipped open, much like a convertible. The chauffeur's compartment remained covered. Multhaupt said many of the Maybach Landaulets "will be fitted with a glass panel that separates the driver and the passenger, like the cars of the past." |
You can reach Rick Kranz at rkranz@crain.com.
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The Maybach Landaulet is designed as a chauffeur-driven limousine with a partial convertible top over the rear seat. Its sticker price: $1.35 million. |
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