Mercedes-Benz shows new images of S-Class interior

The new S-Class has 27 fewer traditional buttons and switches. Photo: Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz claims the next S-Class will  feature  a “revolutionary” interior design that will offer new technology and design features aimed at enabling unprecedented levels of comfort.

The flagship sedan for the German brand is set to be launched later this year, and will be for sale in New Zealand soon after that.

The seventh generation of the S-Class will be the first to feature a new version of its Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) infotainment. 

Mercedes says the interior designers have created a “feel-good ambience with lounge character marked by elegance, high quality and lightness”. It says it has taken design cues from interior architecture and yacht design.

It claims the interior offers “a third place” that serves as a “refuge between home and workplace”.

There is an entirely new dashboard design, featuring an ergonomic display arrangement. The interior includes large trim elements built into the dash and offered in the car’s rear as part of the ‘First Class rear suite’. They are made from open-pore wood veneer with aluminium inlays.

It has design cues from yachting, including wood panelling (above). Photo: Mercedes-Benz

Hartmut Sinkwitz, Head of Interior Design, said, "Our S-Class customers are highly discerning. With the new S-Class, we invite them to a completely new luxury experience. It is underpinned by our 'Sensual Purity' design philosophy and our absolute commitment to quality and attention to detail. The result is a revolutionary interior experience caught between digital and analogue luxury",

Mercedes will also introduce new versions of the ‘Energising Comfort’ features in the car. They include a new air filtering system, which will filter out fine dust, pollen and odours, and in certain markets will show the exterior air quality.

The luxury sedan will have new versions of the ‘Energising Comfort’. Photo: Mercedes-Benz

There are also additional programmes that alter various interior settings, such as the massaging seats. The new ‘coach’ function can sync with fitness and wellness trackers to suggest comfort settings for planned trips by analysing data about an owner’s sleep quality or stress level.

Mercedes notes that in the S-Class’s primary markets - the US and China - the car’s owner customarily sits in the back, so it has “systematically designed the new edition of its flagship model with the rear in mind”. As such, rear passengers have access to the same infotainment functions as those in the front, controlled via up to three touchscreens - each of which can be specified with OLED technology and haptic touch feedback.

There are 27 fewer traditional buttons and switches in the new S-Class compared with today's model, with a heightened emphasis on swiping, voice control and hand gestures. Some functions, however, such as the headlights and windscreen wipers, can be operated using familiar physical controls. 

In some markets, the owners sit at the rear so they now have screens. Photo: Mercedes-Benz

The MBUX system’s trademark “Hey, Mercedes” voice recognition function has been upgraded as well. It can now be used to explain where the car’s first aid kit is located and connect to a smartphone via Bluetooth, as well as traditional functions such as accepting a phone call or displaying the sat-nav map. If a driver says “I’m tired”, the system will activate an ‘energising’ programme, or if a rear passenger says the same phrase, a ‘wellbeing’ programme. 

Augmented reality will feature, too, projecting three-dimensional directional arrows onto the road ahead to reduce the need for the driver to take their eyes off the road. 

Dirk Fetzer, Head of S-Class Product Management, said: "Luxury today is defined by comprehensive refinement. A luxurious driving experience depends on a host of factors and must appeal to all the senses. Traditionally, this also includes almost silent travel. But it also includes making life easier for customers, for example, because intuitive operation and comprehensive connectivity save a lot of time.”