Maybach death rumors have been swirling for quite so time, but it finally appears that Mercedes-Benz is ready to axe the luxury brand due to stagnant sales. Daimler AG says the Maybach brand will be discontinued by 2013 and replaced by a stretched version of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

The demise of the resuscitated brand is easy to understand. Maybach delivered 33 cars in the United States in the first 10 months of 2011, a drop of 28 percent compared to the same period in 2010. As a comparison, Rolls-Royce and Bentley delivered 286 and 1,422 vehicles, respectively, for the same region and period.

The move means the S-Class lineup, which will be undergoing a redesign for 2013, will expand out to include six variations of the flagship sedan. One will include an elongated wheelbase (think S600 Pullman without the armor) while a four-door convertible variant is also being rumored.

[via The Wall Street Journal]

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