Here we have a majestic Mercedes-Maybach S400 4Matic, seen in the far north of Beijing in early 2016. The big Benz’ was a bit dusty but seemed fairly new, painted in a sombre black with the almost-sporty gray multispoke wheels.
The Mercedes-Maybach line was launched in 2015. It was a resurrection of sorts of the earlier Maybach brand, which itself was a resurrection of a much older Maybach brand. One of the primary markets for Mercedes-Maybach was, and still is, China.
The X222 Mercedes-Maybach sedan was based on the W222 Mercedes-Benz S-Class. In 2015, the S600 and S400 were launched on the Chinese car market, followed a little later by the S500. The former and the latter were sold worldwide but the S400 4Matic model was only for China.
The model was added to the lineup for tax reasons: at the time, imported cars with a engine size of 4 liters or more were subject to draconian import taxes, which could be as high as 80%!
It was therefore that many automakers moved to just-under-four liter turbocharged engines for their top-spec and performance models. Think AMG, BMW, McLaren, Bentley, and now even Ferrari. Most of these engines measure 3.8 to 3.99 liter, just under the four liter limit.
The Mercedes-Maybach S400 4Matic was powered by a twin-turbocharged 2.996 liter V6 with an output of 333hp and 480nm, mated to a seven-speed automatic, sending power to all four wheels. Top speed was 250 kilometers per hour and 0-100 was done for in 6.3 seconds. No matter the small motor, it was still thirsty, drinking 9.4 liters of gasoline every 100 kilometer.
Price started at 1.43 million yuan ($229.000 at the time). For comparison; the Mercedes-Maybach S600 started at 2.88 million ($462.000), more than double the price of the S400 4Matic. The Maybach S600 has only rear-wheel drive, and not twice as much power.
The decision to add this engine to the Chinese Maybach lineup worked very well. Basically every Maybach on the road is the S400 4Matic. The four-wheel drive system itself was very attractive too, especially for buyers in northern China where the winters are snowy and very cold.
The interior was a work of beauty and luxury, with dark beige-brown leather and dark brown wood. The twin-screen was pretty high tech at the time but looks already very outdated today.
The rear windows had a curtain so dark that I couldn’t take a proper pic. Too bad, because it was in the back were it happened, with loads of space for the legs, an entertainment system, and lots of other luxuries. It looked like this. To get there, Mercedes-Maybach added 20 centimeters of extra wheelbase compared to the regular S-Class L.
In 2018, the Mercedes-Maybach S400 4Matic was replaced by the S450 4Matic, powered by a 367 hp twin-turbocharged V6, mated to a nine-speed automatic and priced at 1.39 million yuan.
The China-only Mercedes-Maybach S400 4Matic.