Typically, when an automaker develops an armored version of one of their sedans or SUVs, the added weight taken as inherent has an adverse effect on the car’s performance. But with the new Maybach Guard, the top-of-the-line Daimler division says it has whittled this down to a minimum.

The negligible effect of the added protection on the Maybach 62 comes down to two factors: First of all, Maybach’s twin-turbo V12, brakes and suspension components were designed from the get-go to accommodate the reinforced armor, and are already burdened enough by the car’s massive weight that the extra heft is relatively negligible. Secondly, the steel and Kevlar reinforcements weigh less than 900 pounds all told – far less than if you took an existing model to an independent firm instead of specifying it so equipped from the factory.

As a result, Daimler claims the Maybach 62 Guard can still accelerate from 0-62 miles per hour in 5.7 seconds and reach a threat-evading top speed of 155 mph – the electronically-limited level adopted by most of Germany’s automakers.

The Guard model is also said to be virtually indistinguishable to the naked eye from an unprotected Maybach 62, so if you want to know what it looks like, check out the recently revised model range in the gallery below. Official announcement in the press release after the jump.

What Maybach’s parent company, Daimler -slash- Mercedes calls a new model that revives the spirit of the 1930′s Maybach Zepelin, is in fact a special edition version of the Maybach 57 S and the long-wheelbase version, the 62 S. To be officially revealed in Geneva, the Maybach Zepelin will be produced in a limited run of just 100 units with prices (excluding tax) set at €406,000 ($526,500 US) for the Zepelin 57 and at €473,200 ($613,600 US) for the Zepelin 62. In both cases, power is provided by a tweaked version of the firm’s twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V12 which now delivers 640HP (+28 hp) and a peak torque of 1000 Nm or 737.6 lbs-ft.

Hallmark features of the Zepelin include a two-tone special paint finish, newly designed 20-inch wheels in a Chrome Shadow finish and streamlined exterior mirrors.
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Big-bucks enthusiasts annoyed that they’re not the only ones at the club with a Veyron can now ensure that they arrive in total exclusivity. That’s because the one-off Maybach Exelero, commissioned by Fulda to act as a high-profile demonstrator for its tire line of the same name, is now for sale. The Exelero isn’t some delicate flower of a show car. Based on the Maybach 57 and powered by a 700-horsepower version of that car’s turbocharged V12, the Exelero reached 218 mph at Nardo. In many ways, Exelero represents what Maybach could have and should have been — a place where daring styling and incredible performance could merge with extreme luxury to compete with Rolls-Royce and Bentley. Instead, while the marque’s sedans clearly get the luxury part of the equation right, in terms of styling, they basically work in anonymity, looking like peculiar old S-Class sedans. There’s nothing anonymous about the Exelero, though, and for €5,000,000 (around $7.8 million USD), you can drive the sybaritic supercar that Daimler should have given Maybach all along.

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