Automobile introductions can be a star-studded affair. From beautiful venues, and fancy dinners, to celebrities, automakers put millions int introducing a brand new model. Some automakers though have been known to take things to otherworldly levels. Take the introduction of the Maybach luxury sedans in 2002.
When Mercedes-Benz decided to dust off its Maybach nameplate for a new ultra-luxury car, it was an ambitious feat. Here was the German luxury automaker attempting to go after the likes of Bentley and Rolls-Royce with a name that hadn’t been seen on an automobile since the end of WWII.
When the car was finally shown to the world in 2002, Mercedes went all out for the car’s introduction. Rather than have a big introduction in the automaker’s homeland of Germany, Mercedes decided to introduce the new Maybach to the world in New York City.
The full introduction started across the pond. An event called “Maybach Roll-Out” was held at a facility in Southampton, England where a Maybach 62 rolled out and headed to the port. From there, the 62 was placed in a specially designed clear display case. The case and the Maybach were then lifted and placed onto the main deck of the Queen Elizabeth 2 transatlantic liner, bound for New York City. It stayed there for the entirety of the trip. Meanwhile, Mercedes executives accompanied the car, staying in luxury suites aboard the ship.
Once the QE2 arrived in New York Harbor, the fanfare started. Geysering fireboats spraying streams of water while the ship cruised in. While people across the harbor and the nearly 2,000 people on board watched, crews readied the case holding the Maybach to be lifted off the deck by a cargo helicopter. Once the cargo helicopter picked up the case, a massive tarp with the Maybach logo flew from the bottom of the case in the wind; the tarp was rolled out like a red carpet and the Maybach and its case were set down by the helicopter across the harbor.The Maybach 62 was officially in the U.S.
From there, you could have sworn the Pope was visiting. Flanked by paparazzi and a police escort that wouldn’t look out of place for a world leader, the Maybach 62 was driven through the streets of New York on a 12-mile trek from New York Harbor to Wall Street. It was literally driven into the Regent Hotel and onto a turnstile for its official introduction to the applause of hundreds of people and the snapping of cameras. It was truly wild shit.
Ultimately though this proved to be all for nothing because the Maybach was a flop. From 2003 on, a few hundred were being sold a year. The Great Recession made things worse though and by 2009, sales in the U.S. had dropped to under 100 a year. Meanwhile, Rolls and Bentley had been enjoying increasing market share. But despite a refresh and different versions like the Zepplin and Landaulets, Mercedes discontinued the Maybach in 2013.
But it only took a few years for Mercedes to make the move the brand should have made in the first place: make Maybach a trim of the S-Class. By 2015, Maybach trims of the W222 S-Class were rolling out the factory (Maybach has also been turned into a full blown luxury apparel brand). Sadly though its introduction had none of the fanfare of its predecessor. We’ll likely never see any automotive introduction that elaborate again.