Mercedes-Benz Add Jalopnik on Google: Google Discover While it may seem like improving fuel economy has been a point of focus over the past, well, several decades, there are still quite a few vehicles on the market where it takes a back seat. There are the usual suspects, such as focused, bigger-displacement V8 sports cars — the Ford Mustang Dark Horse is the first to come to mind — but it's very much a thing in the premium luxury segment. Take, for instance, Mercedes' Maybach marque. To adequately and smoothly haul these hefty luxury yachts around, they have some pretty thirsty power trains beneath their hoods. Prime examples are the 2026 fabulous Mercedes-Maybach S680 and derivative GLS 600 4Matic; the former is powered by a torquey twin-turbo 6.0-liter V12 while the latter has a hybridized twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 under its acres of bodywork. Oddly enough, they both get 15 mpg, and the back seat that fuel economy takes in either is quite spacious and opulent — but only one pays a gas guzzler tax. The reason why is rooted in vehicle sales when the gas guzzler tax was established, in 1978. Pay the cost to be the boss Mercedes-Benz The Maybach S680's twin-turbo V12 may be fun to rev up (this author had a go recently in a facelifted 2027 model and it was a top highlight of the summer), but thanks to the gas guzzler tax, it's also a more expensive proposition than the GLS. And not just because of its higher suggested price. According to the U.S. government's sliding scale of gas guzzler tax, due to this long-boy sedan achieving more than 14.5 mpg combined, yet less than 15.5 (when's the last time you saw decimal points in the mileage on window stickers?), prospective buyers have to cough up an additional $4,500 on top of its $211,000-plus base price. If it returned 22.5 mpg or more, there'd be no gas guzzler tax tacked onto the window sticker. The GLS, on the other hand, keeps that princely $4,500 in prospective owners' (presumably Swiss or Cayman Island) bank accounts. That's because it's an SUV — trucks, minivans, and SUVs aren't subjected to this tax, as they weren't widely available when it was established. In addition to the Section 179 tax break, chalk up another loophole to motivate folks to drive tall vehicles. Let's dive into some specs: according to the EPA, the Mercedes-Maybach GLS puffs out 18 fewer grams of carbon dioxide per mile than the S680 — wow, what a difference. Then, based on covering 15,000 miles with a mix of 45% city and 55% highway driving, they're both rated at consuming 19.8 barrels of premium fuel. Between the Mercedes-Maybach S680 and GLS, the fact that only one pays the gas guzzler tax highlights an out-of-date loophole in U.S. government taxation policy. Not that such is a tax is going to discourage well-heeled buyers, anyway.
