With three engineering priorities - 'Intelligent Drive', 'Efficient Technology' and 'Essence of Luxury', the new S-Class extends the boundaries of technology on many levels.
Dr Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars, said that with every generation before it, customers expect the new S-Class to set standards across the board to retain its accolade as "the best automobile in the world".
"Rather than being about safety or aesthetics, power or efficiency, comfort or dynamism, our aspirations were 'the best or nothing' in every respect. No other car stands for the Mercedes-Benz brand promise more than the S-Class."
Perfection to the last detail results in 'The Essence of Luxury'. This pursuit of the best is particularly noticeable in the interior - whether it is the seats or the air conditioning, the controls or the design, the infotainment or the comfort and safety in the rear.
The same applies to safety. What started with PRE-SAFE ten years ago and continued with DISTRONIC PLUS has now resulted in a new dimension of motoring - comfort and safety are merged into one. Mercedes-Benz refers to this as 'Intelligent Drive'. A whole host of new systems makes the new S-Class even more comfortable and even safer.
The new S-Class line-up features two hybrid versions, a petrol model and a diesel variant.
The S 300 BlueTEC HYBRID with 204bhp and 500Nm of torque goes from zero to 100km/h in 7.6 seconds, whereas the S400 HYBRID with 306 horses and 370Nm of torque and the diesel-driven S350 BlueTEC with 258bhp and 620Nm of torque both complete the century sprint in 6.8 seconds.
On the other hand, the petrol-powered S500 with 455bhp and 700Nm of torque reaches 100km/h from standstill in a stunning 4.8 seconds.
The S-Class is also so efficient that it almost sounds utopian. Within ten years, Mercedes-Benz, by realising 'Efficient Technology', has improved fuel consumption in the 204bhp output category to 27.2km/L, for example, while the drag coefficient of the new S-Class (cd=0.24) clearly undercuts the previous model's figure and sets a new benchmark in this segment.
The S300 BlueTEC HYBRID is set to go even lower still with a cd figure of 0.23 thanks to additional aerodynamic optimisation measures.
