Q&A: Maybach’s Prof. Gaus

2003 Maybach
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Too Many Ultra-Luxes? (3/17/2002)

He’s no stranger to the concept of high-end luxury. Until a few years ago, Prof. Hermann Gaus was in charge of developing the most expensive product ever to carry the Mercedes-Benz tri-star, the current generation S-Class sedan. But in 1998, he was given a new assignment that Gaus says will cap and complete his long career with the Stuttgart-based automaker.

After making a brief bid for the classic British ultra-luxury marque, Rolls-Royce, Mercedes’ parent, DaimlerChrysler AG, decided to instead focus on developing a top-line brand of its own that would establish, in the words of one DCX senior manager, “a new summit.” The first indication of what that means was revealed during this month’s Geneva Motor Show. A prototype of the new Maybach sedan was debuted in a dimly-lit display separated from the public by a thick wall of glass. (The automaker also released a photo of the ultra-luxury car.)

A complete reveal isn’t scheduled until the Paris Motor Show in October. But TheCarConnection’s publisher, Paul A. Eisenstein, got a good sense of what is in store during an interview with the 66-year-old Dr. Gaus, a 40-year industry veteran.

TCC: DaimlerChrysler briefly joined the bidding for Rolls-Royce, then decided to create its own ultra-luxury division. When did this happen?

GAUS: The first idea we had was in ’96. We had a sense there was a segment above the S-Class that we weren’t present in. We showed the concept car first in 1997 at the Tokyo Motor Show, then at the Detroit auto show. The program was officially started in November 1998. And we decided the name can only be Maybach.

TCC: Now, I realize he played an important role in the company’s early days. But Maybach is not a very well known name, certainly not in the U.S.

GAUS: Wilhelm Maybach was Gottlieb Daimler’s chief engineer and played a very important role in the development of the first Mercedes model in 1901. In the 1920s and ‘30s, his son founded a company to build his own vehicles that were more famous in Europe, at the time, than Mercedes. But we have to tell (potential customers) who Maybach was and what Maybach is, otherwise we won’t be able to sell the Maybach name.

TCC: How many Maybachs do you intend to produce?

GAUS: Our production capacity is 1500, so maybe 1200 to 1500 a year. We will only build them to order. That concept is something new to the U.S., though there is some history for that in Europe. There will be no Maybachs sitting in dealer inventory…though the U.S. will be something of an exception.

TCC: What do you mean?

GAUS: We will have ‘Centers of Excellence,’ in key markets where customers can see the car and then discuss all their dreams and wishes and have the car customized exactly as they want. In the U.S., (because of state franchise laws), we will have approximately 150 dealers as well as Centers of Excellence.

TCC: How many models will there be?

GAUS: There will be two versions of the car, a short wheelbase for those who mainly drive themselves, and a long wheelbase for those who might normally have a driver.

TCC: You say each car will be customized, much like the finest suits. What does that mean?

GAUS: We could do the interiors in wood, metal, leather, for example, even stone.

TCC: And how much will this cost?

GAUS: The price will start at 300,000 Euros (about $255,000 at current exchange rates). The price is an open end. If you want gold switches, that will cost more money.

TCC: Is there really enough demand for all the cars from Maybach, Rolls-Royce, Bentley and the other makes aiming at the ultra-luxury segment?

GAUS: It is a competitive market, but I think there is space for more than one top brand. We did a lot of market research and found the number of very rich people is expanding. There are approximately 8000 to 9000 people who can afford this kind of car (each year). It’s not that they will (buy one), but they can.

TCC: Where are these buyers?

GAUS: The U.S. will be about 40 percent of our market, and Europe about 25 percent. The rest will be in Japan, other parts of Asia and the Middle East.

TCC: And what will motivate them to spend so much money?

GAUS: The motivation is exclusivity. They want to be different from other people.