The legacy of path-blazing designer Virgil Abloh — who died last year — continues, with the launch of a luxury car from Mercedes-Benz.
The German car brand's new limited-edition bespoke Maybach S-Class S680 model was designed in collaboration with the former artistic director of menswear at Louis Vuitton.
The three-box sedan is the work of Abloh, designed before he died in November, in partnership with Mercedes-Benz's chief design officer Gorden Wagener.
Alongside the sleek new vehicle, of which there are only 150 available, there’s also a collection of matching streetwear designed by the late fashion designer's Off-White brand.
The fully equipped Mercedes-Maybach S-Class S680 sports a unique two-tone colour combination, with the upper part of the car lacquered in obsidian black, and the lower part and rims painted in a golden sand-coloured hue.
Inside, luxury fashion designer standards of craftsmanship prevail along with an identical two-tone colour scheme.
The four-seat configuration, steering wheel, doors, lower dashboard and ceiling are lined in black and sand-coloured Nappa leather, with golden coloured decor trims and strips.
A Mercedes-Maybach and Virgil Abloh logo is inscribed on the centre console, rear cushions and head restraints and the bespoke user interface contains profile pictures decorated with luxury fashion accessories, in tribute to the late designer.
The brand has also released a capsule collection alongside the car launch, maximising on Abloh's talent to straddle streetwear and high-end fashion. Featuring sand coloured vintage T-shirts and cotton fleece crewnecks, as well as canvas baseball caps and racing gloves, it's designed for drivers that want to really embrace the Maybach by Virgil Abloh.
The final design from the Chicago-born designer and the German car brand builds on the original Project Maybach — a concept two-tone solar-powered car with a transparent hood.
Unlike the concept car, the for-sale Maybach by Virgil Abloh is not electric or solar-powered. Instead, it has a petrol engine with a WLTP combined fuel consumption of 14.3-13.4 litres per 100 kilometres.
Mercedes-Benz is set to launch its first fully-electric car for retail in 2023.
