S-Class (W223) Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W223) Facelift

[Merc1]

I can already hear him without playing that video.

The actual presentation by Mercedes was stunning, though when wheeling out the old S-Classes and the 600 they didn't include the W140. Strange. The holograms of very famous owners was really neat.

M

 

[lukeswiss]

With different set of wheels.

These cars look beautiful to me, I want to hear this new flat plane V8, supposedly it has a higher pitched hum.

 

[lukeswiss]

The actual presentation by Mercedes was stunning, though when wheeling out the old S-Classes and the 600 they didn't include the W140. Strange. The holograms of very famous owners was really neat.

M

The W140 is a legend, missed opportunity there.

 

[Merc1]

Anyone got any info on the S63 and Maybachs? Different grille treatments? The regular S63 and then a S63 E-Performance is that everyone is thinking?

M

 

[Centurion]

Why is Mercedes picking fights with cheap Chinese cars. RR, JLR, Bentley, Ferrari etc are selling shit on of expensive cars…….and none dashboards covered in screens and glass!

 

[leylandi]

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[Mr. Mercedes]

Anyone got any info on the S63 and Maybachs? Different grille treatments? The regular S63 and then a S63 E-Performance is that everyone is thinking?

M

In the RBR video he said they were asked to not discuss the Maybachs, and we can summise whatever we want to from that.

Hopefully more extensive/bespoke upgrades etc.

 

[Design FIRST]

We usually see quite eye to eye Jimmy, but in this case, absolutely not!!!

And that's cool. Spirited discourse and debate that can lead to opening horizons is...GOOD.

 

[Design FIRST]

Doesn’t even look like a Mercedes.

M

A decisive departure from the more recent exterior design direction. It embraces a perceived "spirit" that could, and IMHO should, be characteristic of M-B automobiles. It does not usher a revolution. It is more of a symbolic recollection of what M-B design could encompass were it to jettison all of the superfluous gimmickry that has become so characteristic of more recent M-B products.

Perhaps that is why I find the @Uygar illustration so impressive. I'm simply no longer that impressed by what M-B designers have been bringing to the table in more recent times. But in the end, this is almost wholly subjective. And getting a good discussion going is great !

 

[Mick Briesgau]

Seeing the livestream and Gordon Wagener being praised by Ola Källenius, The following thought came to my mind: in a few years time, we will remember GW as one of the best designers at Mercedes-Benz. My personal highlight during his reign being the W222.

 

[Swissbob]

Why is Mercedes picking fights with cheap Chinese cars. RR, JLR, Bentley, Ferrari etc are selling shit on of expensive cars…….and none dashboards covered in screens and glass!

I agree with you, especially the Bentley is very classy.
You picked the wrong picture from the Range Rover. They changed the interior after 1yr to this one.

 

[Swissbob]

This is amazing. The a sense of keyless go makes the car less susceptible to getting stolen.

It’s crazy to think that in the prefacelift, the center console cubby was cheap scratch plastic regardless of trim chosen for the other inlays.

Put thin black leather on the black plastic surfaces, problem solved.

With that upgrade it looks much better than the new interior.

 

[klugscheisser87]

What's with all the pointless design speculation.

We know where MB is heading, and it is apparently the new chief designers evolution of Sensual Purity.

Regardless of whatever we think on this forum, Mercedes has already said Gordon's hand extends into the next 10 years of design. 6 or 7 realisticly IMO.

I would calm down the expectations.

We have seen some of that implemented on the new GLC, and this is probably the most they can squeeze out of it.

They need a ground-level redesign and to reimagine their brand from scratch to clean the current chaos.

The Vision Iconic might look spectacular, but it’s a very weak design reference for production ready cars.
We saw this already on the Vision EQS vs reality.

 

[SilverArrow_]

This would be my version:

• no ugly black plastic between the headlights and the grille
• a fabric interior (given the disastrous current leather in the W223, which creases/cracks/polishes itself smooth after 60,000 km)
• Zebrano wood for a bit of Mercedes nostalgia
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Basically, every W223 should be finished at least to the level of this blue Manufaktur version — meaning that even the lower part of the seat (which is otherwise made of the cheapest plastic imaginable) should be wrapped in leather with stitching, as well as the side cover of the cockpit.
  What’s still atrociously cheap is the door sill made of the cheapest hard plastic — this should be thick plush, like it still was in the W221.
  
  
  
  
  
  Otherwise, what is there to say: the W223 is the worst S-Class of all S-Classes. The least character, terrible build quality, terrible materials, and a huge number of faults and recalls. The facelift is pure bling-bling: what good is an illuminated star if I get a rear end that will now (because of the star graphics) be even harder to distinguish from an E-Class, and an interior that is practically a copy of the E-Class interior? The car’s grille is also completely oversized and doesn’t fit the vehicle proportionally at all; it resembles Audi’s designs, and on top of that it isn’t fully illuminated but is interrupted where the license plate sits… disastrous.
  
  
  Instead of Mercedes remaining like a high-end hi-fi (with switches and buttons made from the finest cold aluminum that click beautifully and rotate with precision), it has become a cheap Chinese radio manufacturer with touchscreens.
  
  
  Someone said something very true to me recently: today, if you want the interior quality of a Mercedes from the 1990s, you practically have to go for a Bentley or a Rolls-Royce. Yes. Sadly, that’s really the case.
  
  
  In my view, the W223 does not deserve the S-Class name, and I can only hope that Ola is replaced as soon as possible and that someone comes in who has more understanding for customers like us, who have been driving S-Classes for 25 years…

 

[Luca]

Guys, let's say this was a restyling, let's hope Bastian Baudy comes up with something new for 2030 with class s...

 

[Centurion]

Basically, every W223 should be finished at least to the level of this blue Manufaktur version

The problem with Manufaktur is that it's expensive and slow. In UAE, Turkey and USA there are places where people take their whole interior to be retrinmed for $15-30k to a standard and level of customisation that manufaktur can't match.

If you want OEM, brabus and Bentley heavily customise interiors.

 

[Design FIRST]

You can change the design until 3yrs pre launch, therefore it’s still possible to bin a lot of things from Gorden.

BTW in the German magazine ( manager magazine) there’s an interesting article about GW.

He behaved like someone who’s even bigger than good, living in California all the time, and only sometimes visiting Europe.

His biggest baby was the EQS, he’s still convinced about that car, although in the car clinic where pre production cars are showed people who must sign a NDA, no car in the history of Mercedes Benz had a worse feedback.
Nevertheless he was absolutely convinced that he’s right, and he told them you can’t ask people about a car they’re going to buy in 3 yrs.

That’s why he had to go.

I'll readily admit to having a problem with the character of Gorden Wagener.

It wasn't long ago when he made some public comments in the automotive media directed at designer collegues that could easily be construed as derogatory. While I do not recall him explicity naming names, his implications were clear. Extremely uncool. "Unkollegial, unfair und geradezu verwerflich, Herr Wagener" . Egomaniacal.

Members from the German-speaking regions of Europe may remember the independent industrial designer Luigi Colani. Extremely outspoken, often abrasive and with a HUGE ego. But at least he was entertainingly eccentric and often very witty. His automotive designs were nutty. But some of his non-automotive product designs were quite good IMHO.

 

[TATE]

Guys, let's say this was a restyling, let's hope Bastian Baudy comes up with something new for 2030 with class s...

No way!
Every is designed until 2037!!!!
Speaking about regular models of course.
That’s what Gordon says in his book iconic Design

 

[klier]

Seeing the livestream and Gordon Wagener being praised by Ola Källenius, The following thought came to my mind: in a few years time, we will remember GW as one of the best designers at Mercedes-Benz. My personal highlight during his reign being the W222.

LMAO. Joke of the day.
Your personal highlight is the only truly noteworthy car he has produced during his tenure.

But it figures, Ola is just as bad as Gorden, possibly even worse so no kidding they speak fondly of each other. And both are just beyond any kind of redemption. Worst MB has ever seen in 140 years.

No way!
Every is designed until 2037!!!!
Speaking about regular models of course.
That’s what Gordon says in his book iconic Design

Yeah that's what Gorden wants you to believe. Everything designed until 2037, which is 10 years off? ABSOLUTELY NO f#ckING WAY

The thought alone. The man has gone full retard if he actually believes that.
The new design boss should be busy burning all his upcoming designs in a f#cking volcano as we speak.

 

[Design FIRST]

No way!
Every is designed until 2037!!!!
Speaking about regular models of course.
That’s what Gordon says in his book iconic Design

IMHO, rigid adherence to this by M-B, should it be accurate information, is very much akin to positioning the company on the edge of an extremely slippery, sharply descending slope with huge boulders at the bottom. Especially in view of our ever more rapidly changing times, rapidly shifting perceptions. Especially in view of increasingly fierce industry competition, from other German manufacturers as well as abroad.