Mercedes-Benz is set to launch its new saloon, the luxurious S-Class featuring the company’s three engineering priorities "Intelligent Drive", "Efficient Technology" and "Essence of Luxury" in the Middle East.

“Admired for its ability to glide effortlessly with a power and prestige that commands understated respect, the revered S-Class has achieved a status in the Middle East bordering on the legendary,” said Frank Bernthaler, director, Sales and Marketing, Mercedes-Benz Cars, Middle East & Levant.

“But the S-Class is no mirage. With every new generation of S-Class, customers across the region expect it to set standards across the board to retain its accolade as "the best automobile in the world.

"Rather than being about safety or aesthetics, power or efficiency, comfort or dynamism, our aspirations were 'the best or nothing' in every respect. No other car stands for the Mercedes-Benz brand promise more than the S-Class.”

Perfection to the last detail results in "The Essence of Luxury". This pursuit of the best is particularly noticeable in the interior: whether it is the seats or the air conditioning, the controls or the design, the infotainment or the comfort and safety in the rear – new ideas, their painstaking realisation, and highest perceived quality underpin the high standards that the engineers have set for the Mercedes-Benz flagship model – and for themselves.

The same applies to safety. What started with Pre-Safe ten years ago and continued with Distronic Plus has now resulted in a new dimension of motoring: comfort and safety are merged into one. Mercedes-Benz refers to this as "Intelligent Drive". A whole host of new systems makes the new S-Class even more comfortable and even safer.

Mercedes-Benz, by realising "Efficient Technology", has almost halved fuel consumption in the 150 kW output category to 4.4 litres per 100 kilometres, for example, while the drag coefficient of the new S-Class undercuts the previous model's figure. Furthermore, the new model is the world's first car to dispense entirely with light bulbs in favour of LEDs, pointing the way ahead once again.

"The sophisticated design of the S-Class has always been an expression of luxury and automotive grandeur of its era,” said design chief Gorden Wagener.

“And our new S-Class continues this tradition. With its classic architecture and flowing silhouette, it is a modern embodiment of sensual clarity. The design draws a line from the sophisticated, progressive design idiom to the classic elegance of our 1930s cars – intelligence that speaks to the emotions. Stylish sportiness and sensual forms in synthesis with timeless clarity and effortless superiority make the S-Class a true design icon.”

"The new S-Class achieves consumption and emissions figures that only a few years ago seemed utopian, even for executive cars," said Prof Thomas Weber, member of the Daimler Board of Management responsible for Group Research and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars Development.

"And this is just the start of our 'Green Leadership' initiative: soon to be followed by the S 500 Plug-In Hybrid – the first S-Class with a fuel consumption lower than four litres per 100 kilometres."

The S-Class line-up therefore includes the full range from petrol and diesel models to petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrids for the first time.

The new S-Class is the world's first car to be able to detect bumps on the road ahead. If Road Surface Scan detects such unevenness by means of the stereo camera, Magic Body Control instantaneously sets up the suspension to deal with the new situation. This innovative suspension system is available as an option for the eight-cylinder models.

Standard equipment for the new S-Class includes the continuously operating Adaptive Damping System Ads Plus and an enhanced version of the full air suspension system Airmatic.

The Middle East launch date for the S-Class is July 20, with prices starting for the S 500 GCC specification variant at $132,300. – TradeArabia News Service