The Original Mercedes-Maybach Concept

[sako97]

This is how Mercedes viewed the Maybach in 1997, at the time it was the most advanced and revolutionary car.

Maybach Prototype in 1998:

Maybach Prototype in 2000:

 

[VroomVroom]

Headlights remind me of...

 

[Deleted member 25]

at the time it was the most advanced and revolutionary car.

And one of ugliest things mankind have come up with

 

[ree]

Can exactly remind, when this was first time in AMS!!

 

[ateekt]

The original car was hideous & weird with a horrible front-end... thanks God, it never went into production!

The present car looks better by miles! The current sedan is one of the best cars ever built!

 

[hoffmeister_fan]

granted the headlights look a bit ill-conceived, but overall, i like it more than the actual car, which looks like a glorified W220 S-class. If I recalled, the production car was built on the W140 chassis, is that correct?

 

[m-power]

I think the 3 first pictures are PS. I don't remember a coupe version or a carbrio

Some design elements of the prototype were very nice. Much more exclusive than the 130% upscaling of the old S-Class. Would have made the car more exclusive if they got into production.

 

[Centurion]

Awesome flashback. The interior design of the concept was horrible and very corporate reminding me of interior lobbies for massive buildings in tax havens like Panama.

 

[Merc1]

There were no cabrio or coupe versions of the concept. I actually liked the concept interior, but the exterior was beyond awful, way worse than what we have on the road now.

Yes the W240 Maybach is based on the W140, but with a lot of W220 hardware, including the W220's airmatic.


M

 

[HighestOfHigh]

The concept and production car are both amazing...I just can't wait under the car a new model or something..

 

[PanterroR]

When presented as a concept back then, it was something, i admit, but just few years after, it became disappointment...and flop.

Maybach must be a Maybach, not a streched S class with more buttons...

 

[Wolfgang]

http://www.conceptcar.ee/en/123-mercedes-benz/566-mercedes-benz-maybach-concept-1997.html

 

[mini_cooper4]

My dream car
I was a kid when I first saw the concept pictures in a car magazine(AMS?) and I was like WOW... the teacher took my magazine because the whole class wasn't paying attention because of it... I hated this teacher so bad!
I was AMAZED... there was also a CL concept if I remember correctly with a joystick instead of steering wheel(in the same magazine?) and that amazed me too! It's one of my great memories with cars and car magazines

 

[HighestOfHigh]

there was also a CL concept if I remember correctly with a joystick instead of steering wheel(in the same magazine?) and that amazed me too!

 

[Mr Robert]

The more hightech the look today, the less appealing the look tomorrow.

 

[mini_cooper4]

Thanks HoH... back in the days when I was the greatest MB maniac ready to destroy any BMW my father bought back then I actually was depressed and wasn't talking to him when he bought his first E38 after the W140 420SEL

 

[Wolfgang]

Agreed the F200 Imagination was quite innovative. It previewed the W220.

Sidesticks instead of a steering wheel: drive-by-wire


Window-Airbag

• Production launch in the Mercedes-Benz E-Class (1998, W 210 series)

Forward-looking dynamic handling control system Active Body Control (ABC)

• Production launch in the Mercedes-Benz CL (1999, C 215 series)

Headlight system featuring variable light distribution

• Production launch as bi-xenon headlights with Active Light Function in the Mercedes-Benz E-Class (2003, W 211 series)

Video cameras in place of rear-view mirrors


Electro-transparent panoramic glass roof

• Production launch with the panoramic roof of the Maybach 62 (2002)

Swivelling gullwing doors

• Production launch in the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren (2003, C 199 series)

Voice recognition for mobile phone

• Production launch under the name LINGUATRONIC in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (1996, W 140 series)

http://www.daimler.com/dccom/0-5-1276316-1-1276333-1-0-0-0-0-0-17180-7165-0-0-0-0-0-0-0.html

 

[HighestOfHigh]

I was so thrilled about the Maybach concept back in the day. It was a masterpiece of it's time.

One thing I wish the would have put in production...

 

[Wolfgang]

Just noticed the 164 GL features dual six slat center vents which were probably inspired
by the '97 Mercedes-Maybach Concept. Amazing!

 

[Ultimate Car Guy]

They were smoking some seriously good shit back then