The all-new Mercedes-Benz S-Class was launched in India last week with prices starting from Rs 2.17 crore (ex-showroom). Arguably, the S-Class is the most luxurious saloon in its segment as well as is heavy with features and we are going to spell out all of that here.
The MBUX
This car comes with a new 12.8-inch tablet-like OLED infotainment touchscreen with haptic feedback which features a second-generation MBUX system. Mercedes-Benz has gotten rid of almost all switches from the centre console including the trackpad and everything can now be controlled via the bigger touchscreen.
There are a few switches below the display - mode selector, hazard light, volume control, mute and a fingerprint scanner. The MBUX now also supports 27 different languages and can even tell you random facts and jokes. Besides, there are four microphones in the car and the MBUX and therefore everyone in the car can interact with the voice assistant.
Rear-wheel steering
The S-Class is well over five metres in length and it can be tough to drive such a long car in the city or even park it in tight spaces. But Mercedes-Benz has a solution for it - rear-axle steering. The brand claims that the rear wheels can be turned by up to 10-degree on the opposite side of the front wheels while making a U-turn or parking the car.
However, at a higher speed, the rear wheel can turn in the same direction as the front wheels to provide better stability. Meanwhile, the overall turning radius of the enormous S-Class is reduced by two metres due to the rear-axle steering. The India specific S-Class version has a restricted 4.5-degree angle of the rear-axle.
Driver Assistance package
Mercedes-Benz provides Driver Assistance Package 5 as standard with the India specific S-Class. This package brings a variety of smart features to the car such as active emergency stop assist, active lane keeping/changing assist, attention assist, active park assist with Parktronic, active steering assist, active brake assist, active blind spot assist, traffic sign assist and pre safe impulse side. The assistance systems ensure safety of passengers while actively monitoring the environment of the car to respond in an emergency.
Digital Light
Mercedes-Benz Digital Light is the most advanced headlight system fitted to a car ever. Both the headlight units in the car have three large LED lamps each, along with a chip and over 2 million micro-reflectors to provide optimum visibility while driving.
The headlights can project various signs on the road to alert you, for example, if you missed a stop sign along the street the car’s sensors will recognise it and project a stop warning sign in the front via the headlights. Moreover, when the car detects a road construction sign, the headlights will project two lines of light that act and show the width of the car to guide you. Similarly, the light beam is automatically adjusted when there is inclination, slope and it does not dazzle oncoming vehicles too.
Rear-seat frontal airbags
Many cars are equipped with four, six, seven or eight airbags. However, this sumptuous S-Class comes with a staggering ten airbags. Mercedes-Benz has offered frontal airbags for the rear-seat passenger for the first time. These rear airbags use tubular structure and ambient air to restrain.
Forty years ago, for the first time, the front airbags were introduced in the S-Class and here is the seventh-generation S-Class equipped with frontal airbags in the rear.
Apart from these advanced features the S-Class also gets an augmented reality head-up display, retractable door handles, a 31-loudspeaker, 1,750-watt 4D Burmester surround sound system, air-matic suspension with adaptive damping, 64 colours of active ambient lighting with 250 LEDs, 19 motors in the front seats for greater comfort with 10 different massage function, up to 20 motors to control the air con vent flaps and lastly vibration motors in the seats to enhance the bass of music.
In conclusion, the all-new S-Class is a pearl of a great price. It is a technological tour de force and every function in this car offers utmost comfort and safety.
