Mercedes-Benz S Class – New and Improved Engines for the S Class
When the new S Class was launched five years ago, it garnered so much attention that immediately after it was unveiled at a posh hotel in Kuala Lumpur, all that I could see was a big stage with so many people that I couldn’t even get close to or even see the car. Since then there has been one face lift, and late last week, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia unveiled two latest variants with new and interesting features, besides two more powerful, yet more fuel efficient engines.
Since the first S Class appeared in 1951, it has been widely popular and has a huge following – it is today’s icon of success, and is a statement of one’s status in life. To get there is not an easy journey – the people at the top are go-getters who demand and get what they want – for a car to be as successful as the Mercedes-Benz S Class, and to receive top recognition, it has to be the best, and so far, the S Class has not failed. The new offerings by Mercedes-Benz, the S 350 L, and the S 500 L are class leaders without any doubt.
The Mercedes-Benz S Class range available now for the very discerning Malaysian Mercedes-Benz-buying public, provides a three-engine choice, from a V6, 3.0 litre with the current engine and basic specifications, a new 3.5 litre V6 and an even more exciting and newly configured 4.6 litre V8 with twin turbo chargers.
The two larger capacity engines have been revised for smoother performance through a narrowing of the V angle from 90 degrees to 60 degrees. By doing so, the Mercedes-Benz engineers claim that is no longer necessary to have counter-balance shafts in the engine as it is much smoother now. The new engines produce more horsepower than the previous ones, but are claimed to be 15 percent more fuel efficient.
The highlight of the naturally aspirated 3.5 litre V6 is its modular construction which we have been told is ready to take on a turbo charger ( which makes me suspect that with the trend of down-sizing engines, we can perhaps expect a turbo charged 3.5 litre engine to replace the S500 sometime in the future). Engine power has been improved by 12.5 percent to 206 horsepower versus the 272 horsepower of its predecessor, while maximum torque has been increased by 5.7 percent to 370 Nm versus 350 Nm.
The new V8 engine in the S500 L features a twin turbo charger, and although it is smaller in cubic capacity (4,663 cc instead of 5,461 cc) it produces 12 percent more power (435 horsepower) than its predecessor (388 horsepower). With turbo charging, the maximum torque is a whopping 700 Nm, an increase of 170 Nm or 32 percent. Despite this, the claimed fuel consumption of just 9.3 litres per 100 kilometres is 16 percent better. And all this with a sprint time of zero to 100 kilometres per hour in 5.0 seconds – if not for its elegance and sophistication, and the fact that only the rich towkays are likely to be able to afford one, this would make one great muscle car!
The S 350 L and S 500 L are locally assembled on the same production line as the S 300 L and have additional features that add to the appeal. A new camera and radar-based driver assist systems are offered as standard equipment in the S 350 L and S 500 L. In addition, the S 500 L comes with an AMG Sports Package, made up of 20-inch wheels, an AMG Body styling kit, larger front disc brakes, brushed stainless steel sports pedals with rubber studs and AMH velour floor mats. Also offered in the two top models is Distronic, Adaptive High beam Assist which automatically dips the headlights when faced with oncoming vehicles at night, and Night View Assist which works with an infrared camera to detect pedestrians and highlights them on the instrument display to make them more readily noticeable – a good feature, although showing these alerts on a heads-up display would be even better. Another thoughtful feature is Attention Assist, which continuously monitors more than 70 parameters, and warns the driver audibly and visually to take caution.
The sound systems in Mercedes-Benz cars have always been of high quality, and that tradition is continued in the new S Class – the S 350 L comes equipped with a Harman Kardon Logic 7 system that delivers outstanding performance with three-dimensional sound as a 360 degree musical experience for all passengers. The S500 l, on the other hand comes with an even more sophisticated system by Bang & Olufsen Beosound AMG sound system with 15 loudspeakers and 1200 watts output.
It is just too bad that at the retail prices of RM840,888.00 and RM1,056,888.00 for the S350 L and the S 500 L respectively, only a select few can afford them, but I would imagine that they could be great muscle cars – perhaps, like some of my friends are snapping up the older S Class cars, in about 10 or 15 years down the road, when the buyers of today get tired of these toys, some of us might be able to pick one up cheaply enough.
