2021 Mercedes Benz S Class review: The default limo of choice for India’s mega rich

Rodolfo Schellin

2021 Mercedes Benz S Course: what is it?

The S-Course is the default selection of luxurious limousine for India’s mega loaded. Mercedes has sold above eight,000 S-Lessons in India considering that the fourth-gen model’s start here in 2000 and is searching to insert to the tally with this most current, seventh-gen W223 design.

Like every single new S-Course, the most current design is designed to be “the best car in the world” and represents Mercedes at its ahead-searching finest. You will find extra tech than ever right before, even if at its main this stays a car mainly designed to transport its superior web really worth occupants in ultimate luxurious.

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It appears to be like every single bit as regal as you’d anticipate an S-Course to be.

For the minute, the S-Course arrives to India as a whole import in fully-loaded Start Version form. Afterwards in the year, locally assembled versions will go on sale with a (reasonably) reduce price tag and presumably much less options.

2021 Mercedes Benz S Course: what’s it like on the exterior?

As right before, India gets the very long-wheelbase version of the S-Course. The most current design is even for a longer time and wider than the very last-gen one particular (if only marginally so), and at five.3m very long and just about 2m vast, it truly is a large, large car. In search, it truly is every single bit as regal as you’d anticipate an S to be and instructions regard like couple other sedans can. It truly is acquired gravitas, so to discuss. Including in a tinge of sportiness to the search is the AMG Line styling pack that is regular on the 1st whole lot of cars for India. The stylised bumpers and greater twenty-inch rims do assistance the S appear really athletic.

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At five.3m very long and just about 2m vast, the new S-class is a really large sedan.

Among the the specifics of be aware on the exterior are the ‘Digital Light’ headlamps (identifiable by their blue detailing) that characteristic extremely-variety superior beam that can illuminate up to 650m ahead. The S-Course gets soft-near doorways, as you’d anticipate, even though the flush-fitting door handles that pop out when you approach the car is a little something we might noticed on JLR versions 1st. At the rear, the on/off lights sequence on the whole-LED tail-lights would make for amazing viewing also.

The arms-no cost boot lid opens to expose an ordinary-sized luggage compartment. It truly is more than enough for an airport run but is just not significantly spacious for this kind of a huge car. Some of the usable house is taken up by the amp for the seem method and some by the house saver spare tyre that sits in a dedicated compartment less than the flooring.

2021 Mercedes Benz S Course: what’s it like on the inside of?

We have come to anticipate an S-Course cabin to harmoniously blend old-planet style with new-age tech. This one particular, nevertheless, is out with the old and goes large with the new. Screens, contact controls and lively ambient lights (extra on this later on) are amongst the elements that make this cabin search unquestionably cutting edge.

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Reducing-edge cabin packs in many screens and contact controls.

Homeowners will typically invest small, if any, time up front, so let’s chat of the all-important rear seat expertise 1st. Large rear doorways are your gateway to the back, even though it ought to be stated that, like other sedans, even the S-Course can’t match a superior-riding luxurious SUV on relieve of ingress-egress. After inside of, even though, you will have small to fault. Legroom, for one particular, is enormous, with legitimate actual estate among the front and rear seats. The seats are also brilliant. Upholstered in nappa leather, the seats are sumptuous, get as lots of as 10 therapeutic massage features and you can find ventilation and heating also. Should really you want to sit back and take it easy, the rear seats offer you electric power-alter for the backrest angle and seat foundation angle. However, for the whole result, you want to be on the rear remaining seat, popularly termed the manager seat. At the contact of a button, motors whirr into action to slide the front passenger seat all the way ahead and reorient your seat for whole extension that’s the backrest reclined to 43.five levels, seat foundation decreased and a run legrest folding out for max assistance. What is actually outstanding is that even 6-footers can sprawl out on this seat. Do be aware, the front passenger seat at its ahead-most place can impede the driver’s look at of the wing mirror rolling the backrest by a couple levels is an uncomplicated answer.

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Place made available at the rear is best notch and the backrest can even be reclined up to 43.five levels.

Should really the amazing seats, light therapeutic massage, and standard hush in the cabin not lull you to snooze, you can find loads of methods to continue to keep occupied at the back. The S-Course gets twin 11.six-inch touchscreens for your entertainment requirements, you can find a seven.-inch tablet that can be employed to manage sure car features and also accessibility the net, or if you want to eliminate by yourself in the songs, you can find a 31-speaker Burmester seem method to make the most of. ‘Exciters’ (Mercedes’ expression) in the seat amplify the bass so you can really feel the songs.

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The seven.-inch tablet can be employed to manage some simple car features.

Devoted climate manage zones, a wi-fi cellphone charger and run sunblinds are some of the other goodies at the back. If you can find a little something to carry up, we are not supporters of the capacitive touch controls for the seat alter that lack the tactile feel of Merc’s conventional seat infogram buttons. Also, as deluxe as the rear seats are, they’re not built to accommodate seating three abreast. The middle seat is narrow and finest remaining unused.

You will find tons to chat about the front area of the cabin also. The throne-like front seats (they are heated, ventilated and characteristic therapeutic massage also) are as comfy as they search, the sprint that flows into the doorways to visually wrap around you appears to be like wonderful and all around high quality is expectedly 1st level. All the things, from the stitching down to the illuminated seat belt buckles, notify you no value has been spared to make this a distinctive position. The gloss plastics on the centre console could be prone to scratches but that’s a little something your chauffeur will have to have to be careful of.

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Rear seats come with 10 therapeutic massage features, and also with ventilation and heating.

Now to the actual large (pretty much so) chatting point in the S-Course – the twelve.eight-inch touchscreen. The portrait-oriented device is your go-to manage for nearly all car and infotainment features, and Mercedes suggests the display has carried out away with the have to have for as lots of as 27 physical buttons. The OLED display is brilliant, the graphics are best class, and the method functions with the slickness of an iPad. However, incorporating simple features, this kind of as for temperature alter, is just not great and it does not assistance that the voice instructions get tripped on Indian accents. In practice, you will be most cozy using the display at standstill. It truly is rather uncomplicated to get the hang of the display format and the haptic comments helps usability. Amazing options consist of fingerprint recognition for your options profile.

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twelve.3-inch electronic dials are customisable and options a exclusive 3D result.

twelve.3-inch electronic dials, customisable for theme and colors, are also portion of the deal. Unique to the S-Course is a 3D characteristic that provides visible depth to the display screen (imagine the result of 3D eyeglasses), even though we discovered ourselves reverting to the regular look at quickly.

2021 Mercedes Benz S Course: what options does it get?

The issue to request is what options does it miss out on? Alright, India-spec cars does not get the augmented actuality navigation but this aside, the Merc is as loaded as they come.

In addition to all that’s been touched on, the S-Course also packs in a panoramic sunroof, rear seat neck hotter, an onboard fragrance dispenser, linked car tech, wi-fi Android Auto/Apple CarPlay and auto park. Brilliantly carried out sixty four-color ambient lights that bathes the cabin in soft light is portion of the deal also and you can find also what Mercedes calls Lively Ambient Lights. LEDs on the sprint and doorways pulse to flash warnings (this kind of as blind spot warning) and display screen changes to climate manage options (blue/red when lessening/expanding temperature). The LEDs will also modify color to replicate the Energizing Consolation method of selection. In a nutshell, Energizing Consolation is a deal of therapeutic massage, video clip, songs and light preparations built to soothe and rejuvenate you. The S-Course seriously is a spa on wheels.

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The brilliantly executed sixty four-color ambient lights bathes the cabin in soft light.

The listing of basic safety kit is just as very long. The S-Course gets 10 airbags, such as two front-facing types for the rear seat occupants. You will find the full array of digital aids also, as perfectly as innovative driver guidance features this kind of as adaptive cruise manage, lane continue to keep assist and unexpected emergency braking. The options get the job done perfectly but in our unpredictable driving environment are also finest imagined of as an further basic safety web. We suspect all those powering the wheel will achieve out for the suspension carry tab extra usually than all those for ADAS options.

2021 Mercedes Benz S Course: what’s it like to generate?

The S 400d 4Matic highlighted here arrives run by a 330hp and 700Nm, 3.-litre, straight-6 diesel engine. Electrical power is channelled to all 4 wheels (consequently, the 4Matic in the identify) through a nine-speed computerized gearbox.

This currently being an S-Course, it truly is extra about how peaceful it is than how quick it is. The cabin is serene, you can find small exterior sounds to disturb your hotshot passengers’ coach of imagined on that following large company offer and even the engine arrives across as really cultured. You will not likely listen to much of the diesel device in ordinary driving, and even when you prolong, it seems really distant. Mercedes also features the S 450 4Matic petrol (367hp and 500Nm, 3. petrol), which promises to be quieter continue to.

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Air suspension does its occupation superbly, even though the huge wheels hamper total ride comfort.

As regular, the S-Course gets air suspension and it does its occupation superbly. The suspension beautifully arrests up and down movements, and you can find a softness at low speeds. However, total ride comfort is down on the very last-gen S-Course. And it truly is the AMG Line’s 255/forty R20 tyres to blame for this. The reasonably low-profile tyres can’t entirely cushion towards the sharper imperfections on the street and you can find even a a bit rigid-kneed feel on concrete surfaces. Quite uncharacteristic of an S-Course. Assembled-in-India versions could and should make the go to smaller sized rims with extra sidewall safety.

What is distinctive is the way the S-Course builds speed. You will not have to weigh down also hard on the accelerator for the S to expose its punchy facet, and efficiency is just easy. The nine-speed gearbox also performs its supporting part perfectly by fluidly functioning up and down the gears. Incorporate with it the S-Course masking its speed, and your passenger will not likely seriously know how quick you might be heading.

We couldn’t get the S 400d 4Matic to match Merc’s claimed -100kph time of five.4sec. Even so, the six.9sec time for the sprint to 100kph is brisk for a car so huge. Sorry to use the cliche but you will not likely be late for that boardroom meeting in an S.

Corners on your route? No problem. The S-Course is a large and hefty comfort-oriented limo, but the large surprise is that it truly is fairly great to generate. Human body manage, even with the suspension at its softest, is nice and you can find even a good volume of link at the steering. You will find good excess weight to it and you can really appreciate your Sunday generate in one particular.

 

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Inspite of currently being a comfort-oriented limo, the new S-Course is fairly great to generate.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The S-Course will invest the bulk of its life in the city where by driving a car so huge can be annoying. Helping enormously to this conclusion is the S-Class’ rear-wheel steering. As on other applications, the rear wheels change for improved agility and superior-speed balance, but in the India plan of points, the most significant benefit arrives in low-speed manoeuvrability. On cars equipped with twenty-inch rims, the rear wheels can change by up to four.five levels in the opposite direction to the one particular up front, proficiently lessening the turning circle by just about 1.nine metres. A slick 360 diploma camera and auto parking are other options your chauffeur will be grateful for.

The suspension carry characteristic arrives seriously helpful also, even though you have to be careful above huge speedbreakers even at whole height. The S-Course tends to scrape its tummy if you are not careful, and the seem on speak to just is just not pretty.

2021 Mercedes Benz S Course: should you obtain one particular?

The S-Course has gone on sale at Rs two.17 crore (ex-showroom) for the S 400d 4Matic, even though the S 450 4Matic can be yours for Rs two.19 crore. The pricing is superior even by luxurious limousine segment standards, but the fact that the greater part of cars in the 1st whole lot of S-Lessons for India are presently spoken for tells you about the model’s mass attraction, even in the rarified house it performs in.

The most current S-Course appears to be like the company, it truly is brilliant be pushed around in – a bit jittery ride notwithstanding – the cabin is calming, the seats are as comfy as they come and you can find tons and tons of tech to geek out on also. That the S-Course is also great to generate is just an included moreover.

Guaranteed, the S is not really India-evidence as a luxurious SUV could be but as a implies to display the planet you have arrived in life couple points say it superior than an S-Course.

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