Mercedes unveils the 2014 S-Class in Germany
Mercedes has finally unveiled the new S-Class and it's done so in very apt location â€"at the Airbus A380 delivery hanger in the German city of Hamburg. The S-Class of course is quite easily the land based counterpart to one of the largest and most luxurious aircraft in the world. Here are the details
The design is far more dynamic with a larger front grille and A-Class-esque headlamps. The side profile has bolder creases while the roof slopes nicely into the muscular looking rear end. LEDs have been used all around and Mercedes claims that not a single bulb has been used with this car. And it's an incredibly slippery shape with a drag coefficient of just 0.24 â€" a segment benchmark
The interiors like we mentioned last month are beautifully crafted in some of the finest materials. The long wheelbase model gets five different seat packages, with a maximum recline of 43.5 degrees. The seats themselves are 20kgs lighter than before. Six massage programs are on offer with heating and cooling functions. The aircon can even diffuse air into the cabin in three different modes. The top end Burmester audio system has woofers installed in the body shell to use 40 litres of air in the cross members for ultimate bass. It uses 24 speakers for an overall 1540watts of what promises to be glorious sound. The car gets a built in atomizer that which diffuses scents into the cabin. 5 specially developed scents are available and the company claims that the scents don't linger on your clothes after you've left the car.
Merc's optional 'Magic Body Control' uses stereo cameras to monitor the road surface ahead and keep the suspension ready for any imperfections. Standard suspension includes the Adaptive Damping System and also an updated version of the Airmatic air suspension. The body itself is lighter than before thanks to extensive use of aluminium but boasts 50 per cent more torsional rigidity. In typical Merc fashion the S features such an extensive list of safety features that this could quite easily be one of the safest cars on the planet. It even gets a special airbag under the rear seat that holds you in the reclined position in a crash!
Four powertrain are available for the first year â€" a 3-litre V6 diesel in the S350 BlueTec which should make for the bulk of sales in India, a 4.7-litre V8 biturbo petrol for the S500 and a 3.5-litre V6 hybrid petrol in the S400 Hybrid and a 2.2-litre four cylinder diesel electric hybrid for the S300 Hybrid. The more powerful AMGs should follow suit. The best car in the world is back.