THIS IS THE LIFE! The rear door of the Maybach 62 opens 85 degrees to reveal an expanse of plush velour carpeting, beautiful wood trims, an Alcantara-lined ceiling and leathered everything. You know the quality and craftsmanship is top-notch, and how sweet is the aroma of that rich Grand Nappa leather.
You don't need to twist your waist to avoid the door edge, duck under the window rim or even angle your ankles to avoid the back of the front seat. You just walk up to a Maybach, step in and sit. The rear leg-room is so big, two small children could skulk in comfort, and because your seat's so far to the back, closing the door is impossible. So, instead of leaning forward and reaching for a handle like the hoi-polloi, you press a door-closing switch on the ceiling.
A rear seat recliner hums to angles of your choosing. The seat rest tilts back, the seat cushion extends forward and up, the thigh support raises, and the lower leg support telescopes downward. The footrest is unfolded manually, but only then does the vast floor space make any sense, as you stretch out in this semi-sleeping position. Each individual cushion and support can also be electrically adjusted. This is the most comfortable rear seat I've known. It takes business-class travel (or dental practice) onto the road.
These seats form the focal point of the Maybach 62, but there's so much more. It has three gorgeous gauges in wood and chrome surrounds to indicate the vehicle's speed, the time and the outside temperature. There's a TV monitor on the back of both front seats, offering TV, DVD, radio, a satellite navigation system in some countries (but not in China) and sockets for a camcorder and MP3 - all controlled by a remote handset unit and with two sets of wireless headphones. There are also two cellular phones, a wireless and a fixed line, and the armrest cover reveals a refrigerator that's big enough for light refreshments and two champagne goblets. The 62's interior lighting is seductive. The main ceiling light is turned on when the doors are opened, and the combination of the passengers' reading lights and the illumination of the overhead control panel, footwells and the diffused floodlights on the B and C pillars provide a unique 'starry night' feel.
Maybach has also devised its version of Mercedes-Benz's popular Panoramic Roof. Its optional glass-dome roof has a wooden cassette structure that extends across the rear section. The inner pane of the glass roof has a layer of liquid crystal that can filter away up to 76 per cent of daylight with varying degrees of opacity at the touch of a button. I rode in the 6.17-metre Maybach 62 and its smaller brother, the 5.7-metre Maybach 57, in Germany. And what rides they were, thanks to the Airmatic DC suspension that was first introduced in the latest E-Class.
Unlike other German saloons, the Maybach soaks up the bumps without fuss. When you corner fast and brake hard, body motions are compensated for and always well checked. 'The car simply glides down the road,' our 62's chauffeur says. The cabin is extremely quiet. The front suspension is on a steel sub-frame, which is connected to the body through four hydraulically dampened bearings, as is the rear.