With the arrival of merchandise just like the Genesis G90, the Tesla Mannequin S and, later this 12 months, the Lucid Air, the full-size premium luxurious section has been getting extraordinarily crowded. But, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class has lengthy served not solely because the German model’s flagship however the benchmark by which all rivals, new or conventional, are judged.
Because it seems, the 2021 S-Class punches all the normal buttons, with a placing design and all of the anticipated luxurious touches, from wooden and steel accents to the massaging, heated and cooled seats. However, in step with the course of the final a number of S-Class generations, it’s with the huge array of expertise onboard that Mercedes actually goals to stay the business benchmark.
To get a really feel for what the 2021 Mercedes-Benz S 580 has to supply I flew into Newark Airport final week the place one of many new Teutonic sedans was parked and ready. I spent the following two days wandering up the coast to the unique resort city of Westerly, Rhode Island and again, a route that blended scenic again roads, high-speed Interstates and the congested knot main as much as and away from New York Metropolis’s George Washington Bridge.
Overview
The 2021 S-Class punches all the normal buttons, with a placing design and all of the anticipated luxurious touches, from open pore wooden and steel accents to the massaging, heated and cooled seats. However, in step with the course of the final a number of S-Class generations, it’s with the huge array of expertise onboard that Mercedes actually goals to stay the business benchmark.
Simply arriving in U.S. showrooms, the seventh-generation S-Class — identified inside Mercedes because the W223 mannequin — is a showcase of high-tech options, from the studio high quality Burmester “4D” encompass sound system to the augmented actuality head-up show. It debuts an up to date model of the MBUX voice assistant and an assortment of latest driver help and sensible security methods.
Even the sedan’s powertrain goes high-tech with the addition of latest EQ Enhance delicate hybrid expertise. Utilizing an built-in starter-generator, or ISG, it will possibly punch out a further 184 pound-feet of torque, in addition to 21 extra horsepower, for brief bursts — whereas additionally serving to enhance the sedan’s gas financial system below much less aggressive driving situations.
Exterior
From first look, you’ll acknowledge this seventh-generation S-Class. It retains the extra coupe-like silhouette of the outgoing mannequin, together with the traditional, lengthy hood that alerts the facility barely hiding beneath. The grille seems barely extra imposing, and there are totally different takes on the decrease portion of the entrance fascia, relying upon your chosen mannequin and powertrain. The 2021 S-Class is obtainable in a standard Benz package deal, as an AMG or, in stretched type, as a Mercedes-Maybach mannequin largely focusing on those that will probably be chauffeured.
The “base” mannequin lengths was stretched 1.3 inches to 208.2 inches, with width including 2.1 inches, and peak elevated by 0.4 inch
The general form clearly exhibits the affect of aerodynamics meant to boost gas effectivity. That exhibits up in quite a few methods, together with the now seamless door handles which routinely prolong when the motive force approaches the car. From the facet, the S-Class will get a smoother floor, with extra delicate character traces.
The brand new mannequin options thinner and extra high-tech headlamps. Sadly, the U.S. nonetheless doesn’t enable the lively headlight expertise more and more widespread in Europe which makes use of an array of LEDs to routinely dim mild to keep away from blinding different motorists. That could possibly be accepted earlier than the top of the brand new mannequin’s lifecycle, nevertheless. For the primary time in three generations, in the meantime, the 2021 S-Class adopts horizontal taillights.
Inside
Lighting has grow to be as a lot a luxurious queue as leather-based and wooden, and the inside of the brand new S-Class makes elegant use of ambient lighting. The brand new system is brighter than on the outgoing Benz, and smarter, routinely adjusting ranges relying on whether or not its day or night time. And the optionally available system now reinforces car alerts. A driver doesn’t need to plow into the infotainment system’s menus to regulate ambient lighting, both, as it may be managed by the up to date MBUX voice assistant.
The cabin of the brand new S-Class has undergone in depth updates, beginning with up to date seating and the usage of extra recyclable supplies. Entrance seat occupants will instantly discover the all-new and extra sculptured instrument panel. There’s a extra minimalist really feel to it, with fewer conventional controls. Most operations now might be dealt with both by contact management on the steering wheel, utilizing the large touchscreen atop the middle console or by merely speaking to the MBUX voice assistant, which, Mercedes notes, will get a 50% increase in processing energy.
As with the prior era S-Class, a digital show replaces conventional analog gauges, however the brand new sedan takes issues a step additional. The digital cluster seems to drift behind the steering wheel because of a 3D impact (which might be disabled if, for some motive, you so favor).
The cabin is as roomy as ever and as good-looking as something in its class. It strikes an ideal stability between conventional luxurious and the tech-savvy structure that’s turning into ever extra the norm in an age of electrical drive and digital shows. The OLED touchscreen is the most important Mercedes has but provided, with the flexibility to show quite a few bits of knowledge concurrently. That reduces the necessity to search around when, say, you need to alter the heated, cooled and massaging seats.
There was only one design flaw: the brand new local weather management system places 4 well-designed vents atop the instrument panel, instantly above the infotainment show. I discovered that its chrome encompass regularly mirrored off the windshield when the solar was out, one thing that could possibly be mildly distracting.
Powertrain
On the powertrain entrance, the brand new S-Class will probably be provided with a pair of preliminary choices — and extra to comply with, together with a plug-in hybrid and the next-generation S 63 from the AMG facet of the home.
At launch, there are two packages to select from. That begins with an electrified inline-6 within the S 500 4Matic, for instance, seems 429 horsepower and 384 pound-feet of torque. Energy comes on sooner than earlier than, because of the EQ Enhance system which, as earlier talked about, can briefly ship a further 21 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque.
Each fashions will probably be provided within the U.S. solely in 4Matic all-wheel-drive configuration.
For my two-day journey, I had the possibility to drive the S 580, with its twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8. As with the S 500, it makes use of the delicate hybrid 48-volt expertise, which delivers an an identical increase on demand. The biturbo engine is a exceptional piece of engineering and, by itself, delivers loads of energy for fast launches and simple, high-speed passes. The EQ Enhance system provides the type of neck-snapping launch really feel that you simply’d anticipate from a car considerably smaller and lighter.
For those who’re in search of a greener choice, you may think about hanging tight till the next-generation Mercedes-Benz S 580e rolls into showrooms. It should pair a modified model of the S 500’s 3.0-liter I-6 making 362 hp with an electrical motor. Overlook the times when going inexperienced meant sacrificing efficiency. Mixed output will are available at 500 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque, or roughly the identical because the S 580. But the plug-in mannequin can even ship an estimated 60 miles in all-electric mode, drawing from a 28 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. That’s about double the vary of the outgoing S 560e.
On the different excessive, anticipate to see an AMG version which, Mercedes has hinted, will push upwards from 600 hp, some reviews suggesting we may see an 800 hp monster.
Security and Expertise
I’ve written whole tales about all of the expertise on board the brand new S-Class, from its ambient lighting to the 1,750-watt, 30-speaker Burmester 4D auto package deal, in addition to the most recent superior driver help methods.
Motorists will most instantly work together with the sedan’s numerous digital shows. The 3D gauge cluster makes use of two cameras mounted into the instrument panel that continually observe the place a driver is trying — even when carrying sun shades. If switched on, it is going to current ever-so-slightly totally different photos to every of your eyes.
The newest-generation system permits knowledge and pictures to be moved, in lots of situations, from one display to a different. A zoomed in map can pop up within the middle of the gauge cluster, for instance, and even on the head-up show. The HUD is, with out query, essentially the most refined on the street as we speak with an Augmented Actuality, or AR, operate that may solely be described as uncanny.
It should venture the same old combine of knowledge, equivalent to car pace, instantly right into a driver’s line of sight, as if floating 32 toes off within the distance. But it surely actually involves life when you have got a vacation spot plugged into the navi system. Strategy a flip, say, or a fork within the street, and animated blue arrows will pop up on the display, seemingly pointing on to the place you’ll make the flip.
The instrument display might be switched to offer a full-screen navigation show or a driver help show that renders knowledge from 5 radar items, 5 video cameras, and 12 ultrasonic sensors right into a real-time overhead view of the automobile’s place on the street and the actions of surrounding visitors. These final two are significantly vivid in 3-D mode.
The brand new S-Class depends on quite a lot of “eyes and ears” to see what’s taking place throughout the car — 5 exterior radar sensors, 5 cameras and 12 ultrasonic sensors. The information they supply is “fused” to function an extended listing of ADAS applied sciences, like forward-collision warning with automated emergency braking, and blind-spot monitoring. It additionally takes lively cruise management to new heights, at the very least for Mercedes.
Swap the system on and it’ll easily merge you into visitors, sustaining your place in your lane whereas additionally adjusting the car’s pace to keep up a protected distance from the car forward. It’s not as refined as Cadillac’s Tremendous Cruise, nevertheless. And although it now means that you can faucet the flip sign to alter lanes you continue to should preserve at the very least a light-weight grip on the steering wheel always.
The brand new S-Class can deal with smartphone-style over-the-air updates for 50 totally different digital modules. Mercedes will use that not solely to handle potential software program glitches but additionally to obtain new options sooner or later. It’s growing a parking system, for instance, that may allow a driver to exit the car on the entrance to a parking construction and have the S-Class drive off and discover a parking spot by itself. Later, you’ll be capable of summon the automobile through the use of a smartphone app.
Drive Impressions
Whereas the 2021 Mercedes-Benz S 580 may not fall into the “groundbreaking” class, it’s, nonetheless, a considerable step past what was provided earlier than.
The sedan has the sleek, quiet experience one would anticipate of it whereas cruising down the freeway. However slam the throttle, whether or not at a light-weight or when executing a high-speed move and also you’ll get muscle automobile efficiency because the EQ Enhance kicks in.
Give a few of the credit score to the most recent model of the E-Lively Physique Management. The usual air suspension, in the meantime, makes all however the worst ruts and potholes appear to fade and minimizes physique roll in sharp turns. The S-Class additionally proved to be way more nimble than I’d have anticipated. Give a few of the credit score to the rear axle steering system. At low speeds, the rear wheels flip reverse these up entrance to extend maneuverability. They flip in the identical course above 36 mph to boost dealing with.
Driving by means of backwoods New England, I discovered myself in a position to weave and bob alongside winding nation roads in a means I wouldn’t have anticipated of such a giant, heavy beast.
The system can flip the again wheels as much as 10 levels — decreasing the turning circle of the long-wheelbase Maybach version to lower than 36 toes. The system turns as much as 4 levels on the AMG version, lowered by the efficiency mannequin’s wider tires.
Throughout two days of driving I had loads of time to check out the brand new digital help expertise. For essentially the most half, the augmented actuality system actually helped out, permitting me to see exactly the place roads forks and exits got here up. The lively steer and cruise methods likewise lowered stress on lengthy freeway stretches.
However, when coping with bumper-to-bumper visitors and the type of fixed lane modifications required round Newark Airport and the George Washington Bridge, the AR system sometimes appeared to have bother flagging a flip shortly sufficient. And the lively driving system needed to keep up extra distance than different drivers appreciated, so that they regularly reduce in entrance of me.
Wrap Up
If Mercedes got down to preserve its place because the benchmark of the premium full-size sedan market — and it did — the brand new S-Class totally delivers. Save for an odd, sudden reflection, it’s tough to search out something to complain about. However there’s lots to like — you probably have the money, off beam.
The S 500 begins at $109,800, up practically $16,000 from the 2020 mannequin. The S 580 begins at $116,300, up $8,905 over the S 560 4Matic. That’s earlier than factoring in supply charges and taxes — however potential consumers must also think about that there’s considerably extra content material, the seventh-generation S 580 making just about the whole lot you possibly can think about commonplace.
How nicely the brand new S-Class will fare out there is unsure. Gross sales within the premium section have dipped lately, many consumers shifting to SUVs. There, after all, Mercedes will probably be glad to promote you the large GLS. And for many who’ve gone electrical, with merchandise just like the Tesla S-Class, the automaker could have one other vital launch later this 12 months when the battery-powered EQS mannequin lands in U.S. showrooms.
However for many who need a traditional luxurious sedan that just about does all of it, the 2021 Mercedes-Benz S 580 is tough to beat.
