THE MAYBACH SL680 – ROAD-TEST
IS THE MERCEDES-MAYBACH SL680 THE WORLD’S BEST GRAND TOURER?
Before we talk about the remarkable car that accompanied us throughout our two-week Italian adventure, we should talk about the name.
Maybach is far more than an upscale Mercedes-Benz trim level. Its roots go back to Wilhelm Maybach, one of Germany’s great automotive engineers and a close collaborator of Gottlieb Daimler. Later, Wilhelm and his son Karl created their own automobile company, producing exceptionally luxurious, hand-built cars for those who considered even a Mercedes too ordinary.
The original Maybach disappeared after the Second World War, but Mercedes-Benz revived the name in the early 2000s as its ultra-luxury marque. Today, Mercedes-Maybach sits at the pinnacle of the Mercedes-Benz family, emphasizing craftsmanship, exclusivity, comfort and presence.
Which raises an intriguing question: Why put the Maybach name on an SL?
The Mercedes-Benz SL has always represented something different. Its heritage is rooted in the legendary 300 SL and decades of open-top performance. It is a sports car, a grand tourer and, above all, a roadster.
The Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series takes that familiar formula and gives it an entirely different personality. It is the first two-seat Maybach, combining the SL’s performance credentials with the visual drama and handcrafted luxury expected from the name.
We will get to the numbers, but Maybach isn’t really about numbers. It is about the experience—and turning even an ordinary journey into something extraordinary.
And what better place to discover that than Italy?
A SPECIAL DELIVERY
It was 5:30 a.m. as we prepared to leave Rome for the Amalfi Coast when a truck pulled up in front of the Anantara Palazzo Naiadi Rome Hotel. Inside was a very special delivery, brought directly from Germany: the ultra-luxurious Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series.
Even in the early darkness, its illuminated Maybach grille immediately stood out, with the glowing Maybach lettering framed by an intricate grille and the upright Mercedes star above it.
As daylight arrived, we began discovering just how extensively Mercedes had transformed the SL.
Our White Ambiance car featured an elegant MANUFAKTUR white body with a black upper section and an optional Obsidian Black hood decorated with hundreds of tiny Maybach motifs, painstakingly applied using Mercedes’ PixelPaint technology. From a distance it appears almost like a subtle textile pattern; up close, its intricate detail becomes apparent.
The enormous Maybach grille is surrounded by chrome, while the lower air intakes feature their own Maybach-inspired pattern. Rose-gold detailing inside the headlights adds another touch of extravagance, while chrome continues around the windscreen, side sills and rear.
From behind, the transformation is even more obvious. Unlike the conventional SL’s 2+2 configuration, the Maybach is strictly a two-seater. The rear seats have disappeared, replaced by a beautifully finished shelf wrapped in Crystal White leather. Twin aerodynamic scoops rise behind the seats, giving the car a dramatic, almost speedboat-like profile with the roof down.
The three-layer insulated soft top is black and subtly woven with an anthracite Mercedes-Maybach pattern. Inside, Crystal White MANUFAKTUR Exclusive Nappa leather covers the comfort seats, doors, centre console and rear area. Exclusive Maybach patterns, silver-chrome trim and deep, high-pile white carpets reinforce the sense of occasion.
Even the details receive special treatment: a leather-and-wood Maybach steering wheel, dedicated digital graphics, illuminated door sills, logo projectors and Maybach-specific pedals.
It is an extraordinary amount of detail for a car that, underneath it all, remains an SL. Yet it never feels like Mercedes simply added a few Maybach touches to an existing model. It feels genuinely transformed.
But the real question wasn’t how it looked parked outside a five-star hotel.
What would it be like to drive?
For the next two weeks, we were about to find out—from Rome to the Amalfi Coast, through Puglia and onward to Sicily.
THE MAGIC CARPET
I have driven the top-of-the-line Mercedes-AMG SL, so I knew what this platform was capable of. Yet within the first few kilometres, it became obvious that the Maybach SL 680 was playing an entirely different game.
Calling it a softer SL would be selling it short. This is a different philosophy altogether.
Under the hood sits a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 producing 577 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque, paired with 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive and a 9-speed automatic transmission. It reaches 100 km/h in just 4.1 seconds.
The performance is very real. But with the AMG, you want to experience that performance—you want to hear the V8, feel the shifts and explore what the chassis can do. With the Maybach, you simply know the power is there.
And somehow, that makes it even more satisfying.
Mercedes has deliberately softened the suspension and engine mounts, revised the transmission calibration and quietened the exhaust. Extensive acoustic insulation further separates the cabin from the outside world.
The result is remarkably close to riding a magic carpet.
Italy’s roads provided the perfect test. From the streets of Rome to the winding roads toward the Amalfi Coast, the SL simply glided along. Active Ride Control with hydraulic roll stabilization keeps the body remarkably composed, while rear-axle steering makes this large roadster feel considerably more agile than its size suggests.
With the roof up, the transformation is even more impressive. The cabin becomes exceptionally quiet, allowing effortless conversation while the Burmester sound system takes centre stage.
But the biggest surprise wasn’t the ride, technology or even performance.
It was the attention.
Looking at our White Ambiance car parked outside a hotel, you might assume that a white Mercedes SL with a black hood would attract a few curious glances. Nothing extraordinary.
Wrong.
I still can’t believe the response this car received.
Cars passing us would slow down, drivers would honk and give us thumbs-up. Pedestrians would stop and shout “Bella macchina!” People approached us at traffic lights, parking lots and outside restaurants, asking questions and, of course, asking to take pictures.
And this happened again and again.
The Maybach SL 680 doesn’t merely look expensive. It has something far more difficult to engineer:
Presence.
The 577 horsepower is impressive. The technology is impressive. The craftsmanship is impressive.
But after two weeks in Italy, what I remember most isn’t how quickly it could get somewhere.
It’s how it made everywhere we went feel like an occasion.
