The range-topping Bentley Mulsanne
After years of losing money with its flagship Maybach brand, Daimler has decided to shutter its ultra-premium car line. Instead, Mercedes-Benz will step up its game with a higher-end series of S-Class models, including a range-topping Pullman variant. By Daimler’s reasoning, existing Maybach customers will be happy with an upscale S-Class, as long as it’s content-rich (and expensive).
Or will they? Despite its prestige for us 99-percenters, Mercedes-Benz is still a mass-market brand with little exclusivity. Part of the appeal of brands like Maybach, Rolls-Royce or Bentley is their low production volume and relative scarcity. Bespoke manufacturing helps, too, since you can order a Rolls-Royce Phantom or Bentley Mulsanne personalized in hundreds of ways, virtually ensuring that no two cars are alike.
Maybach’s customers are none to happy with Daimler about the brand being axed, too, which makes them further unlikely to hop into a customized S-Class. It’s that dissatisfaction that Bentley is hoping to capitalize on: per Automotive News (subscription required), the British automaker is actively targeting Maybach owners with a personalized letter from its CEO, Wolfgang Durheimer.
Ultimately, Bentley would love to attract Maybach-owning celebrities like Jay-Z, Samuel L. Jackson and the Sultan of Brunei. Failing that, they’ll welcome anyone with the cash to own a Maybach, since it’s likely that even Bentley’s halo car, the Mulsanne, is affordable. To lure Maybach owners, Bentley is offering perks such as VIP tours of its Crewe, England factory.
Rolls Royce would love to attract the same customers, but it’s more reserved in its pursuit of business. In the words of a Rolls-Royce spokesman, “seeking them out and hunting them down is not the Rolls-Royce way.”
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
