New 2014 Mercedes-Benz S Class boasts high tech features

The new 2014 Mercedez-Benz S Class comes with the ability to drive itself, as well as advanced safety technologies that can detect when the car is about to crash into pedestrians.

|
Daimler/AP/File
The 2010 Mercedes-Benz S-Class hybrid car speeds through the roads in 2010. The new Mercedes-Benz 2014 S Class features advanced safety technologies and autonomous driving ability — making it the first production vehicle that will be able to drive itself.

The Mercedes-Benz S Class has been the perennial leader for new technologies in the automotive sector for decades, and with the launch of the latest generation that trend looks set to continue.

The new 2014 S Class’ tech features are numerous but the big ticket items are its advanced safety technologies and autonomous driving ability--yes, the new 2014 Mercedes-Benz S Class will be the first production vehicle that will be able to drive itself (in certain situations).

This video gives a good rundown on some of the features, though it should be noted that the model presented is a European-spec car and some elements may not be offered on versions delivered to the U.S. market.

As you may have guessed, the area Mercedes engineers focused on the most in developing the new S Class is in the area of safety. Here, numerous sensors located around the car (26 in total) help monitor the vehicle’s surrounding in all directions.

These sensors work together with the vehicle’s active braking systems which can determine if you’re about to crash into an object, including moving ones such as cross-traffic or pedestrians that may happen to jump out on the road, and alert you and even apply the brakes independently if necessary.

But it’s not just about safety. The interior of the new S Class is just as dramatic an improvement; it's almost halo concept-level style and finish, but in a production form. Here, designers have added mood lighting, remote-controlled massage functions and foldable work tables for the rear passengers.

Sales of the 2014 S Class commence this fall, initially in S550 guise. More versions including high-performance AMG models and a plug-in hybrid will be launched within the following year.

For a more in-depth look at the 2014 S Class’ safety features, click here.

And, for a video of the car’s official launch in Hamburg, Germany last month, click here.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

QR Code to New 2014 Mercedes-Benz S Class boasts high tech features
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/Business/In-Gear/2013/0610/New-2014-Mercedes-Benz-S-Class-boasts-high-tech-features
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe