The new Mercedes-Benz S-Class – Car Body Design

From the official Press Release:

Exterior Design

The new S-Class features a short front overhang, a long wheelbase and a balanced rear overhang. Main design features include the stretched hood, the upright front end with the mounted star, the long passenger cell and the flowing C-pillar with its sculptured shoulder.

The claim of the S-Class to high status is indicated by the distance from the front axle to the windscreen. The wide track and flush-mounted wheels with modern designs give the vehicle a muscular look.

The so-called character lines have been greatly reduced along the sides. Cleverly contoured surfaces with a sculptured look create special light effects. At the same time they embody the Mercedes-Benz design philosophy of sensual purity.

Chrome elements stylishly positioned by the designers – e.g. as a decorative lower strip on the side sills – further embellish the S-Class and accentuate its length.

The front section is characterized by its high-status radiator grille. The numerous sensors and cameras of the assistance systems are attractively and symmetrically integrated into the design, and deliberately accentuated as high-tech elements.

The headlamps have the three-point daytime driving light signature that is typical of the S-Class, but this is flatter and somewhat smaller overall.

The new light system DIGITAL LIGHT is available as an optional alternative to the standard MULTIBEAM LED headlamps.

This headlamp has a distinctive look, and is distinguished by e.g. the blue light of its floor facing.

Flush-fitted door handles (optional) and sophisticated wheel designs (size 18 to 21 inches) accentuate the side aspect. The dynamic appearance of the car is continued at the rear.

Additional highlights include the surprising design of the boot lid in combination with the progressive, two-section rear lights.

The chrome strip at the upper edge of the rear lights accentuate the width of the rear.

Thanks to precisely designed, highly detailed interior features and certain animated functions, the rear lights contribute to the impression of high quality and contribute to the distinctive light signature both at day and night.

Thanks to extensive studies, the overall drag coefficient is 0.22, which makes the S-Class one of the world’s most aerodynamic cars.

Interior Design

The interior was conceived as “a feel-good ambience” with lounge character marked by elegance, high quality and lightness.

The dashboard with its new architecture, modern surface design and ergonomic display arrangement is a particular highlight. The aim and ambition of the Mercedes-Benz interior designers was to harmonise digital and analogue luxury in the vehicle interior.

The S-Class has always been a place for comfortable travel and relaxed working. With the new generation, the interior has fully evolved into a “third place”, a refuge between home and workplace. Nearly all comfort-related dimensions of both variants, the S-Class with short and long wheelbase, have been improved in the front as well as on the rear seats. The sense of space is accordingly generous.

The desired harmony between digital and analogue luxury results in a revolutionary interior design, including associations with interior architecture and yacht design elements. The sculptured look of the dashboard, centre console and armrests appears to float above an expansive interior landscape. The systematic reduction in the number of controls underscores the minimalist appearance of the interior. A fine divide between the upper section of the dashboard and the large trim element structures the area and creates horizontal breadth. This interface is also where the active ambient lighting (see separate chapter) is located.

In addition to the up to five screens, highlights include the large trim elements in the dashboard and in the rear (with the First Class rear suite). These flow around the passengers and are a systematic further development of the wrap-around effect.

One particularly attractive version of the trim is an open-pored wood veneer shot through with inlays of real aluminium that follow the contours. The “Novum” trim variant consists of a mixed metallic weave which accentuates the elegant, sporty styling.

New design elements include the flat, four-square centre vents with horizontal nacelles. Two slim, vertical side vents on each side round off the ends of the dashboard. The air volume is controlled by keys with LED displays.

The avantgarde geometry of the vents and their decorative nature accentuate the modern look.
The seats (see separate chapter for features and configuration) invite the occupants to sit down and relax. The flowing, three-dimensional layer design theme gives an impression of lightness. Different finishes give the seats different characters. For example, the flowing longitudinal piping of Lugano leather lends them a noble, avantgarde look, while the progressive diamond pattern of nappa leather and Exclusive nappa leather is more classical and expressive.

Mercedes-Benz introduced electric seat adjustment in 1980. Since then, many vehicle generations have featured the brand’s hallmark seat adjustment switch in the form of a stylised seat in the door. This control has been completely redesigned for the new S-Class. Visible joints have been reduced by combining the trim with the seat controls. The geometry and surround lighting of the control panel make the seat adjustment control appear to float in the door panel.

The newly developed pressure sensors for seat adjustment open up new design possibilities. Thanks to the practically fixed control buttons, minimal gaps between the individual controls can be realised. This also means that very small apertures in the black panel trim are possible. This allows a slim, filigree, floating design of the control buttons. The pressure sensors also allow a continuous coupling of operating pressure and speed.

The driver display and media display offer a comprehensive aesthetic experience The appearance of the screens can be individualised with a choice of four display styles (Discreet, Sporty, Exclusive, Classic) and three modes (Navigation, Assistance, Service)

Examples of new features:

• In “Discreet”, seven different colour schemes are available for the instrumentation, and the 64 colours of the ambient lighting are grouped accordingly.
• “Sporty” is dominated by the colour red, with dynamic presentation of the central rev counter.
• The new display scheme “Exclusive” in an attractive white mother-of-pearl look is reserved for the S-Class. In night mode and when passing through tunnels, the system automatically switches to a darker display.
• In “Assistance” mode, important events, the infrastructure and other road users (cars, motorcycles, trucks) are shown.
• The augmented reality head-up display (see separate chapter) is absolutely new, and projects important information into the real environment.

 

New Features

The ten most important new features:

1. The second generation of MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User Experience) débuts in the new S-Class. Another milestone as the interface between the driver, passengers and vehicle: there are up to five screens on board, some with OLED technology. At the touch of a button, the new 3D driver display for the first time allows spatial perception of the scene with a real 3D effect thanks to eye-tracking. A similarly impressive feature is the very large head-up display with augmented reality content. When navigating, for example, animated turn-off arrows (“fishbones”) are virtually and precisely projected onto the road lane.
2. Using cameras in the overhead control panel and learning algorithms, MBUX Interior Assist recognises and anticipates the wishes and intentions of the occupants. It does this by interpreting head direction, hand movements and body language, and responds with corresponding vehicle functions. For example, if the driver looks over his/her shoulder towards the rear window, Interior Assist automatically opens the sunblind.
3. The active ambient lighting (optional extra) supplements ambient lighting (standard equipment) with an additional layer of light. With around 250 LEDs it is integrated into the driving assistance systems, and is able to reinforce their warnings visually. In addition, feedback is possible when operating the climate control system or the ‘Hey Mercedes’ voice assistant, for instance.
4. The latest generation of the Driving Assistance Package has new and numerous improved functions. One example is the intelligent compliance with speed limits. The new assistance display in the driver display clearly shows the operating principle of the driving assistance systems as a full-screen view.
   During severe frontal collisions, the rear airbag (optional extra for the S-Class with long wheelbase) can considerably reduce the loads acting on the head and neck area of the seat-belt-wearing occupants in the outer rear seats. The frontal airbag for the rear seat deploys particularly gently thanks to its innovative construction using a tubular structure.
5. Thanks to rear-axle steering (optional), the S-Class is as manoeuvrable as a compact car in the city. The steering angle at the rear axle is up to ten degrees. The turning circle is reduced by up to two metres.
   More than 50 electronic components in the new S-Class can be updated with new software over-the-air (OTA). These include the entire MBUX infotainment system, the driver display, the driving assistance systems and the MULTIBEAM LED and DIGITAL LIGHT lighting systems. This technology saves the customer time, as he/she does not need to visit a workshop for this purpose. Furthermore, the vehicle remains up to date throughout its lifecycle and is equipped for new features. The explicit consent of the user is always a precondition for OTA updates.
6. When a side impact with another vehicle threatens, the vehicle body can be raised by the E-ACTIVE BODY CONTROL suspension (optional) within a few tenths of a second. This is a new function of PRE-SAFE® Impulse Side: It can reduce the loads acting on the occupants because it directs the impact forces towards particularly resistant structures in the lower area of the vehicle.
7. It is expected that from the second half of 2021 the S-Class will be able to drive in conditionally automated mode with the new DRIVE PILOT (optional extra), in situations where traffic density is high or in tailbacks, on suitable motorway sections in Germany. By taking pressure off the driver, this allows them to undertake secondary activities such as browsing on the internet or dealing with emails in the In-Car Office, and so win extra time.
8. The revolutionary headlamp technology DIGITAL LIGHT (optional extra) allows completely new functions, e.g. the projection of marking aids or warning symbols onto the road ahead. In each headlamp, DIGITAL LIGHT has a light module with three extremely powerful LEDs with light that is refracted and directed by 1.3 million micro-mirrors. The resolution is therefore more than 2.6 million pixels per vehicle.

(Source: Mercedes-Benz)