Test Drive: 2025 Mercedes-Maybach S680 Poses a Tough Question

“Would you like me to chauffeur you so you can enjoy the executive rear seat?” asks the friendly Mercedes-Maybach S680 chaperone.  

“No thanks, I’ll drive,” I respond.  

But on second thought, I may have made the wrong choice, as I’ve just turned down a chance to experience life living like a royal.  Ah, dear reader, the things I do to share the details of a car you’ll never drive!

Before getting into the driver’s seat, I take a moment to see how deeply I will regret my decision by trying the S680’s back seat.  The seat is maximally reclined, its footrest is fully extended, and the front seat has been moved all the way forward, but my shoes are still brushing the front seat’s back.  If I owned this $260k Maybach (base price $240k), I’d simply kick off my loafers and air out my socks, but that seems unfair to my chaperone and this test car.

(No wonder NBA ballers build out custom vans instead of S-classes.  Seven-foot-tall athletes would not be able to stretch out in the back of the S680!)

I consider the amenities surrounding my reclined, massaging, quilted-leather throne.  Ahead of me, I have the LCD screen for my entertainment.  To my left, the console, which splits the cabin, holds a pop-out tablet and a cabinet with cooled cup holders.  At my hip, a fold-out tray table hides.  These are first-class amenities, even if the not-quite-flat seating position is more akin to transcontinental business class.

I extract myself from the S680’s rear seat and take my proper place behind the steering wheel.  (I say “my proper place,” because I am more likely to be a Maybach chauffeur in the future than a royal passenger!) The dashboard’s tilted-tablet MBUX infotainment screen and rectangular air vents are familiar to me from last year’s Mercedes AMG S63 E-Performance test drive.  New to the Maybach is the band of metal running the length of the hood.  This ornamentation is exclusive to the Maybach range, and it makes a leading line to the Mercedes star that is standing proud at the head of the sedan.

My chaperone encourages me to fire up the S680 and start the drive.  I do, but I can hardly tell that the V12 is turning because the S680 is so well sound-insulated.  The sound-insulated windows and doors have also blocked out the noise of the passing traffic and hundreds of Pebble Beach Village guests.  As I creep out onto the road, I might as well be in an electric vehicle on account of the extreme silence of the S680’s drivetrain.

Immediately, it is clear that the S680 has a magic carpet ride.  There’s a wafting float to the car as we leave the dirt parking lot and pull onto the paved road.  The S680 uses an air suspension on all four corners, and it is one of the softest-riding vehicles I’ve ever experienced.

Our first turn is approaching.  It is a sharp left-hand turn across queued traffic.  Though the S680 is longer than a Cadillac Escalade, I easily squeeze it through a car-length gap I find between a Mercedes C300 and a Ford Model T thanks to the S680’s aggressive four-wheel steering.  At slow speeds, the Maybach’s rear tires turn opposite to its fronts to minimize its turning circle.

On the first lengthy straightaway, I test the S680’s acceleration.  When I squeeze the throttle to the floor, the big sedan lifts its skirts and runs.  As we whisk forward, the V12 finally makes itself heard in the cabin—it is a pleasant sound, but nothing to raise my pulse or tickle my loins.  (A spine-tingling V12 wail would be inappropriate in a dreamy limousine.)  

The 6.0L V12 wears twin turbos, but there is no sense of turbo lag or spiking boost when the S680 is racing to its redline.  Rather, the 612 hp engine remains silky smooth as it evenly serves up thrust—its torque curve is as broad and flat as the Bonneville Salt Flats.  It is part of the Maybach ethos to eliminate unnecessary forces, even when the big sedan is sprinting for its life.

I slow our roll, and my chaperone introduces me to the S680’s Maybach drive mode.  This mode optimizes the drivetrain and suspension settings for the most comfortable ride for the rear seat passenger.  From the driver’s seat, I struggle to feel any difference in the S680’s comportment, as the sedan was breezily comfortable before, and remains incredibly comfortable afterwards!  (I’m not aware of it, but the drivetrain programming is smoothing my pedal inputs and avoiding extraneous gearshifts.)

As we motor, the S680 transforms the road’s dips and undulations into a gentle bob.  The motion is similar to that of a boat on calm waters, and I can easily imagine yacht-owning owners being lulled to sleep in the S680’s backseat.

I briefly try Sport mode and find it does the obvious—the throttle response is heightened and the engine is heard more loudly in the cabin.  Somehow, Sport mode seems un-Mayback-like. 

Even though the S680 is the only V12 S-Class, there are faster S-classes in the stable.  Mercedes rates the S680 at 4.6 seconds for the 0-60 mph sprint, while the Mercedes AMG S63 E Performance can make the run in 3.3 seconds.  The S680 lacks the vicious acceleration of its V8 hybrid brother, but I suspect the performance deficit will never matter, unless your commute includes ambushes by mercenaries.

My exploration of the V12’s finer points is sidelined when my fingers detect a tickle of road feel in the steering wheel.  Up until this point, the S680 has been effortlessly easy to steer with no road feedback whatsoever.  But as my route approaches the Pacific Ocean, the pavement quality worsens, and the vibrations of the coarse, cracked tarmac make their way into the big sedan’s steering and floorboards.

As a steering-feel enthusiast in the driver’s seat of a Maybach, I am uncertain if I should be delighted or dismayed by these frivolous vibrations.  In any other car, I would invite them, but shouldn’t a Maybach drive on a cloud?

Either way, the S680 is a fantastic match for my relaxing drive along beautiful Pebble Beach.  The only way this sublime moment could be better is in a convertible, where I could enjoy the sun’s warmth and the salty smell of the sea.

…or not, because when I stop for pictures, I discover that the sea air smells like dead fish and rotting seaweed.  So, the S680 is the right choice for today!

On the way back to the test drive pavilion, I briefly consider turning on the stereo, then decide not to.  My test drive chaperone supports my decision: “It’s more impressive to enjoy the quiet, because all of our cars have great sound systems.” Well put.

The silence lets me reflect on the S680’s mission and its V12 engine.  This Maybach goes to extraordinary lengths to be smooth, quiet, and vibration-free.  Those attributes are inherent strengths of EV powertrains, so would the all-electric Maybach EQS SUV 680 be even better?  It’s a question I can’t answer today.

Of course, electric motors are found in plebeian transportation like Tesla Model 3s, while V12s are exceedingly rare.  If you are shopping for a Maybach due to its exclusivity, the V12 is a perfect pairing.  (I hope you won’t mind that the S680 is the cheapest V12 for sale in 2025.)