At first sight, Mercedes-Benz’s new S560 seems to be too big and too old-fashioned. The long-bodied sedan requires drivers to pay careful attention when navigating the narrow streets and maze-like parking lots of Seoul.

But don’t be disturbed. Once you get your hands on the mahogany wood grip of the steering wheel, this ponderous vehicle feels as light as a feather.

The new S560 offers extraordinarily soft movement, but the engine still has power. The 469-horsepower vehicle boasts a 0-100 kilometers per hour time of 4.6 seconds. It may not be as wild as a sports car, but the sedan is definitely fast, dynamic and smart.

Its semiautonomous driving and driving assist features offers a glimpse into the future of driving.

At a driving speed between 10 and 200 kph, Mercedes-Benz’s Active Distance Assist Distronic feature sends a warning sign if a driver attempting to change lanes misses other vehicles in the blind spot. Sensors and cameras installed in the vehicle activate the active brake assist system too when the driver remains irresponsive to alerts. The vehicle automatically puts on the brakes to keep a good distance from the car ahead or help the vehicle not to cross lanes.

Not only smart driving assistance features, but also the impeccable interior is key to the comfortable driving experience. The highly engineered leather seats with massage functions, LCD monitors installed for the backseats and music flowing through the high-end German Burmester stereo relieve the boredom of long hours of driving. Ambient lighting operating with 64 colors inside offers visual relaxation.

The panoramic dashboard resonates with classic features, including an analog clock and manual buttons. But its navigation system fails to meet expectations. It is difficult to type in Korean words, and lacks understanding of the Korean address system.

Overall, the New S560 may be best suited to successful CEOs with a chauffeur, who need not worry about driving economically.

The average gas mileage is 8.5 kilometers per liter and the price for Mercedes-Benz’s new S560 starts from 202 million won ($189,000).

The sedan is one of the eight S-Class series vehicles launched in October.

Of the S-Class lineup, the S560 ranked second in terms of sales, with 465 sold between January and March, just behind the S450, of which the German carmaker sold 671 in the same period.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)



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