NEW 2026 Mercedes-Maybach S-Class: Luxury, Perfected?

Struggling a bit to put my champagne flute in. Clearly, what? How does that work? What would you do? For over a century, one name has defined automotive luxury, delivering exquisite materials, effortless ride comfort, and truly opulent interiors. Maybach. Now, in 2026, Mercedes is pushing that legacy further than ever, delivering the most comprehensive update the brand has ever seen, with the new Mercedes-Maybach S-Class. And here it is, the new Maybach. This is, what they say, the pinnacle of luxury. And just looking at it, yeah, incredibly striking. Right, first thing to notice about this car is that they've changed the front end. Looks sharper than before. This grille is all new, it's 20% larger than before. But notice, just on the inside here, it's actually illuminated, making the grille have a bit more presence. We've also got these vertical metal elements, making it look very mean, particularly from this angle. And also, the Maybach logo is illuminated. On top of that, we've also got this Mercedes three-pointed star, also illuminated. And just behind it, this chrome fin, which gives the bonnet a sense of elongation, making it look a bit more menacing. This area is interesting as well. This air intake is littered with all these Mercedes-Maybach symbols just here. That actually looks quite cool, in a bling kind of way. And we've also got brand new headlights. These are micro LEDs, which are 40% brighter than the previous generation headlights. They look cool. And if you look really closely, you'll also see this rose gold element in the lights. And that is a nice little touch. So, down the side, this is a bit of a boat. It's 18 centimetres longer than the long wheelbase version of the new S-Class, giving you plenty of room inside. It's got that two-tone finish as well. White along the bottom, blue on the top, with this delicate little pinstripe in the middle. Apparently, it takes over a week to apply the two-tone finish. We've also got new wheels. These are forged rims, 20 inches. And for the first time, we also get floating centre caps to keep the Mercedes three-pointed star nice and level. This is a nice little touch on the D pillar. We've got a Maybach badge, and it's actually illuminated. Unfortunately, illumination is only available in certain regions, and that does not include the UK. So, if you like your Maybach badge blinging, you can't have it in the United Kingdom, unfortunately. Around the back, though, new light design. So, have a look at this. We've got three-pointed stars across these rear lights. And also, this lion across the back, rather than being fully chrome, is now a combination of chrome and gloss black. Right, let me show you the interior of the new Maybach. This is where the magic happens. One of the most impressive bits of magic are these comfort doors, which open and close at the push or pull of a switch, just up there on the ceiling. What a flex. When you open the door as well, it can actually assist you when you pull the handle, although it won't open automatically just by pulling the outside handle. But inside, it looks amazing. This is called Beach Brown, and it replaces the Sienna Brown you got on the previous generation. But just some highlights for me, right? Lovely cushion in my lower back. Amazing cushion for my head just up here. And luxury galore. In the centre console, look at this. We've got champagne flute, for goodness sake. And actually, it's removable, obviously, because you can drink it, but then you can close the centre console at the push of a button to make things look nice and neat without cup holders spoiling the view. That's pretty cool. And interestingly, if you've left the champagne flute in the champagne flute holder and decide to close that centre console, it will actually delicately touch it and then retract. It knows exactly what to do in any situation. Back here, we have a fridge for keeping your actual champagne cool. That's a nice touch. And on the subject of rear seat entertainment, we've got loads of that. Struggling a bit to put my champagne flute in. Clearly, what? How does that work? What do you do? Oh, there we go. Maybachs clearly aren't designed for me. On the subject of rear seat entertainment, the screens are now larger than before and with lots more features, including a Maybach-specific ambient lighting program, which bathes the cabin in a kind of rose gold finish. And we've also got these two removable remote controls, which allow the rear passengers to control what's going on on the rear seat entertainment, including controlling the ambient light and also your media playback. It's quite a nice touch. It's like two little mobile phones instead of a tablet, which we got on the previous version. Yeah, quite like that. As for the front of the car, I suspect most Maybach owners won't ever actually sit in this particular seat. But if they ever do, they'll find it's quite comfortable. In terms of the rest of the cabin, we've got this assortment of displays, one for the driver, one for the infotainment, one for the passenger. And the passenger, incidentally, can watch all kinds of media, movies, etc. on that screen without distracting the driver. We've got this lovely center console finished in wood. We've got the leather. And interestingly, this generation of Maybach is the first to be available with an animal-free finish. So if you're not into murdering cows to line the interior of your car, then this is the Maybach for you. The Mercedes-Maybach S-Class is available in a wide palette with over 150 exterior colors, including the new black sparkling finish first seen on the new S-Class. Have a look at our video of that car to see how its glass flake under clear coat gives it a touch of stardust. You'll also find the very interesting heated seat belt feature on both the S-Class and Maybach S-Class. But there's also another slightly more contemporary option for Maybach customers, the Night Series. What you'll notice around the front is that we've got black chrome instead of that shiny chrome. Still got the illuminated grille. Still got the Maybach logo lit up. And we've still got the rose gold inserts just there as well. But when you go around the car, you'll find a lot more use of dark materials to make it look a bit more menacing. You'll also see that these 20-inch wheels are enormously intricate. Finished in black, obviously. But look, it's got the Maybach logo everywhere in between the spokes. And we don't have the self-leveling center caps. But that is a really cool, mean look. We've also got black chrome on the door handles. And also just here, dark chrome on the Maybach logo on the D-pillar. Inside this Night Series car, we can see the potential for huge customization. There are over 400 interior colors to choose from, with countless options for making it yours. With the manufacturer personalization options, the sky is virtually the limit. No two Maybachs need look the same. As for engines, the Maybach will have the option of a six-cylinder hybrid with 537 PS plus a 23 PS boost, or a V8 hybrid model with 611 PS plus a 23 PS boost. A plug-in hybrid six-cylinder will also be available, providing 100 kilometers of EV driving. So there we go. The new Maybach. The pinnacle of luxury reinvented. Looks pretty cool to me. But what do you guys think? Let me know down there in the comments.