The W100 Mercedes-Benz 600 Story: Still Unmatched After 60 Years

Codenamed W100, the 600 celebrates its 60th birthday in 2023. 1963 was – for better or worse – a rather eventful year. The Viet Cong won their first major victory in Vietnam, the controversial Josip Broz Tito is named President for Life of Yugoslavia, the Ford V8-powered AC Cobra made its first 24 Hours of Le Mans appearance, Beatlemania was in full swing, and President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.

From this list, Tito’s name will be mentioned again in a few paragraphs’ time because he’s one of the many powerful men who owned a 600. Nicknamed Grosser Mercedes due to its considerable dimensions and status in the lineup, the flagship model was presented in the flesh at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt to universally positive feedback.

The German automaker previously used the Grosser moniker for the 770 line from the '30s and '40s, a series of luxobarges made famous by that mustached guy who kickstarted World War II. What does he have in common with that other mustached guy from the USSR? Both have blood on their hands for all the wrong reasons, not the reasons glorified by their propaganda apparatuses before, during, and after WWII.

Designed as the replacement for the W189 model 300, the spiritual heir apparent of the 770 was a car of its time. The Federal Republic of Germany, colloquially referred to as West Germany, experienced unprecedented growth thanks to the Marshall Plan and politicians who didn’t repeat the mistakes of the failed painter with a toothbrush 'stache.

Through its new flagship, Mercedes wanted to show the world that German engineering is unparalleled in the automotive industry. A mechanically excellent car is nothing to write home about, though. Mercedes knew that ultra-luxury features would perfectly complement the oily bits and bobs. Three gentlemen are credited with the design of the 600, those gentlemen being Paul Bracq, Bruno Sacco, and Friedrich Geiger.

Bracq and Sacco don’t really need any further digital ink because every single enthusiast out there knows how big they were in the realm of automotive design. Friedrich Geiger, on the other hand, may not be as popular with our community. The German automobile designer joined Daimler-Benz in 1933, and he wouldn’t retire until 1973. By that time, Geiger had partaken in the development of the 500K, 540K, 300 SL, the fin-tailed W110/W111/W112 series, W113 Pagoda, R107, W108/W109, and W116. The latter launched in 1972 as the first-generation Mercedes S-Class.

A four-wheeled status symbol, the 600 was the most expensive series-production car of its era. A statement of intent whose presence alone instills respect, the W100 came in two wheelbases. The standard variant measures 3,200 millimeters (126 inches) between axles, whereas the longer sibling flaunts 3,900 millimeters (153.5 inches). No fewer than four body styles were offered, starting with the four-door sedan and limousine. A six-door limo was also available, but the most pretentious body style of the bunch was the Landaulet. The latter came with either a short or long convertible top. Remember Tito? He used to roll in a six-door Landaulet.

Tito’s car sold for a staggering £2.5 million in 2017, a figure that converts to more than $3 million at current exchange rates. And that’s without accounting for that pesky thing economists refer to as inflation. Landaulets were also used by the Pope, whose specially designed four-door Laundaulet currently resides at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart.

Famous strong men with 600s in their collections further include Mao Zedong, Idi Amin, Pol Pot, Kim Jong Il, Saddam Hussein, and Nicolae Ceausescu. We’re only scratching the surface, though. Other than people in command of military forces, the W100 also appealed to strong men of the underworld. Colombia’s Pablo Escobar is the most telling example.

As for celebrities, where do we start? John Lennon had one, and so did his buddy George Harrison. The list goes on with Coco Chanel, Elizabeth Taylor, Elvis Presley, David Bowie, and shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis, who married Jacqueline Kennedy in 1968. As for people still here with us today, Jeremy Clarkson and Jamiroquai’s Jay Kay come to mind.

The beating heart of this land yacht is a 6.3-liter V8, the M100 that AMG would punch out to 6.8 liters to create the W109-based racing car known as the Red Pig. The AMG-modified engine produces up to 428 ps (422 horsepower) in race trim, as opposed to 250 ps (247 horsepower) for the bone-stock 6.3 in the 600. The W100 is also known for its notoriously complicated hydraulic system, which requires around 50 ponies from the naturally-aspirated V8 to work as intended. The system in question is needed by the side windows, doors, trunk lid, sliding sunroof, and seats.

The last example of the breed rolled off the line in Sindelfingen in 1981. Over 17 years of continuous production, the 600 would be retired with 2,677 units to its name. Of those, just under 430 were finished as Pullman limousines, and 59 as Landaulet soft-topped limos. The W100 series would be succeeded by the Maybach 57 and 62, themselves replaced by the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class. But alas, none can equal the original 600.