While we are eagerly awaiting for the launch of the upcoming S-Class, Mercedes-Benz has once again continued their slow-drip treatment on its teasers, this time giving us a first look at the interior of its new big luxury sedan.
The S-Class has always been known by its lavish interior design, laced with sumptuous leather for the ultimate comfort enjoyed by only the most well-off of the big bosses. Well, the upcoming new S-Class is no different in that sense, though with a large twist in overall design language quite unlike anything we’ve seen before.
The biggest standout feature of the S-Class cabin is the new free-standing portrait-oriented 12.8-inch infotainment main display, as we’ve seen in the leaks. Inspired by waterfalls according to Mercedes, the screen seats flush in a separate three-dimensional “saddle” panel – seemingly flowing out of the air vents on top – that continues smoothly into the centre console.
The large uninterrupted panel underneath the screen, which is a single piece of open-pore wood inlayed with aluminium, takes the length of the entire dashboard – a design that the German carmaker says is inspired by a ship deck’s flowing lines. The aluminium inlays meanwhile are associated with yacht designs. Air vents shaped in slim twin vertical slots bookend the dashboard panel.
The ambient lighting system around the dashboard, door panels, and trim pieces have also been upgraded – now up to 10 times as bright as before to “envelope” the passengers in a glowing aurora, and is even visible in daylight.
This was achieved by a new LED light strip, with individual LEDs just 1.6 cm apart from each other. About 250 LED bulbs are used throughout the cabin to form the ambient lighting system.
The coolest part about the ambient lighting however, is its direct integration into the MBUX system. The system can now react to several driving functions including Lane Keeping Assist, Brake Assist as well as with exit warning, flashing red when it detects an impending danger.
Just like the new A-Class, the ambient lighting system flashes red or blue when setting the climate control system, but now expanded to the entire individual zones. When triggering the “Hey Mercedes” voice assistant, the MBUX system will also animate the ambient lights at the corresponding seat, depending on who’s issuing the command.
In a large luxury executive sedan like the S-Class, comfort is of course of utmost priority. The new S-Class will feature seats sculpted as a “flowing, three-dimensional design”, which Mercedes-Benz says is embedded into the rest of the cabin like a seashell.
No matter which wheelbase configuration you’ve chosen – which there are two, short or long – the S-Class promises increased space for both the front and rear passengers. In particular, Mercedes-Benz says that the rear knee room has been increased even with the rear seats in the fully-reclined position.
The seats feature neck warmers and individual speakers in the “comfy pillow” headrests, and also comes with six air pillows that are now placed closer to the passenger’s skin for the massage function.
The rear seats can be configured in up to five different seating variants, with those choosing the “First Class rear suite” getting an open-pore waterfall panel in between the two seats, much like those on the dashboard in front.
As for the front seats, Mercedes-Benz says that they are now also more ergonomic especially for the driver, with the centre axis of the seats and steering wheel properly aligned, providing a symmetrical driving position for all types of physique. The seats can also automatically adjust to the driver by just inputting the driver’s height and age into the MBUX system.
Other interior highlights in the upcoming S-Class include a new “Energizing” seat kinetic function that periodically makes small adjustments to the seats to enhance the wellness of the passengers. The seat kinetic function is integrated into the overall Energizing Comfort feature which utilises the ambient lighting and sound system to help set the mood of the drive.
Of course, the NVH performance of the cabin has been improved with the use of specific spray foam in different panels. There’s also a new air filtering system built in into the S-Class; Mercedes says that it is epecially effective against fine dust, pollen and odours.
The upcoming Mercedes-Benz S-Class will be launched on the 2nd of September, which is just about two weeks from now. Stay tuned for more information on the new luxury sedan as we get them closer to the launch!
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