The internet, as a rule, wants drama whenever Mercedes touches its flagship. This time the S-Class simply will not give it any. The 2027 facelift is so restrained that even the people who actually drove it, Motor1’s testers, came away with a shrug and a verdict that sounds almost disappointed in its calmness: it is still an S-Class, just wearing slightly louder jewelry.

The cosmetic changes are the first thing you notice, whether you asked for them or not. The new grille carries integrated stars, and the lighting signature has been redesigned to announce Mercedes from several car lengths away. It is a touch flashy for a model that used to trade on quiet confidence rather than visual volume, but apparently subtlety is now a luxury even the flagship cannot justify.

Underneath, the story is more serious. The entry-level S500 uses a 3.0-liter inline-six, shared with the plug-in hybrid S580e, which pairs it with a 22.0 kWh battery. Above it sits a brand-new V8, the S580, built on a flat-plane architecture that the spec sheet credits with roughly 576 horsepower and 553 lb-ft, though the body of the original review mentions a slightly lower 530 horsepower for the same car, suggesting even Mercedes has not fully agreed on its own numbers yet. The six-cylinder makes a quoted 442 hp and 443 lb-ft. Zero-to-60 mph lands somewhere between 3.9 and 4.3 seconds depending on configuration, and top speed is electronically capped at 155 mph, though the tester claims to have seen 158 mph on the Autobahn, because some limits exist mainly on paper. A nine-speed automatic, rear- or 4Matic all-wheel drive, and 10 degrees of rear-wheel steering round out the mechanical picture. Curb weight ranges from 4,681 to 5,016 lb, a reminder that luxury and heavy remain close relatives.

On the road, the car stays exactly as composed as you would expect. The ride is described as sublime in every drive mode, cobblestones and construction zones included, a trick few sedans in this class manage convincingly. Stability at speed is rock-solid on the Autobahn, and on back roads it turns surprisingly agile, borrowing a bit of the smaller E-Class’s character. The brakes, however, have enough initial pedal play to make gentle stops feel jerkier than they should. The Level 2 driver-assistance suite behaves well on highways, though triggering a lane change proved occasionally fiddly, a small irritation for a car this expensive. It can also retrace its last few hundred meters automatically to help reverse out of a tight spot.

Inside, the cabin mixes genuine polish with a few head-scratchers. The plastic circular climate vents and the piano-black trim feel out of step with the price tag, and the Superscreen comes across as more of a tech flex than a necessity, its black bezels hard to ignore. The rear seats remain the highlight: an optional four-seat layout, heating, ventilation, massage functions, and individual rear screens for anyone happy to let someone else drive.

The reviewer’s own verdict is telling: this is not the greatest S-Class ever built (that honor, he says, still belongs to the 1991 W140 V12), but the ride is sublime, the power is plentiful, and the back seat remains something to be envious of. Pricing is still to be announced, though nobody shopping in this segment is likely to be shocked by whatever number eventually shows up.

Source: Motor1 (https://www.motor1.com/reviews/795600/mercedes-s-class-review/)