The new Mercedes S-class W223: the main facts about the novelty.
The S-Class has been the epitome of luxury for decades, not just for Mercedes, but for the entire automotive industry. But times are changing. However, Lars Wehmeier, who is responsible for the development of the new generation of this model, is confident that the new S-Class will not lose its position in the global market. Here is what he said in an interview with the Polish auto publication Autokult.
“The Mercedes S-Class is called by many the best car in the world, so you can imagine the burden of responsibility I have experienced working on the successor to the current generation,” says Lars Wehmeier during a telephone interview.
Despite the fact that this engineer is only in his 30s and can’t remember the days when the amazing W116 or W126 generation executive cars were created, he is up to date with all the latest trends in this class of cars. This allowed him to approach the topic of creating the successor to the S-Class W222, which has already been in production for 7 years, with an open mind and an interesting approach .
Over the years, successive generations have become more and more sophisticated and equipped. Now, Mercedes’ goal is the opposite: to make the design of the new S-Class as simple as possible and reduce user annoyance. This should give us what Wehmeier calls “the new luxury.” Hence the emergence of the new MBUX system, with a huge screen on the center console with few buttons and an intuitive gesture control system .
The other day, official photos of the S-class appeared on the Web, in which Mercedes reveals the details of the new interior. The new car showcases a new dashboard design using quality leather, porous wood, and aluminum. However, as Lars Wehmeier notes, the main thing is not visible in the photographs. It’s… silence. Yes, yes, photos cannot convey to people what can be felt inside this luxury car. After all, how to convey the silence that is the highlight of the new S-Class?
“We spent years making sure our clients…feel nothing,” Wehmeier laughs. His statement, however, will be crucial to the understanding of this model. The engineer says that today luxury is no longer in materials or forms, but in the mind of the recipient (buyer). Today, it is much more important than before, small, at first glance, insignificant and not so spectacular details. It’s not about making art for art’s sake, but about effective solutions, Wehmeier said.
One of these solutions will be a unique method of soundproofing due to damping foam, which will even be added to the structural elements of the chassis. A new air filter has also been developed that blows fresh, clean air into the cab, protecting the cabin from street noise.
The current S-Class, which is preparing to retire from the market, has many interesting patents inside that have improved the quality of life for the driver and passengers in an original way. Now, these details are taken to a new level. For example, if the S-Class in the back of the W222 had a heated armrest, now the door panel next to the elbow also heats up.
If there were pillows on the rear head restraints, now
The new approach to the creation of the S-Class shows how dynamically the times in which we live are changing. Its creators faced various previously absent dilemmas. Belinda Günther, responsible for selecting materials for the interior of the new S-Class, says,
Wherever she could, she tried to use materials from renewable sources. Nevertheless, the main “building material” of the interior is still natural cowhide.
However, if in the near future there is talk in the company about the need to replace cowhide with some other materials, who knows, it is quite possible that the new generation of the S-Class will be the last where buyers will be able to choose this material for the interior.
Lars Wehmeier draws attention to another problem that the new S-Class will have to face: new competitors are constantly appearing in the luxury limousine/sedan market, including other body styles. The engineer also sees the greatest threat
“While we look forward to continued growth in sales of all new models, the luxury executive sedan segment is still very important to us, if only because of the prestige,” admits Wehmeier. For this reason, it can be expected that the new S-Class will continue to be the model with which Mercedes will raise the bar even higher. What does the “producer” of the new S-class mean, we will find out on September 2, when Mercedes plans to make the official premiere of the new car, presenting it to the public.
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