Spied! All-New Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman Limo

[DjordjeC63]

It just looks like an S Class someoen took to a limo company who grafted in a section and made the doors longer, the sure isn't a RR Phantom, sure it's probably mopre advanced with more bells and whistles, but the owners will be sitting in the back not driving it, this is where RR Phantom is better it's a much taller vehicle with massive headroom, something this can't offer.

This car has not come out yet and you already know it doesn't have as much headroom as RR Phantom?

 

[KiwiRob]

This car has not come out yet and you already know it doesn't have as much headroom as RR Phantom?

Standard S Class hasn't got anywhere near as much headroom, this is just an S Class with a much longer wheelbase, not a longer wheelbase and a raised roof. So no this will not have anywhere near a much headroom as a Phantom.

Heights:

RR Phantom 1.638m
RR Phantom LWB 1.641m
RR Ghost 1.550m
W222 S Class 1.496m
Maybach 1.575m
Bentley Mulsanne 1.521m

 

[Wolfgang]

^ But the S 600 Pullman GUARD models are not standard S-Classes, although they may appear like that.

The W221 S 600 Pullman Guard, for example, has a raised roof, by about 60 mm. No dimensions for the new version are available yet, but wouldn't be surprised if it's similar.

"The vehicle owes its remarkably spacious interior to its 4315-millimetre wheelbase (115 centimetres longer than that of the long version of the S-Class). Indeed, with an overall length of 6356 millimetres, the S 600 Pullman Guard is a vehicle of truly majestic proportions which are enhanced by the harmonious design. Furthermore, the more steeply raked rear window enables a 60-millimetre increase in roof height which makes for more generous headroom in the rear compartment. As a result, the latter is now slightly higher than that of Mercedes-Benz' top-of-the-range S 600 model. Moreover, the vehicle's ride height can be raised pneumatically by some 40 millimetres. In conjunction with correspondingly larger door cutouts, these characteristics ensure even greater comfort and dignity when getting in and out."

http://media.daimler.com/dcmedia/0-921-658790-1-1129705-1-0-0-0-0-0-0-1549054-0-1-0-0-0-0-0.html

 

[SCOTT27]

I am sure Pullman will do its job and find a customer base especially those that want the latest and greatest in regards to material acquisitions. It remains to be seen on its aesthetics especially when this and its high tech advanced successor goes up against it.

 

[Wolfgang]

Autoweek makes some interesting points. And also mentions Rolls-Royce.

• There will be an S 65 AMG Maybach:

Mercedes-Benz is set to debut the Pullman version of the current S-class in early 2015, and the four-door, six-seat model will be developed and built by tuner Brabus. The new Pullman, based on the 2014 W222 S-class platform, will be the fourth version of the current-generation S-class sedan when it debuts and will offer 2+2+2 seating, with a middle row of rear-facing seats. Slated to be offered in thin-skinned and armored form, the Pullman will be positioned above the S600 Maybach and S65 AMG Maybach, and will start at approximately $500,000 in unarmored form.

• Brabus has been contracted because of their expertise crafting exclusive interiors:

Bottrop-based tuning house Brabus has been tapped to develop and build this version of the exclusive Pullman limousine due not only to its growing partnership with Mercedes-Benz, which has evolved since the early 1990s, but because of the company's expertise in crafting exclusive interiors. Starting with the 1991-1998-generation S-class, codenamed W140, Brabus has fielded stretched versions of the S-class with the rear seats outfitted with folding tables, monitors and computers. The engagement of Brabus may signal greater cooperation between the Stuttgart-based automaker and the tuning house, though it doesn't look like a Brabus-badged version of the Pullman is in the cards.

• The Pullman will be offered in 4MATIC only (not sure about this claim):

The Pullman is likely to be offered in 4Matic guise only and is expected to be powered by the same 6.0-liter V12 found in the S600, which is good for 523 hp and 612 lb-ft of torque. The performance figures will vary a bit based on whether a given Pullman is ordered in armored form, which also means that the suspension will be tweaked accordingly, in addition to a whole host of other systems.

• The roof will be raised about 2.3 inches:

The wheelbase of the Pullman is expected to be approximately 45 inches (1.15 meters) longer than that of the standard long-wheelbase version of the S-class, and the roof will be a couple inches higher (likely 2.3 inches) as in previous versions of the Pullman.

• The rear doors will not be square like on the classic W100 and S 600 Maybach (now refuted by the patent renders):

The overall length of the car is expected to be 251 inches, with the body featuring standard rear doors, just as its predecessors, instead of the square rear doors and a reworked C-pillar section that will debut on the S600 Maybach.

• A bit of history:

Even though the Pullman takes its name from the stretched version of the "Grosser" 600, which was produced in a half-dozen different versions until 1980, its most direct successors are the stretched variants of the S-class that date back to the W140-generation S-class from 1991. It wasn't until 1994 that Mercedes-Benz itself debuted a Pullman version of the S-class, and it did so with the help of Belgian coachbuilder Carat Duchatelet, which built its own stretched versions of the S-class that previewed the Maybach 62. The 1994 W140 Pullman was produced in four-door form only (even though the interior and the window architecture evolved a bit over the years), in contrast with the original 600 Pullman which was available in four-door, six-door and Landaulet versions. During the 1990s, coachbuilders and armorers like Trasco-Bremen, Rijck, Schulz and Caro built their own stretched versions of the W140 S-class, in armored and thin-skinned form. Mercedes-Benz itself offered armored versions of the W140 Pullman in B6/B7 ballistic protection levels, with a host of other optional equipment like automatic fire extinguishers, communications and siren systems, to name a few. The success of the armored Guard versions of the standard-wheelbase S-class, also available in B6/B7 guise, fed the demand for the Pullman version.

The debut of the Maybach brand in 2002 tempered the market's appetite for Pullman versions of the W220 S-class, which appeared on the scene in 1999, but Mercedes-Benz nevertheless offered a Pullman version of this S-class, as well. The W220 Pullman proved just as successful as the W140, and during this time a number of other armorers and coachbuilders offered their own stretched versions of this platform, including Brabus, Cloer International, ArmorTech and Trasco. Brabus' version debuted a few years after the launch of the W220 in 1999 and offered a shorter inserted midsection outfitted as a mobile office.

The debut of the W221-generation S-class in 2006 was once again followed by a Pullman version from Mercedes-Benz, though with the market for these types of vehicles having moved on to converted SUVs, the latest Pullman did appear to have seen as many versions built as the previous two generations of the S-class. Part of the reason was that during the late 2000s there were still plenty of older W140 Pullmans in use, having failed to wear out due to their initial high cost, generally good maintenance in government motor pools and low average mileages. Another reason was the success of numerous indirect competitors, such as the Rolls-Royce Phantom.

The Pullman and Pullman Guard will make their debut in early 2015 and be offered for ordering during the first half of 2015, by which time the S600 Maybach and S65 Maybach in thin-skinned and Guard flavor should already be on sale.

http://autoweek.com/article/mercedes-benz/mercedes-benz-readies-pullman-limousine

 

[Pagani]

If the V12 is fitted to the 4Matic transmission, could this mean that the V12+4Matic can be seen in the regular models?

 

[Wolfgang]

^ Maybe.

The 4MATIC drive shaft "pierces" the oil pan in the V8s. Not so sure if Mercedes will offer this with the new low consumption 6 liter M277 and M279 V12s...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4Matic

 

[Deleted member 1071]

Excuse my admittedly subjective ramblings...

While I can appreciate the "Hirnschmalz" that is invested by manufacturers as well as the justifications as defined by the marketplace, I just cannot seem to find a compelling reason to like these lengthened wheelbase behemoths. To me they resemble busses-despite the extravagant luxury provided.

Now-a 4 door coupe based on the W217 S-Class coupe...methinks that would be really cool !

 

[hannaz]

Wolfgang - thank you for sharing. For those who have not go through autoweek's link, here is the rendering published by them.

 

[DjordjeC63]

Standard S Class hasn't got anywhere near as much headroom, this is just an S Class with a much longer wheelbase, not a longer wheelbase and a raised roof. So no this will not have anywhere near a much headroom as a Phantom.

Heights:

RR Phantom 1.638m
RR Phantom LWB 1.641m
RR Ghost 1.550m
W222 S Class 1.496m
Maybach 1.575m
Bentley Mulsanne 1.521m

Hahahaha, you could see from patent drawings that roof will be raised. Also Wolfgang confirmed it, so you should not have doubts?

 

[Pagani]

Excuse my admittedly subjective ramblings...

While I can appreciate the "Hirnschmalz" that is invested by manufacturers as well as the justifications as defined by the marketplace, I just cannot seem to find a compelling reason to like these lengthened wheelbase behemoths. To me they resemble busses-despite the extravagant luxury provided.

Now-a 4 door coupe based on the W217 S-Class coupe...methinks that would be really cool !

I second the motion for a 4-door S. Coupe. It would be mental.

 

[SKY]

This looks ANYTHING but special.

 

[KiwiRob]

^ But the S 600 Pullman GUARD models are not standard S-Classes, although they may appear like that.

And you put your finger on the button, which I might add was the problem with the Maybach they looked like big S class's, that's what this is going to be a big S Class.

There is nothing wrong with the S class it's a great car and serious competition to the Bentley Mulsanne and RR Ghost on the high end, and the XJ, 7'er, A8, Flying Spur on the low end, but I do not see it as a genuine competitor to the Phantom, that car sit's in a class of it own. Or until Bentley move the next gen Mulsanne upmarket.

Hahahaha, you could see from patent drawings that roof will be raised. Also Wolfgang confirmed it, so you should not have doubts?

2.3 inches, which still makes it lower than the Phantom.

Phantom 64.5 inches
S Class Pullman 58.0 + 2.3 = 60.3

That's makes it 4.2 inch's (10.66 cm) lower, that's a lot in a car.

Unless Wolfgang works for Mercedes (in a position that's in the know) he probably doesn't know any more than you and I can find with a bit of searching on the web.

 

[DjordjeC63]

^ Still, it can be roomier than RR even though it has lower roof.

 

[KiwiRob]

^ Still, it can be roomier than RR even though it has lower roof.

You're clutching at straws boy.

Width

Phantom 1.989
Ghost 1.948
S class 1.899m
Mulsanne 1,926

Phantom is wider, has a higher roof yet you still think the Pullman is going to be roomier?

 

[DjordjeC63]

Those are dimensions of car body, not interior dimensions! Interior dimensions is thing that matters in room comparison. Let's stop with guessing, we will see everything when Pullman arrives.

 

[hannaz]

It's said Audi is very serious with their next gen A8, with British elegance, Italian sportiness and German solidity with a bespoke chassis. I've also read somewhere that next gen Jag XJ would have more conventional exterior design. It seems this segment is heating up.

http://www.germancarforum.com/community/threads/2018-audi-a8-spy-shots-info.51120/#post-706987

 

[DJRaze99]

http://ensuisse.ch/this-is-what-the-most-expensive-mercedes-benz-looks-like/

 

[hannaz]

Some Pics wits next level rivals with which it's being compared with

 

[Wolfgang]

^ Last year caradvice commented a bit about the S-Class, Pullman, Maybach and their ilk. A Maybach replacement may have to wait for the W225, perhaps?



A replacement for the ill-fated Maybach brand is continuing to be assessed internally, with an expanded from within Mercedes-Benz S-Class line-up the most likely option to stretch back towards seven-figure ultra-exclusive limousine territory.

It has long been rumoured that the Maybach successor will be the revival of the S-Class Pullman (above), a stretched version of the S-Class with hugely expanded rear legroom, but executives within Mercedes-Benz insist it won’t be a direct replacement.

“The Pullman is the successor of the Pullman,” contends Mercedes-Benz head of product management for S-Class and roadsters Lutz Regelmann.

“I don’t think the Pullman is the successor to the Maybach.”

Regelmann instead believes that the new S-Class itself can fulfil the wants of Maybach buyers for a much lower price, refuting the notion that Mercedes-Benz needs to find a successor to the Maybach to fill a higher price bracket.

In a rare case of a brand seeking to bring previous customers from higher-priced models into lower priced ones, Regelmann wants to do exactly that with previous Maybach customers by introducing them to the S-Class.

“You can bring the car to a value,” he admits.

“The S-Class cannot fully replace the Maybach but it could come very close. It could come substantially close.

“Of course we should target these [Maybach] customers, and we know we can get the Bentley Flying Spur customers. Internally when I talk to my markets, I say [about the new S-Class] ‘outside S-Class, inside Maybach’, because when you look at the features, the leather quality, reclining seats, footrests, the only thing you don’t get is the separation wall…

“Yes we are not in the top, top league of the segment anymore. But with an S-Class you can get a similar standard. Maybe you don’t get the top premium … but you can easily get a Maybach customer in that car.

“We want to gap the part to the Maybach segment and bring them [buyers] into the S-Class. [But] the intention is not to replace the Maybach.”

The intention is, however, to move the S-Class significantly more upmarket, something that new derivatives such as the long-wheelbase V12 versions, new Coupe and Pullman will do.

Regelmann contests that, in volume terms based on previous sales figures, the possibilities with an expanded S-Class range far exceed those of a potential dedicated Maybach replacement.

“You know we are thinking about derivatives … separate versions of the S-Class, but again it’s an S-Class, it’s the S-Class family we’re going to open up, we are going to extend the wheelbase again [with Pullman], but it’s an S-Class.

“Of course we want to touch that segment, we don’t want to lose our customers, but it’s not completely covering the segment. The S-Class is the S-Class, it’s a business and luxury limousine in a large scale.

“We have sold over 500,000 [units] of the W221 [S-Class]; for Maybach we have sold a couple of thousand. It [S-Class] is not a one-by-one replacement, but of course it’s a … very good value solution for Maybach customers.”

http://www.caradvice.com.au/240745/mercedes-benz-mulls-maybach-replacement-pullman-on-guard/