$200,000 Maybach SUV to be built in Alabama, report says
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Alabama may soon be home to the most expensive SUV built in the USA, but not by an American brand.
Automotive News reports that Mercedes-Benz is planning to build an ultra-luxury Maybach version of the upcoming next-generation GLS SUV at its Tuscaloosa-area factory.
The automaker currently offers a Mercedes-Maybach edition of the S-Class sedan, which is longer and equipped with more features than the model it’s based on and has a starting price of $170,000.
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A Mercedes-Maybach GLS is expected to cost around $200,000, which would position it against the likes of the Bentley Bentayga and Range Rover SV Autobiography in a growing high-end SUV segment that includes the $325,000 Rolls-Royce Cullinan.
Mercedes-Benz previewed the styling of the new SUV at last year’s Beijing Auto Show with the unusual Mercedes-Maybach Ultimate Luxury concept, which is an electric full-size SUV shaped like a sedan. According to Automotive News, the production model will take the form of a more traditional SUV, but the Alabama facility has also been confirmed as the location where Mercedes-Benz will manufacture its battery-powered EQ SUV starting later this year.
Mercedes-Benz has not yet commented on the Maybach SUV report.