Mercedes-Benz is selling about 500 examples of its new Mercedes-Maybach S600 luxury sedan in China every month, which is remarkable considering sales of the previous standalone Maybach models only reached about 600 units worldwide during the better years. The numbers had dropped to between 200 and 300 units when the decision was made in 2011 to phase out Maybach as a standalone brand.
Granted, the new S-Class-based Mercedes-Maybach S600 is much more reasonably priced, with the starting price here in the U.S. coming in at $190,275 with shipping, compared to more than $350k for the previous Maybach models. Nonetheless, it’s an amazing feat for the Three-Pointed Star, and no doubt it’s an issue that's come up during board meetings at the headquarters of Bentley and Rolls-Royce.
MORE: 2016 Mercedes-Maybach S600 First Drive
The latest sales info was revealed by Mercedes-Benz sales chief Ola Kaellenius during a recent interview with Bloomberg. He explained that the unique elements of the car, like its extra legroom and handmade silver champagne flutes, are appealing to buyers.
Kaellenius also explained that the Mercedes brand overall is experiencing gains in the Chinese market at a time when sales of rival brands Audi and BMW are cooling. Audi remains the most popular premium brand in China but it recently posted its first sales decline in more than two years. Mercedes sales, in contrast, were up last month by 20 percent on the same period a year ago.
_______________________________________
