What's the news?
One year ago, at the Concours d'Elegance held at Pebble Beach, California, Mercedes-Maybach unveiled the absolutely glorious Vision 6 Concept to the world. Well, here we are at the same event in 2017 and Mercedes has whipped the roof off the gigantic machine to create the Vision 6 Cabriolet.
Like the enormous Coupe model, the '6' in the Vision's name refers to the fact it is a colossal six metres long, which gives it a grandiose elegance that's unmatched in the modern automotive world. In essence, it's the same car as 2016's Vision 6, but with a custom-made fabric roof in a cream colour.
And whereas the hard-topped version last year was finished in a rich, deep red, the Vision 6 Cabriolet is a 'nautical blue metallic', to emphasise the link between the car and an expensive yacht. Furthermore, it has a different design of 24-inch (yes, 24 inches!) alloy wheels to the Vision 6 Coupe, which have centre-locks finished in rose gold. The same colour is threaded through that folding roof.
There's a neat segue between the outside and the interior at the back, where crystal white Nappa leather from the cabin spills onto the car's open rear deck. And the Vision 6's interior is described as a '360-degree open-air luxury lounge', which features lots of white with a blue highlight waistline strip around the cockpit, an open-pore wood floor, plus a wonderful retro-themed steering wheel and dials. Incredibly, for such a massive machine, the Vision 6 Cabriolet is a two-seater - but while the opulence of the car harks back to a golden age of expensive 'land yachts', the Maybach still has cutting-edge tech within, like touch-only controls and an intelligent satellite navigation system that is linked to an owner's personal appointment calendar.
The Vision 6 Cabriolet remains a fully electric car, with four permanent magnet synchronous electric motors housed in each of the wheels to create all-wheel drive. Total output is almost as goliath as the Mercedes-Maybach's body, with 750hp available to the driver. That means a 0-100km/h time of less than four seconds, with its top speed governed to 250km/h, but of course performance is not an EV's forte; instead, the Vision 6 Cabriolet is said to be capable of more than 500km on a single charge of its shallow, under-floor lithium-ion battery pack, with a DC quick-charging function allowing for 100km of extra range to be dumped into the car in just five minutes.
Anything else?
Gorden Wagener, chief design officer of Daimler AG, said: "The Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6 Cabriolet takes modern luxury into the realms of the ultimate in luxury, and is the perfect embodiment of our design strategy. Breathtaking proportions combined with a luxurious 'haute couture' interior help to create the ultimate experience."
The Vision 6 Cabriolet will be unveiled at Monterey Car Week and the Concours d'Elegance at Pebble Beach on August 20.