Max Anuchkin/Shutterstock Add Jalopnik on Google: Google Discover Maybach is the ultra-luxury arm of Mercedes-Benz, and it has a history that stretches over 100 years. Throughout those many decades, Maybach has switched roles on occasion, going from engine manufacturer through to luxury car automaker multiple times. Maybach even helped develop the first gas-powered motorcycle, so it's a name that is deeply rooted in automotive history. Mercedes-Maybach was born much later, but today, we're putting the brand's first 21st-century revival under the spotlight, when it once again delved into the world of ultra-luxury cars with a pair of all-new releases in 2002: the Maybach 57 and 62. These were W140 S-Class-derived Rolls-Royce competitors lined with the very best the auto industry had to offer almost a quarter-century ago, including 543-horsepower twin-turbo V12 engines, and they were named after their approximate length in tenths of a meter. The Maybach 57 and 62 found their way into the U.S. just a year later as 2004 models, and as would have been expected of a serious Roller rival, they sported suitably high asking prices. Back in '04, a shiny new Maybach would have set buyers back $308,000 in 57 guise, or $359,500 as an extended-wheelbase 62 model. Of course, as with anything in the ultra-luxury sector, prices are heavily dependent upon options and extras, but what's remarkable is just how steeply these six-figure luxobarges have depreciated over the last two decades. Classic.com, which collates data from recently auctioned models, details how the average price paid for a 57 in 2026 sits at just $44,293, while the flagship 62 commands a significantly steeper $84,333. Exploring the real entry-point into Maybach ownership Sjo/Getty Images Mercedes-Benz is one of the most expensive brands to maintain in the first five years of ownership, according to Consumer Reports, so it stands to reason that models from the automaker's luxurious arm also cost a pretty penny to keep in fine fettle. As a result, several Maybachs have fallen into disrepair, and these examples can be really quite cheap to get a hold of. For this exercise, we'll instead only explore the reasonable starting point for seemingly ready-to-go examples. Online auction sites show perfectly usable examples of early Maybach 57s changing hands for around $25,000, albeit with small listed issues, such as battery drain issues and previous accident damage. Spend an extra $10,000 to $15,000, and zero-compromise examples with clean Carfax reports and no listed issues can be had. The longer Maybach 62 does command a premium, with most clean examples online trading hands for around $75,000 to $80,000 at the bottom end of the market. Clearly, Maybach owners and enthusiasts are happy to apply some serious value to that extra space in the 62, which comes out to around 17 inches in total. But it's more than just extra space that the 62 brings. The interior is decked out with aircraft-style seats that fully recline, a sliding panoramic glass sunroof, and options such as privacy partitions and cinema screens that would be selected by deep-pocketed clients. But while the depreciation on show here is really quite impressive — and no doubt upsetting for those who purchased the cars new — the figures are even more telling when inflation is taken into account. The 2004 Maybach 57 and 62 were destroyed by depreciation Zuumy/Getty Images Adjusted for inflation, the Maybach 57's original MSRP of $308,000 actually equates to around $558,950 in today's money, while the 62's original sticker comes out to $652,410 today. That's bizarrely close to what a brand-new Rolls-Royce Phantom sets back buyers at the moment, so the figures do make sense. Working with those figures reveals that some examples of each marque have managed to lose in excess of $500,000 since new — a drop in price that averages out to $20,000 per year. Not an easy pill to swallow, especially when considering that most Phantoms VII models still command well in excess of $100,000, and some still consider that a steal. It is worth noting that not all Maybachs have depreciated evenly, and some early examples still drive impressive six-figure results today. Case in point, a 2010 62 S Laundalet model was offered recently with a $2M reserve, so the most exclusive offerings still know how to command the big bucks. Maybach's limited 57 S Zeppelin model also happily commands north of $250,000 on average, as further proof of stronger model residuals, but these are quite specialist cars in comparison to "regular" 57 and 62 cars.
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