Whereas rivaling groups BMW and Volkswagen have the Rolls-Royce and Bentley brands respectively to target the upper echelons of the automotive luxury market, Daimler placed itself in a difficult spot after killing off the Maybach marque.
For the time being, Daimler's solution to this problem is the extension of the new S-Class range to include a "Maybach" edition with a 200mm (7.8 inches) longer wheelbase than the S-Class LWB, and an even more gargantuan, super super-stretched 'Pullman' version.
Many have questioned the long-term sustainability of such a product strategy, including Scott Wu Kaiser, a 6th-term transportation design student at California's Art Center College of Design, who proposed a different take for the future: the development of a new series that would sit above the S-Class.
"Mercedes-Benz will need to secure their dominant position in the full-size luxury segment while entering the higher priced market," says Kaiser. "In order to achieve this goal, the next generation S-Class will be designed and priced to directly compete with the Audi A8 and BMW 7-Series. A new class of vehicle called the U-Class will enter into the higher-end market. The letter 'U' comes from the German word 'üppig', which means 'sumptuous' and 'lavish'", he explains.
The U-Class would measure 5.390mm (212 inches) long riding on a 3,175mm (125 inches) wheelbase, making it longer than both the 2013 S-Class LWB and Bentley Flying Spur, but slightly shorter than the Rolls Royce Ghost. It wasn't mentioned in the paper, but we assume it would be offered in different lengths to eradicate the need for super-long wheelbase versions of the S-Class.
Kaiser says that the U-Class would potentially draw power from a front-mounted 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12 linked to the rear axle.
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