The mercedes S-class is the new gold standard against which all other cars will have to measure themselves in the future. Why this is so and what the only potential weak point is we explain to you in this test.
After having tested the mercedes S-class for two weeks, two things are clear to me:
1. The mercedes s-class is currently the best car in the world.
2. However, like the Greek hero Achilles, there is a small weak point, which has enormous damage potential not just for the s-class, but for all future mercedes models.
Mercedes S-class- the best car in the world
More by chance than by planning I had the opportunity to participate in the press-drive-event (PFV), for which I am very glad in retrospect; because up to this point I had only been able to see the rather mediocre online-presentation for the introduction of the S-class, from which I was rather disappointed.
The PFV, on the other hand, made me so enthusiastic about the S-class that I really tried hard to get an early test date for a two-week test.
In my opinion, the S-Class is the most technically advanced vehicle that can be ordered at the moment.
If I make a statement like this after just one day of testing, then I must have been very sure of what I was doing.
After I was able to test the S-class for two weeks, I would make the statement again immediately and still have one"!“ rear.
In fact, at this point I recommend you to maybe read my article from back then: mercedes S-class driving impression- the best car in the world?! (mobilegeeks.De)
the points that already excited me at that time, absolutely convinced me in my test.
The biggest difficulty is actually to transport my experience with the S-class in writing. It is a perfectly coordinated vehicle, which one must have experienced to be able to understand it. Those five points that excited me the most about the S-class are the following:
- AR head up display
- Digital speedometer with 3D display
- Ambient lighting
- Level 2 (+) driving assistance systems
- 10° rear axle steering
The first three points are easy to understand and to describe, but to convey the impression they have on the driver is difficult.
I have recorded the points also times in detail in my personal podcast and also as a video to it. If you have a little time, you can look at the whole thing again.
driving experience mercedes S-class
If you look around in the luxury class, you will notice that every manufacturer has one or two technical highlights. However, no one manages to create a car as coherent as mercedes with the S-class, where everything feels right.
It is above all the seamless linking of the various elements that leaves one so amazed. The automatic extension of the retractable door handles when approaching, the welcome animation of the digital light LED headlights with a resolution of 2.6 million pixels, the "awakening" of the headlights, and the "light" of the headlights animation of the active ambient lighting in combination with sound, the almost silent starting of the engine, the camera in the digital speedometer with 3D effect, which automatically recognizes the driver and loads the appropriate profile.
Before you have even engaged a gear, you feel enveloped in an extremely comfortable cocoon.
Parking and maneuvering has been possible for some years now thanks to the 10 rear-axle steering so good that you have to get used to the maneuverability of the large car at first, because the size of the S-Class is actually in direct contradiction to the turning circle, which is otherwise only achieved by small cars. If you use the parking assistant to park or exit, it becomes even more incredible. Because then the S-Class can steer the front and rear axles in the same direction and move sideways like a crab.
Driving off in the S500 is so quiet thanks to the insulation that passengers often ask if we are sitting in an electric car. Even at high speeds, hardly any noise from outside penetrates the interior.
But not only the sense of hearing of the passengers is almost decoupled, but also the feelings of the passengers. Thanks to multi-chamber air suspension, which uses the camera in the windshield to condition itself to the road conditions ahead, you experience a level of ride comfort I’ve only ever known from rolls-royce.
The driving comfort of the S-Class is outstanding in itself. But it is further enhanced by the support of technology.
Driving assistance systems mercedes S-Class
Mercedes will also offer the S-class with the so-called drive pilot in mid/end 2021. The S-Class will also be able to perform certain driving tasks on its own.
Until then, the S-Class currently offers "only" the following the well known level 2 assisted driving on. Now there is level 2 and level 2- systems have been on the market for several years and with various manufacturers; but in all these years I have never seen a system that works as well as the one in the S-Class.
Was in the past the- technically and ethically quite controversially discussed- the "autopilot" as the measure of all things in tesla’s models, i think mercedes has taken the technological lead with the s-class.
the most striking feature is the adaptive speed adjustment, which not only automatically adopts the respective permitted speed -an old hat-, but also adapts the speed to the course of the road in such a way that there is almost no need to take care of the accelerator or brake yourself.
The active steering assistance also works so well that on a long drive you have the feeling that you can let the S-Class do the driving for you and only have to worry about observing the driving maneuvers. At the same time, the sensors in the S-Class ensure that you don’t lose sight of what’s going on in the car. If the system registers that your hands are not on the steering wheel or that your attention is elsewhere, the message comes unobtrusively but quickly. Here the S-class finds a good compromise between what is allowed behind the wheel and what can happen in reality.
High-tech every moment mercedes S-class
Not only does the S-Class feel great to drive, it also looks futuristic at every turn.
The active ambient lighting in the S-Class creates a lounge atmosphere in the interior, if desired, like you’ve never experienced in a car before. Various multicolored animated scenes can also be displayed on request; I have often found myself adjusting them to suit the mood of the car.
If you want to experience the impression, I recommend my one-hour ASMR video, where I change the scene every 5 minutes.
As described at the beginning, my two personal technical highlights are the 3D driver display and the augmented-reality head-up display (AR-HUD). It’s easiest if I first refer to mercedes’ explanations here:
3D driver displaythe impression of spatial depth is created when the eyes of an observer can perceive different perspective views of the presentation of objects on the display. In the novel autostereoscopic display, this is realized by a clever combination of a conventional LCD display with a special pixel structure and a controllable LCD striped mask. A so-called barrier mask is located at a distance of a few millimeters in front of the LCD. It is adapted so precisely to the head position of the observer that his left and right eye can see different pixels of the LCD. This creates the desired spatial depth. a stereo camera system is integrated into the display. This takes over the exact determination of the eye position of the observer. With distance adaptation methods specially developed by mercedes-benz and an extremely low-latency design of the system, the driver enjoys an undisturbed wide range of motion. The display on the driver’s screen is continuously adjusted.
Augmented-reality head-up display (AR-HUD)Two different head-up displays (HUD) are available on request, including an innovative AR variant with a particularly large image. the opening angle of the display is 10° horizontal and 5 vertically, the image lies virtually at a distance of 10 meters. This display area corresponds to a monitor with a diagonal of 77 inches. On the AR-HUD, a lot of augmented reality content for driving assistance systems as well as navigation information is provided. For the driver, they merge with the environment in front of the vehicle and can thus contribute to a further reduction in distraction. The imaging unit (DMD, digital mirror device from texas instruments) consists of a high-resolution matrix of 1.3 mio. individual mirrors and a highly efficient light source. This technology is familiar from beamers in cinemas. In the S-class, it will be used for the first time by mercedes-benz to generate images in the head-up display.
The technologies can be described, but the impression they leave on the driver is indescribable and can only be experienced for oneself.
The new #mercedes S-class really surprised and delighted our @kramkr. If you want to know why he’s so enthusiastic, it’s best to watch the whole video on youtube: https://t.Co/hhbwa97acv pic.Twitter.Com/ernnflzrvp
— mobilegeeks.De (@mobilegeeksde) november 1, 2020
It sounds almost pathetic, but I will never forget the first moment I saw the 3D display and the AR-HUD in action.
It may sound like a technical gimmick to some, but it’s not; because with the AR-head up display it will probably be almost impossible to get lost while navigation is active. The 3D display in the speedometer uses the depth planes for better structuring and thus significantly improves the display it also looks incredibly cool.
Mercedes S-class MBUX 2.0- shining piece or achilles heel?
The 12.8-inch OLED central display shows at first glance that the time of countless buttons and knobs is probably over for mercedes. For the S-class, mercedes also presents the first major update of its own MBUX system.
The basic operation of the MBUX 2.0 largely unchanged.
mercedes has paid particular attention to personalization. Different driver profiles in one car is not a real innovation in itself; but never before has it been so easy to create new profiles and pair them with a vehicle as with the new MBUX. Up to seven profiles can be linked to the vehicle, each of which stores the settings of around 800 different parameters. However, these are not only managed locally on the vehicle, but also in the "mercedes me" stored in the cloud, so that you can take your personal settings with you to other vehicles.
The change of profiles goes several ways. It can be changed by touch, PIN, automatic camera recognition or voice.
I’m excited to see how well the cloud adoption works on other vehicles, because I see great potential here for the future in terms of other mobility concepts.
mercedes has also improved the voice assistant, which in addition to jokes can now answer trivia questions or play a quiz with the passengers.
The basic functions expected from an infotainment system are fulfilled by the MBUX 2.0 outstanding. For example, music can now be streamed via spotify and tune in- besides the already known tidal and amazon music options.
As an option, the mercedes S-class can be equipped with two 11.6” displays and one 7” display in the rear tablet to use.
You can also use your mercedes profile in the rear seat. The operation on the rear displays or the tablet has also worked without problems.
Unfortunately, the number of apps that can be used with the MBUX is rather limited. You can receive digital television, but you can not play youtube videos, let alone netflix. Although one could use firestick, apple TV o.ä. Pair and playback via HDMI but to be honest, I expect something like this natively!
In principle, the MBUX 2.0 Be OTA updateable. I hope mercedes finally manages to take full advantage of the OTA capability and deliver additional value over the course of the product cycle- äsimilar to what tesla does, for example. In the future, it will no longer be enough to build good hardware, but the software must also keep pace.
The software Achilles’ heel is currently the only weak point that I see in the mercedes S-Class.
conclusion mercedes s-class after 2 weeks of testing
The title already anticipated my conclusion: the mercedes S-class is currently the best car in the world.
The quantum leap that mercedes has made here was unexpected for me personally and therefore surprised me all the more.
The mercedes S-class is the new gold standard against which every upcoming car will have to measure itself. The technology transfer from the S-class to other vehicles from the group should also be exciting- especially in view of the all-electric EQS, which will soon be unveiled.