2006 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Body style(s): 4-door sedan

Notes

    The S-Class could have simply marked time for 2006, waiting for its replacement to be unveiled at the Frankfurt Auto Show, but Mercedes chose to spice up the lineup, and gave the seven-year-old W220 a thunderous send-off. The first new model was the S350 (technically known as the S350W). This was the first S-Class V-6 since 1999, and also the first W220 with the standard wheelbase to be imported to the States. Still comfortably roomy, the S350 helped bridge the gap between the E- and S-Classes. Except for a tilt-down passenger-side rearview mirror and the the rear power roller blind, the S350 had the same feature content as its longer S430 sibling. The six-cylinder provided no fuel economy benefits relative to the S430, because the S350's lighter weight was countered by the reduced power of the smaller engine. However, the weight savings and shorter wheelbase did make the S350 somewhat more graceful and less imposing, and made the sedan rather more nimble than the long-wheelbase V models. With the cost of a base S430 having increased by $7625 since 2000, the S350 also returned some sanity to S-Class pricing. The real news for 2006, though, was the arrival of the monstrous S65 AMG. The engine design was shared with the S600 and the Maybach 57/62 models, but was bored out to six liters and given much greater turbo boost. The result was staggering power: more than 600 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque: the S65 AMG was the most powerful 4-door sedan ever built. The motor was introduced in 2005 with the CL65 and SL65 coupe and roadsters, and it had been rumored to be intended for the S-Class as well, but few thought that Mercedes-Benz would bring such a machine to the States, where the gargantuan power had little application. Since the US had missed out on previous AMG super-performers (the SL73 of 1999, the S63 of 2001), this was the first AMG-tuned 12-cylinder seen in America. The price of admission was equally staggering: the S65 commanded a $41,050 premium over the S600. Fully optioned out (with 4-place seating & heated rear seats, satellite radio, cell phone, obstacle-detection, and radar cruise control), an S65 would cost $182,019, unless you wanted yours to be an Espresso.... Other trims saw changes as well. On the S430 and S500, the AMG package with 18" wheels and body trim could be specified at no cost, but they could no longer be equipped with the active suspension of the S55 and S600; the S500 was no longer available in 4-passenger configuration, either. The S55 moved to 19" wheels, which it shared with the S65. The S600 saw the greatest change. It lost the voice-activated cellular telephone (which hadn't had a standard handset anyway), but gained far more: the power trunk closer (which could close the trunk even if fully open), rear side window blinds, a heated steering wheel, and Keyless Go, with its Smartcard and push-button ignition. The automatically-bolstered seats of the S55/S65 were no longer optional on the S600. Incidentally, not all of this equipment was available on the S65: the heated steering wheel was unavailable, and the Parktronic sensors added $1100 to its already eye-watering pricetag. The all-new W221 S-Class, with its greater size and presence, debuted for 2007.

Series: 2000-2006

design

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Other vehicles

Mercedes-Benz S-Class S350W sedan.


Mercedes-Benz S-Class S350W sedan.


Mercedes-Benz S-Class LWB sedan.


Mercedes-Benz S-Class LWB sedan.


Mercedes-Benz S-Class AMG sedan (S65; S55 is similar, but with silver wheels).


Mercedes-Benz S-Class AMG sedan (S65, note quad exhaust, lower bodyside moldings).