Lightly disguised prototypes of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Cabriolet have hit the road in Germany ahead of a planned unveiling at the Frankfurt show in September.
This is Mercedes’ first S-Class Cabriolet. Known by the internal codename C222, it is being pitched as a rival to the Bentley Continental GT Convertible. Prices are set to range from £100,000 to more than £200,000 when UK sales start early next year.
Caught here for the first time is the range-topping S63 AMG model, which receives the same 577bhp twin-turbocharged 5.5-litre V8 engine as the S63 AMG Coupé.
The line-up will also get a 449bhp 4.6-litre V8 in the S500 Cabriolet. Later on, Mercedes will add a 621bhp 6.0-litre V12 in the S65 AMG.Autocar understands the S-Class Cabriolet will be sold with standard rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive will be optional on at least one model.
Other technology includes an advanced tilt function, which forms part of a reworked Magic Body Control system that makes the car lean into corners in a similar way to a motorcyclist. The same system also has a function that digitally scans the road surface and alters the stiffness of the hydraulic dampers.
The cabriolet uses what sources call the largest folding fabric roof yet to enter series production. The fully automatic roof has been styled to replicate the coupé’s roofline.
Changes from the coupé include a beefed-up windscreen frame, altered belt line treatment, new rear wing panels and a heavily reworked bootlid. To retain its lines when the roof is lowered, there is a large tonneau cover behind the rear seats.
Inside is seating for four, with individual, electrically adjustable rear seats. Because of the roof storage, the boot capacity fails to match the 400 litres of the coupé model.
The cabriolet is also set to get a wide range of high-end driver assistance and safety systems, including a head-up display, adaptive headlights with automatic high-beam assistance, the semi-autonomous Distronic Plus system with steering assistance, and infrared night-time vision.
Mercedes has previously floated the idea of a luxury soft-top in the shape of the 2006 Ocean Drive concept, although that experimented with four-door styling.
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