Autoweek Preview of Mayback Excelero-with pics

[BMWDave]

Maybach makes a Coupe: One-off Exelero pushes luxury supercar limits
GREG KABLE
Posted Date: 5/13/05
Maybach has gone coupe crazy.









Keen to throw off the conservative image that surrounds its leather-lined sedans, the upscale Mercedes-Benz offshoot has thrown its technical expertise behind this dramatic looking one-off coupe bankrolled by German tire maker Fulda.

The 6.0-liter, 700-hp twin-turbocharged V12-powered two-door has been created to promote Fulda?s newly released Carat Exelero tire, from which it takes it name. The car also showcases Maybach?s ability to individualize cars to exacting customer requirements.


At least that?s the official line. Cynical observers suggest the Exelero is a carefully timed shot across the bow of upmarket rival Rolls-Royce, which recently confirmed production plans for its 100EX concept. Whatever the reason, there?s no denying the big coupe, developed under the guise of a 10-strong team of engineers, is a big departure from Maybach?s highly conventional 57 and 61 sedans.

Styled by a team of students at the Pforzheim School of Design in Germany, the new car?s exterior recalls the exotic designs of early Maybach models, in particular the low slung SW38, which was commissioned by Fulda in 1939 for high-speed tire testing on German autobahns before it was destroyed during WWII. It was the existence of this car in Fulda?s history books that prompted the Goodyear-owned company to approach Mercedes-Benz about the possibility of building a modern-day equivalent.


The reinterpretation of the classic coupe, which carries more than hint of Cadillac?s bold Sixteen concept (though four fewer cylinders) in its carbon fiber body panels, is based on the rear-wheel-drive underpinnings of the 57 and was built by prototype specialist Stola in Italy.

At 19.3 feet long, 7 feet tall and 4.6 feet wide, the Exelero is larger overall than the already imposing 57. Careful attention to aerodynamics has netted the coupe an impressive coefficient of drag of just 0.28?despite a frontal area measuring three square yards.

Don?t let the oversize dimensions fool you, though. In keeping with Fulda boss Bernd Hoffmann?s orders to keep the car close in spirit to the earlier SW38, the new Maybach is a strict two seater. The interior combines dashboard elements and high-end appointments from the 57S (the four-door performance sedan Maybach revealed at the Geneva motor show earlier this year), together with race car-inspired features such as hard shell seats and four-point harnesses. The space behind the seats houses the fuel tank and extra cargo.


To ensure the Exelero delivers the sort of neck-wrenching acceleration to match its sinister appearance, the big coupe is powered by a reworked version of the 57S? AMG-developed twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V12 engine. Running added boost pressure and strengthened internals, the three-valve-per-cylinder unit pumps out a 700-hp at 5000 rpm along with 752-lb-ft of torque at just 2500 rpm. Drive is channeled via a beefed-up five-speed automatic gearbox to enormous 23-inch rear wheels shod with Fulda?s new 315/25 ZR23 Carat Exelero tires.

Despite tipping the scales at a hefty 6500 pounds, the Exelero?s standing start acceleration is very much in the supercar league. Maybach claims 0-62 mph in just 4.4 seconds?more than half a second quicker than the 57S. Top speed, achieved at the Nardo test track in southern Italy at the hands of German touring car ace Klaus Ludwig, is put at exactly 218.43 mph.

Although the Exelero has been painstakingly developed and meets all existing road worthiness regulations for Europe, Maybach says there are no plans to place it into production. Its existence does, however, indicate that Mercedes-Benz upmarket brand is ready to extend its focus beyond mere super-luxury super-sedans.

Edit:  oops, I misspelled Maybach!

[BMWDave]

another picture:

[TBR]

Still looks nice, but I still say that MB will never put something as radical as this concept into production.

[BMWDave]

Still looks nice, but I still say that MB will never put something as radical as this concept into production.

I dont think they will either...but at the same time, it helps further Maybach's image and may perhaps lay the groundwork for a coupe to come.