Mercedes-Benz S350 - Director Class

For me, an S-class car has to have a brawny V8. A six-cylinder mill doesn't somehow seem right for the S. But in the S350, a 3498cc V6 is what you get, and it packs 275PS and 350Nm of torque between 2400-5000rpm. I'm not saying this engine is inadequate, but given the S350's heft, the engine sometimes has to breathe hard and work up a sweat in order to cope. The car goes from zero to 60km/h in 4.47 seconds, to 100km/h in 9.4 seconds, and hits a mildly disappointing top speed of 226km/h. Not that the people who spend Rs 75 lakh on this car are going to be overly bothered with 0-100 times or top speed runs, but if you are, please get yourself an S500. What it lacks in outright performance, the S350 makes up for in fuel efficiency, with the car doing a very reasonable 6.8kmpl in the city and 10.8kmpl on the highway.

The engine in the S350 is mated to Mercedes-Benz's wonderful new 7G-TRONIC gearbox. This slick, high-tech, and very efficient seven-speed automatic complements the 3.5-litre V6 very well. And you won't find a gearshift lever anymore. In its place is what first looks like an indicator stalk or some such. Mercedes-Benz call it Direct Select. It's a small, stubby stalk on the right hand side of the steering column and you push/pull this thing to operate the automatic gearbox. Feels a bit weird at first, but you get used to it pretty soon. In manual mode, you can also use shift paddles (these live behind the steering wheel) to navigate through the gearbox. Gizmo-freaks will love the paddle shift bit, but the 7G-TRONIC really is quite capable on its own. Keep the car in sport mode all the time - that's where the computers are the happiest, and everything works just fine. And anyway, shifting gears manually just doesn't feel right in an S-class car. You wouldn't check into the Hilton or the Taj Palace and then cook your own meals or make your own bed, would you?

The 3.5-litre V6 is smooth, silent and powerful. But it has to work hard to cope with the S350's heft

 

Dark wood trim is understated and classy. Control buttons, made of metal, are nice and chunky and feel good to operate. The feel-good factor is sky-high

No, that isn't the turn indicator stalk - it's the lever that let's you navigate the S350's seven-speed automatic gearbox!

 

 

 

The boot is huge. If this were Mumbai, a family of four would be living in there...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seats are extremely plush and comfortable, and you can watch DVDs there in the back while you're stretched out sipping chilled white wine

The cabin is just brilliant - everything in there looks and feels expensive (which it should), and the COMMAND control system is very easy to learn. It also works extremely well

TO DRIVE, THE S350 FEELS BIG AND SUBSTANTIAL AT ALL TIMES - THE 1900 KILOS MAKE THEMSELVES FELT

What does feel right in the S350 is sitting in the car and just admiring the interiors. All the leather, wood and metal bits in this car look and feel just right. The leather upholstery feels buttery soft, the glossy burr walnut wood trim is just the right shade of dark brown (and there is just enough of it - Mercedes haven't gone overboard with the stuff...), and all the control buttons, made of metal rather than plastic, have a well-damped feel to them. The power-adjustable seats move every which way, and are, of course, supremely comfortable. Instruments, which look like analog items, are actually electro-luminescent digital displays. Subtle, sophisticated and restrained - that's the S350's interiors for you. Very, very classy. Once you drive this car, you understand why the S350 costs twice as much as an E280. Another thing which I really appreciated is the Mercedes COMMAND system. The whole idea is to give you rapid access to frequently used functions. So while you can operate things like the AC, radio, and CD/DVD changer via conventional buttons on the centre console (or control buttons on the steering wheel), the COMMAND system lets you access vehicle settings which you aren't likely to change too often. With its colour display screen, simple menus, and rotary, multi-way controller, the COMMAND system is very easy to figure out. If you are used to a Windows PC, you shouldn't have any trouble at all in figuring out how to use COMMAND. In fact, I often found myself fiddling with the thing just for the heck of it - it's great fun to use, and a very effective way of keeping clutter to a minimum. Brilliant! So how do I conclude this? You are expecting me to say that the S350 is a stupendous automobile, and really, that's what it is. Earlier, I used to tell anyone who'd listen that an E-class saloon gives you all the luxury you could possibly want. I was wrong. The S-class lives in a different league. An E280 is much more of a driver's car - the steering is more responsive, the car is more agile and there isn't that feeling of substantial bulk when you're pushing on a bit. But if pure, chauffeur-driven, triple-distilled luxury is what you're looking for, you'll find true nirvana only in the S350.

THE S350 IS A SUPREMELY ACCOMPLISHED CAR, WORTH EVERY PENNY OF WHAT IT COSTS