Lining Your Model Train Tunnel

" S-Class stands for the best car of the world."

" We can all argue what is the best car in the world, but there's no argument that the S-Class is the best of the best from Mercedes Benz."

" Every S-Class"

" has each own character, but it is always recognizable as a Mercedes."

" The name S-Class is an abbreviation of the German word"

" Sonderklasse,"

" which means"

" special class"

" and while S-Class describes cars from as far back as the `50s, it doesn't become an official Mercedes model designation until 1973."

" Every S-Class is a trendsetter, in terms of technology, of innovations, and the design. The smallest detail is very important. If you count all such small details together, that makes the Mercedes."

" Details like developing an entirely new sound chamber using microphones mounted inside the 10-foot parabolic mirror to test the 170 different parts of the car that reduce noise and vibration."

" Well, it's very important for me to touch the car because designing a car is to create a sculpture, and so you have to run with your hands over the car."

" A special wind tunnel confirms what the human hand feels. With an aerodynamic drag coefficient of 0.26, the new S-Class is as streamlined as a new Corvette."

" So we have a clear line and a clear silhouette, and in combination with the big fenders here, I think it gives a car a forward drive. It makes it dynamic."

" The S-Class is built in Germany, but it's shape, look, and feel are the work of 3 different Mercedes design studios around the world."

" One design studio is in America, near Los Angeles; one in Asia, in Tokyo; and the last one in Como, Italy; but the last one is special, established for interiors, for new color trims because the fashion made coming from Milan is very important for us."

" During the 4 years it takes to design a new S-Class, the latest fashion trends from Milan meet the German design philosophy of form follows function."

" We built models like that and this is not just a mockup because everything, every switch, what is inside there is really functioning. It's functional. And to control this unit, we have this switch in there; and to make it very comfortable for the driver, we have this fixation of the hand, because, otherwise, when this is not there, you have to move it from your upper arm; and so it's very, very easy. Your hand is fixed and you can do with your fingers very, very fine movements."

" Designing a padded cellphone cover as a handrest is the automotive equivalent of having a desktop to rest your hand on when you're using a computer mouse. The round controller is just like a mouse, letting you control 25 different functions displayed on the car's in-dash video screen; everything from the heat and air-conditioning to the sound and GPS navigation system. Building a new S-Class is even more high-tech. At the Mercedes factory in Stuttgart, robots weld together the frame and body. Then, the entire body is submerged into a special chemical bath to prevent rust and corrosion. Robots paint each car with perfect accuracy. With the paint dry, the finished body is lowered onto the running gear and chassis. Another new S-Class car is born. Final assembly is done by hand, including one small, but very important part, the famous 3-pointed star that tells the world these cars are the newest models from the world's oldest car company. Then, each car literally gets the white glove treatment before it's fired up for the very first time, another check to test how everything works. The last thing that happens is the window sticker. That sticker carries a price ranging from $80,000 to $180,000, depending on whether you pick the V8, the V12, or the top-of-the-line AMG turbocharged V12. Each model offers different driving characteristics, which is another defining part of an S-Class."

" When you look some decades back in our history, we have different characters of S-Classes. One was very dominant and status oriented. The next one was very elegant and dynamic. And now, the new S-Class is very powerful and self-confident."