Mercedes-Benz’s future plans involve selling a lot more Maybachs. The sub-brand’s first SUV, the Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 arriving later this year, should prove critical to that effort. That vehicle will, of course, be opulent, boasting features like reclining, heated, ventilated, and massaging second-row seats. Now, Mercedes-Benz has announced it will have a price tag to match those insane levels of luxury.
The Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 will start at an eye-popping $160,500. That won’t make the Maybach GLS 600 the most-expensive vehicle in the Mercedes family; that remains the Mercedes-Maybach sedan, with a base trim starting at $173,000. But it will be the company’s most expensive SUV, edging out both the base G550 ($130,900) and the AMG G63 SUV ($156,450).
The new SUV’s presence could present a dilemma for prospective G-Wagen buyers. There’s no doubting the G-Class’s capability and boxy good looks. But a key part of the G-Wagen appeal to the people who buy them is the fact that it’s the most exclusive Mercedes-branded SUV on the market. Nothing takes the shine off shelling out for that $150,000-plus SUV quite like the same brand offering another even more exclusive sport-ute.
That said, highfalutin’ buyers have fallen hard for SUVs, with demand for new and highly profitable SUV rivals like the Lamborghini Urus and Rolls-Royce Cullinan being seemingly insatiable. Even with players like Ferrari and Aston Martin getting into the SUV game, there should be room for two elite Mercedes entries. Indeed, Mercedes is so confident in the G-class’s future that the truck is getting its own “G” sub-brand and a future electric version.