Automotive media tends to stick to covering the present. New models are reviewed, new business deals are reported, and new scandals are exposed.
But one car keeps coming up on car blogs and magazines no matter how old it gets—the Mercedes-Maybach Exelero. The model debuted in 2004, but car enthusiasts still can’t seem to get enough of it.
What makes this car so special? Jerry
looked a little deeper to try to uncover the aspects of this luxury car
that make it stand out even now. The Maybach Exelero: a one-of-a-kind car
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Car enthusiasts and reviewers often get behind certain makes and models. In the last few years, for example, the Ford Bronco, Tesla Model 3, and Mazda CX-5 have all had their 15 minutes of fame.
But the attention the Maybach Exelero receives is not that kind of flash-in-the-pan praise. The awe it inspires has lasted 18 years and doesn’t seem to be waning any time soon.
That’s in part because there’s only one of them in the world. The concept car was built by Mercedes-Maybach to test a special type of tire, but the German automaker didn’t skimp on a single detail. The result produced one of the most valuable cars in the world.
At $8 million, the Maybach Exelero is out of almost everyone’s price range. But a look at its specs, paired with an understanding of its rarity, makes $8 million seem like a reasonable price.
Maybach Exelero: the specs
In the video above, Supercar Blondie
says that the Maybach Exelero is owned by a private German collector, but that they lent it to her to show it off. In the process, she gave an overview of why this particular concept car has maintained people’s interest over the years. For starters, the Maybach Exelero has a V12 engine, something almost never seen in a car made for everyday use. Exelero, the tire company, needed to test a particular tire on a heavy car, and you can’t get much heavier than a V12.
All that power makes this car something of a specialty in the world of concept cars in that it can really go. With over 700hp, it has reached over 217 mph. That power, along with its Batmobile-like design, makes it an $8 million car people actually want to buy.
What is Mercedes-Maybach, anyway?
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Many automakers have high-performance divisions. Mercedes has two: Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes-Maybach. Most Americans already consider Mercedes a luxury brand, but AMG and Maybach bring it to a whole other level.
Maybach cars are the kinds of things rappers like Drake and Jay-Z like to buy. Unless you have $150,000 dollars lying around and $5,000 a year to spend on car insurance
, these supercars are probably not for you. If, on the other hand, you are in the market for a car worth six figures, but you want to lower that insurance cost, try shopping with the Jerry
app. A licensed broker that offers end-to-end support, the Jerry app gathers affordable quotes, helps you switch plans, and can even help you cancel your old policy.
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