Run for the hills: this is the Scaldarsi Emperor I

Just as we thought the likes of Mansory and other purveyors of questionable taste were cleaning up their act in the tuning game, a new fabricator has arrived and wants to sully the scene with chintz.

Say hello to the Emperor I, a rose gold Mercedes-Maybach S600 by Scaldarsi. And this Emperor really is in new clothes. See, where the new Mercedes-Maybach S600 is a totem of understated opulence, Scaldarsi's version… isn't. 

First off, there’s that quite combatant body kit, which, from the dead-ahead, has quite the resemblance to a Vauxhall Insignia VXR. It, like many of the newly modified panels, is finished in 24-carat rose gold to go with the accents, monster wheels and exhaust tips.

Inside, the S600's lavish interior – scatter cushions and all – remains. However, it’s been reskinned in pretty much every animal imaginable. A total of 24 (pretty much a big-game safari) different types of hides are available to line the interior, and can be dyed in 28 different colours. These can all be contrasted by 78 types of wood, with 16 exterior paint options available. Or, like the pictures above show, you can get drunk on steampunk and finish everything in copper. 

However, it’s the customisation options on the already heavily customised car that impress most. If you so wish, you can spec custom-engraved champagne glasses, matching tote bags, and even an Emperor Edition Rolex watch. It gets better. If the normal Mercedes key fob is too vanilla for you, why not have your own gauche jingle-jangle Scaldarsi variant?

There is some good news, though: what’s under the bonnet. Instead of getting someone to plug in their laptop and turn the engine up, they went to someone reputable – Brabus. 

The merchants of Mercedes horsepower took the 6.3-litre twin-turbocharged V12 from the Brabus Rocket 900 and slotted it in the front. That means a healthy and easily memorable 888bhp is on tap, capable of getting the 2,335kg Emperor I from 0-60mph in 3.7 seconds.

“How much?” you ask. A cool £1.1million – which is quite a markup on the £165,700 Mercedes original. With only 10 examples set to be made, you'd better get your name down quick if you fancy one. 

However, we’re told more Emperors are in the pipeline, including the Emperor II (a Mercedes-AMG S65 Coupe), Emperor III (Bentley Bentayga), Emperor IV (Mercedes-AMG G65), and Emperor V (Bugatti Chiron). 

We have to say, we’re quite excited about the prospect of the last one. Are you?