Having worked as Gottlieb Daimler’s chief design engineer, Wilhelm Maybach (my-BOCK) is as much responsible for the development of the automobile as both Daimler and his contemporary, Karl Benz.
This car represents the first time Mercedes-Maybach applied its philosophies to a sporting automobile.
In fact, Maybach is credited with establishing the characteristics that became the foundation of the modern automobile. He also created the first automobile to be called a Mercedes. However, the Maybach name is perhaps better known for the line of ultra luxurious motorcars introduced by Daimler-Benz in 2002 to compete with Bentley and Rolls-Royce.
While that didn’t quite work out (okay it failed) today, the Maybach name graces the most opulent Mercedes-Benz offerings, which brings us to the subject of this review — the 2026 Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series.
More than style
This car represents the first time the Mercedes-Maybach division applied its philosophies to a sporting automobile. Prior to this, the Maybach logo only appeared on sedans and SUVs. This changed with the Mercedes-Maybach SL 680.
Largely distinguished by its flamboyant exterior treatment, one cannot help but notice the Maybach SL. Generously applied chrome touches, combined with an eye-catching paint job and a set of oversized five-hole semi-monobloc wheels tell the world this is not your “average” Mercedes SL. And, to be certain onlookers know this is the Maybach version, the division’s “double M” logos appear in abundance all over the grand touring roadster.
Largely distinguished by its flamboyant exterior treatment, one cannot help but notice the Maybach SL.
Look closely at the lower grille, the pattern is comprised of Mercedes-Maybach logos. The same treatment is applied (pun intended) to the black hood, where someone also saw fit to perch the traditional Mercedes three-pointed star — at the end of yet another strip of chrome. The fabric of the convertible top is also festooned with more Mercedes-Maybach logos than I had time to count. Clearly someone on the design team has spent WAY too much time in a Louis Vuitton boutique.
Two primary color schemes are offered with the debut version of the SL 680. The Red Ambiance treatment contrasts the aforementioned Obsidian Black Metallic monogrammed hood with Mercedes’ MANUFAKTUR Garnet Red Metallic. This is the version pictured in the accompanying photos.
The Maybach SL’s White Ambiance configuration renders the body of the car in the marque’s MANUFAKTUR Moonlight White Mango matte paint against the Obsidian Black Metallic hood. A choice of 52 additional colors can be selected for a $9,900 premium.
Powertrains and Fuel Economy
Power is sourced from the same 4.0-liter twin turbocharged V8 found in the Mercedes-AMG SL 63. Quoted output is 577 horsepower.
Power is sourced from the same 4.0-liter twin turbocharged V8 found in the Mercedes-AMG SL 63. Quoted output is 577 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. The all-wheel drive powertrain employs a 9-speed automatic transmission and rear steering.
According to the MPG experts at the EPA, one can expect to travel 13 miles in the city, 20 on the highway and 16 overall for each gallon of premium the SL 680 consumes. Under my stewardship, the Maybach SL returned 15 mpg combined.
Interior Accommodations
The option to configure their cars any way they’d like will undoubtedly become the norm for those who elect to add examples of the Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 to their automobile collections — eventually. For now, the car is offered solely with a Crystal White Nappa leather interior treatment.
Deployed on every possible surface of the interior of the car (save the top of the dash where it would create a serious glare problem on the windshield), the look is one of unadulterated lavishness. What’s more, it serves as an ideal canvas upon which the extensive ambient lighting system paints — even in daylight. Further thumbing its nose at any possible consideration of practicality, the SL’s carpeting — and fluffy floormats — are also rendered in white.
For now, the car is offered solely with a Crystal White Nappa leather interior treatment.
The result, I have to admit, is absolutely gorgeous — so much so I insisted everyone who entered the car remove their footwear. I was all, “Look, them shoes is gon’ hafta come off, okay?” Besides, those fluffy white floor mats are better appreciated in stockinged feet anyway.
Everything else about the passenger compartment is standard Mercedes SL fare—albeit softened a bit for Maybach duty. The generously padded heated and ventilated seats incorporate the Mercedes AIRSCARF system to keep necks warm when running the car open in cooler weather. Memory and massage functions are of course standard equipment as well.
The SL’s vestigial rear seats are eschewed in favor of a white leather upholstered package tray. While this does nothing to increase the already generous legroom, it does provide a more, dare I say, practical place to carry items inside the car. Given the meager 8.5 cubic feet of capacity the trunk affords, you’re likely to need it for long distance touring to be a consideration.
Comfort, Convenience & Safety Tech
The Mercedes MBUX infotainment platform is displayed on an 11.9-inch central touchscreen rivaling the size of an Apple iPad. Positioning of the screen can be adjusted to minimize glare when the SL is being driven with its roof retracted. The “Hey Mercedes” virtual assistant responds to verbal commands for a number of key functions without the need to press a button.
The Mercedes MBUX infotainment platform is displayed on an 11.9-inch central touchscreen rivaling the size of an Apple iPad.
Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility are standard. A 12.3-inch instrumentation display resides behind the steering wheel and is reconfigurable according to the wishes of the driver. Oh, by the way, that steering wheel is upholstered in sumptuous white and black leather. Driver’s aids include active blind spot, braking and parking assist. Adaptive high beam assist is applied to the LED headlamps. The taillamps use LEDs as well. Lane departure warning, lane keeping assist and adaptive cruise control with lane centering are offered as options.
Driving Impressions
Compared to the AMG SL 63, with which the Maybach’s engine is shared, the SL 680 is tuned for comfort more so than outright performance. The Maybach SL’s performance quotient is still quite high; it’s just not as sharply focused as the AMG SL’s.
Ride quality is more compliant; wind noise is greatly reduced (not that it was all that prominent to begin with) and the overall nature of the car more actively encourages cruising — albeit at high speed. And make no mistake, this is a very fast car. I clocked four-second runs to 60 from rest.
Give the Maybach SL 680 its head, and speed accumulates in an astonishing fashion, with the two-seater feeling all the more firmly planted as its velocity increases. While still accurate, turn in is less sharp than the AMG SL’s. More than adequate grip is still provided in the corners, and braking power is served up in equal abundance. And yet, the car doesn’t goad its driver into committing hi-speed hijinks. It does however prove competent when called upon to engage in them — though less adroitly than its AMG counterpart.
make no mistake, this is a very fast car. I clocked four-second runs to 60 from rest.
In Summary
There are aspects of this car with which I am wholly enamored. There are also aspects of this car about which I am less enthusiastic. The interior treatment is positively gorgeous and I’m OCD enough to keep that white interior clean, so the impracticality of it doesn’t really bother me. Besides, anybody buying one of these will own several other cars, which makes daily driver concerns irrelevant.
I also appreciate the SL 680’s more relaxed nature. When it comes to long distance touring, the added padding in the seats, the more compliant ride quality and the quiet nature of the car make it exceptionally comfortable on the highway. What’s even more impressive is these traits exist with but a minor detraction from the SL 63’s performance potential.
That exterior treatment though? Nope. Wildly overdone, the look of this car is trying way too hard to justify its $224,900 base price. It’s just too much. Coco Chanel is credited as having once said, “True elegance resides in restraint.” Simply put, style is as much about what you leave out as what you put in. And here, they put in way too much.
Placed in charge of the design of the Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series, I would offer the car solely in the White Ambiance configuration. I would nix the black hood in favor of a matching Moonlight White Mango matte-finish hood — without the logos, superfluous chrome strip and upright three-pointed star. The multispoke wheel set would be the only offering, which is far more graceful in appearance than the massive looking five-hole wheels fitted to my test car.
As a final touch, I would change the roof to white and reduce its logo count to only two. Hand embroidered into the fabric, the Mercedes-Maybach logos would be tastefully sized and placed just aft of the rear side windows — one on each side, just as they appear on the sedan and SUV. This more restrained treatment would make the 2026 Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series grand touring roadster drop-dead gorgeous. After all, as Leonardo DaVinci once said, “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”
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