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By Jonathan Crouch

Introductionword count: 119

The Mercedes S-Class has always been the luxury saloon by which all others are measured. This improved version of the sixth generation 'W222'-series S-Class, an update launched in 2017, proved to be more affordable to run and even cleverer to use, but this car's real strengths continued to remain in comfort and refinement. This facelift may have represented a mid-term update but the changes were far-reaching. Under the bonnet, there were all-new petrol and diesel engines, the cabin was completely upgraded and there were further steps towards fully autonomous driving. It all added up to a package that continued to leave this as the world's best selling full-Luxury sector saloon. Let's check this model out as a used buy.

Modelsword count: 9

4dr Saloon (3.0 diesel / 3.0, 4.0, 6.0 petrol]

Historyword count: 485

The Mercedes S-Class. It's traditionally been the sensible answer to the question every motoring expert likes to dodge - 'what's the best car in the world?'. Other vehicles can be more opulent, faster or better to drive but over the years, no other model has so consistently delivered such a technologically-advanced blend of automotive virtues. Here, we're looking at the vastly improved version of the 'W222'-series sixth generation model, an update Mercedes introduced in 2017. And we mean 'vastly improved'. Over 6,000 components were here either created or re-designed to change the 'W222'-series model (which had been originally launched back in 2013), creating this facelifted version. Which at the time made this the most comprehensive mid-life update made to any car in Mercedes history. You can see why the Stuttgart maker felt the need to do that, with completely new versions of BMW's 7 Series, Audi's A8, Porsche's Panamera and the Lexus LS all, by 2017, having been recently launched with jaw-dropping technology in a bid to tempt away traditional S-Class buyers. There are plenty of them because this car has such a long and distinguished history in the full-Luxury boardroom segment, known as the 'S-Class' or 'Sonderklasse' ever since this badging was first introduced on the 'W116'-series model of 1972. This updated MK6 model though, had a tougher brief than any of its predecessors. At its entry point, it had to satisfy successful top-level Managers, while at the other end of the line-up, the same design with greater power and opulence had to be also good enough to meet the exalted expectations of the Rolls Royce and Bentley buyers that the Stuttgart maker aimed to snare with its exclusive Mercedes-Maybach brand. To achieve all that, this car had to be ground-breaking in its period - but then the S-Class always has been. Models like this are state-of-the-art test beds for the best that their brands can produce. Some features will forever be limited to plutocratic purses, but many others will eventually filter down into the everyday mainstream - and there are plenty of examples of that. This, after all, was the luxury saloon that in 1978 pioneered anti-lock brakes, in 1981 introduced airbags, seatbelt pre-tensioners and traction control and by 1992 was the first car to be built entirely free from harmful CFCs. At its original launch in 2013, this 'W222'-series model had built on that with industry-leading hybrid engine technology and a super-clever anticipatory suspension system able to detect and respond to irregularities in the road ahead. In 2017 in this updated form, it was further embellished with the brand's latest autonomous driving tech, plus there was an all-new interior, a re-designed V8 petrol powerplant and, most importantly, a completely new 2.9-litre V6 engine for the S350d diesel variant that almost all S-Class buyers in our market chose. This car sold until the launch of the seventh generation 'W223'-series S-Class in late 2020.

What You Getword count: 387

People all around the world can recognise an S-Class right away, its elegant styling ever an expression of luxury and the automotive grandeur of its era. Only subtle changes were required to update the look - and that's exactly what this revised model delivered. Most of these are found at the front where this revised 'W222'-series model featured freshly-designed 'Multibeam LED' headlamps incorporating a smart trio of daytime running light strips and featuring 'Ultra Range' high beams that operate at the maximum light output allowed by law. Between these, Mercedes added a revised and even more imposing radiator grille that favoured a simpler design with three chromed horizontal twin louvres. The vast amount of effort that Mercedes put into improving this 'W222'-series S-Class isn't immediately obvious from the outside but it certainly is once you take a seat behind the wheel. Other rivals from this period have superbly crafted cabins too, but none of them offer quite the same sense of opulent indulgence that you get here. As with the previous version of this car, the interior's dominated by a couple of 12.3-inch screens that are joined behind a single glass cover, one for the instrument binnacle, the other for the centre-dash COMMAND infotainment display. A change for this revised model was the addition of neat little smartphone-style touch pads on the smarter three-spoke Nappa leather-trimmed steering wheel. Plus there was an optional 'Energizing Comfort' package that co-ordinates various cabin features to create six pre-set relaxation programmes. Move to take a seat in the rear and you'll find that as at the front, the doors open very wide, especially if you've got the long wheelbase body style 80% of new buyers wanted, which is 121mm longer. What you'll find inside depends upon which of the rear seat packages the original buyer chose to specify. Standard models get a conventional three-person rear bench, but if you're looking for the long wheelbase body style that features across most of the range, it's quite likely that you'll want to find a car specified with the 'Individual Rear Seats package'. This gives you two separate chairs that are electrically operated and ventilated with opulent cushioned head restraints and a backrest adjustable by up to 37-degrees. Out back, boot space varies with the variant you choose. In the S350d, you get 510-litres.

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