Aside from the unmistakable notion of supreme comfort as the passenger of the Mercedes-Benz S 450 L, how it feels from being the wheel – piloting a near 2-tonne vehicle that’s as long as a mini bus – is anyone’s guess.
In the back seat, expectations weren’t just met but superseded. Any more comfortable than this and you’d have to look at the Bentleys and the Rolls-Royces.
Without even the slightest concern of exaggeration, it was by far the most comfortable car we’ve got to ride in, in recent times. Below the RM1 million mark, there is no doubt that the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is the benchmark of sumptuousness on wheels.
When you’re in full recline on the rear left seat, with the sun shade up, it’s hard to distinguish the S-Class from a Business Class seat of a middle eastern airline and that’s all down to the ride.
The S-Class, with its AIRMATIC air suspension does not know the meaning of road undulations. It masks the incompetence of Malaysia road builders – whom are most likely S-Class owners themselves, ironically – with a ride quality that’s almost fairy tale-like where all things unpleasant simply doesn’t exist.
But in the lengthy time that we had it, the bigger surprise came from behind the wheel. If I were to likened the S-Class to canines, I’d say it was like a St.Bernard with the agility of a Jack Russell and the growl of a Pit bull.
Because you’re paying around RM100k more (due to lack of government incentives) than you would for the previous S 400 h, what you now get is a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 engine with 367 hp and 500 Nm without the nonsensical hybrid systems. Not only is power spread out just as smooth as cream cheese on toast, the S-Class now also purrs with all the right notes.
IMAGE GALLERY
