Raising the bar for comfort and technology

The press information for the 2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class covers 93 tightly-spaced pages, listing feature after feature of what Mercedes claims to be the finest car on Earth. It details its self-driving improvements and its glorious comforts, the increased power of its new engines and the improved fuel consumption of its transmission. Nowhere, however, does it mention a new feature for the car named "Pre-Safe Sound," which Mercedes hopes you'll never experience.

"An airbag deploying has a really loud sound, so if there is a crash, you will end up afterwards, especially if more airbags deploy, with tinnitus in your ear," says Claus Turbeis, product manager for the car. He's describing the loud ringing noise that can effectively deafen tinnitus sufferers. "So we have a system that emits a slight tone just before impact that will precondition your ear, so the sound of the airbag is not that striking, not that bad for your ears."

Little things like this effectively set a car apart as something more than just a way to get from A to B, and the new S-Class is filled with them. Swerve to avoid a pedestrian on the road and the car's computer will take over the steering to help get you around but also back on track afterward. Set the "Energizing" program for the mood you're in and the computer will tweak the 64 colours of the ambient interior lights, adjust the intensity of the hot rock massagers in the seat back, find a music track in your phone's library with the right number of beats per minute, and even determine the strength of the fragrance in the cabin. Holy cow.

Of course, this all takes a bit of setting up. I turned on the 10-minute "Training" program for the exercise function and couldn't figure out how to turn it off. The voice on the optional 26-speaker Burmester sound system kept instructing me to push down on my coccyx and pull in on my belly button. At least it helps pass the time on the Autobahn.

Actually, time passed very quickly on the Autobahn, as it does for most foreign visitors in powerful cars who don't have to pay for their own fuel. There are many gas and diesel engines available for the new S-Class, including an inline-six that's a radical departure for Mercedes from its traditional V6s and V8s, but in Canada, we only get those V-engines – and no diesel versions any more, either. Blame Volkswagen for that.

The base 2018 S450 in Canada, which starts at $106,400, comes with a revised 3-litre V-6 that's been pumped up to 362 hp (up 33 hp from last year). The version you should buy is the S560, starting at $115,200 for the short wheelbase, which has an all-new 4-litre biturbo V-8 that makes 463 hp and 516 lb.-ft. It seems as smooth and quiet at 250 km/h as at 50 km/h. I drove on the Autobahn, remember?

There's also an S63 with the same V8, breathed on by AMG to be good for 603 hp and 664 hp, that starts at $163,500. All these cars are 4Matic all-wheel-drive, and all come with the new 9-speed transmission (replacing last year's 7-speed) that Mercedes just debuted in the 2018 E-Class.

If you truly have more money than sense, the S65 still has last year's 6.0-litre V12 engine, good for 621 hp and 738 lbs-ft., and lists for $254,800. Because it is rear-wheel-drive, it includes the super-duper "Magic Body Control" suspension package that can't be fitted to AWD, which means it now includes "curve tilting": the car will lean slightly into a turn, like a motorcycle, at an angle of up to three degrees, for greater passenger comfort.

As Mercedes' flagship sedan, the new S-Class includes absolutely the most cutting-edge technology the German engineers can create, though you may have to pay extra for some of it. Audi and BMW will surely include the same features in their big sedans within a year or so – you'd better believe the engineers talk to each other. Mercedes's goal is for the S-Class to be the best car in the world throughout its life-cycle, and all its research advances will trickle down into less-expensive cars soon enough.

Is it all worth it? It all depends on how much of your discretionary cash you want to spend on a full-size sedan. But after the excitement of the Autobahn, and the various exercises that proved the car's ability to avoid collisions better without my input, jet lag got the better of me. I settled into the back seat and let somebody else drive for an hour back to the hotel.

The road twisted and wound through the mountains and the driver was shifting between the various drive settings of Sport and Eco and Comfort, but I was unaware – stretched out in the optional reclining rear seat, I slept like a baby all the way.

TECH SPECS

• MSRP range: $106,400 – $254,800
• Engines: 3.0-litre biturbo V6, 4.0-litre biturbo V8; 6.0-litre biturbo V12
• Transmission/Drive: 9-speed automatic, AWD (except S65: 7-speed automatic RWD)
• Fuel economy (litres/100 km:/S560): 11.8 city, 6.1 hwy
• Alternatives: BMW 7 Series, Audi A8, Porsche Panamera, Lexus LS460, Jaguar XJ

RATINGS

• Looks: Not much has changed for this face-lifted model, though the big sedan is still sleek and elegant. The bumpers have a new design and there are large air intakes at the front, with even more powerful headlights that claim almost full intensity up to 650 metres from the vehicle.
• Interior: Exceptionally spacious and comfortable, with an almost unlimited choice of colours and materials. The new standard twin-screen display (available on the E-Class as an option) fills the front fascia and behind the steering wheel. The cruise control stalk no longer exists, replaced by buttons on the redesigned steering wheel.
• Performance: It’s an achievement for any car as large as this to perform as well as this. The S560 accelerates from zero-to-100 km/h in 4.6 seconds, while the S63 takes just 3.5 seconds. Drive more moderately and fuel consumption is improved from the previous year’s model.
• Technology: It’s not completely self-driving yet, and it’s not perfect, but the new S-Class is a bit more capable than before of steering itself around steeper corners and avoiding obstacles. One feature uses GPS location and camera sign-recognition to drop the car’s speed automatically to the posted speed limit.
• Cargo: Plenty of room for plenty of golf bags and Louis Vuitton cases in the trunk.

VERDICT

9.0

An exceptional car that raises the bar, again, for comfort and technology. It's expensive, but its features will trickle their way down to more affordable cars in coming years.

The writer was a guest of the auto maker. Content was not subject to approval.

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