Mercedes Benz S Class, A Long History & Tradition Of Luxury Through Each Generation
Mercedes Benz have been making the S Class or Sonderklasse for a long time, but not every generation was called S Class.
Arguably you could go back even earlier to the Ponton, but here we have the Fintail W111. A direct replacement for the Ponton and in W112 designation came with the larger 3.0 litre engine. Introduced in 1959, production lasted 9 years for the saloon. The convertible and coupe finished in 1971.
The replacement was the W108 and brought new V8 engines along with a new straight six. The more powerful 300SE and SEL were given the chassis designation W109. It was this model that saw the introduction of the high performance luxury saloon with the 300 SEL 6.3.
In 1972 Mercedes launched the W116, the first model to officially be called S Class. The usual engine choices remained, the straight six and the V8. But the performance version was present too. This time in the rather fabulous 450 SEL 6.9. The regular 450 even won the European Car Of The Year.
Mercedes replaced the W116 in 1979 with the W126. The performance version wasn’t officially present, but the 560 had plenty of go. This model was quite a sales success and there are plenty of them still around. They really were built rather well. Overall, there were some 818,036 Se and SELs, with an additional 74,060 Coupes.
The replacement W140 of 1991 was legendary for its build. Nicknamed the panzerwagen, built like a tank, the car had an unrivalled reputation. One rather neat feature was the self-closing doors, or soft close as it’s known. Sold over an 8 year period the total was around half of the W126 predecessor. Again, there were three wheelbases, one of which was for the coupe.
1999 was to bring about a new millennium, and a new S Class from Mercedes Benz. This one was quite different. It was the introduction of airmatic suspension, vented seats and a navigation system to add to the luxury. The W220 was a much less imposing car, being smaller and lighter than the W140. Mercedes also introduced the AMG rage of high powered luxury cars. The S65 was for a while the most powerful saloon car made.
Things continued in the 2006 W221 replacement. Quite a different look, with rather a nice style to the interior. Further developments in ride and handling are obvious, but also the systems onboard took another step forward. They’re quite nice these, I know, I bought one.
The W222 went on sale in 2014 and was another step forward in technology. Some self-driving elements are present with the right options. The Magic Body Control is really quite impressive. This is a modern car I quite like, having been lucky enough to spend time with one.
Lastly the W223. Newly unveiled in September 2020 for 2021 production it’s too soon to say much about it. I haven’t even seen one yet.
But, if you could own any of them, which generation of Mercedes S Class would you like to take home?
Mercedes, Daimler AG, kindly provided the images for the large gallery below. Have a look and see which one is your favourite.
Simon
