A First Look at the 2024 Mercedes-Benz G-Class: Iconic Design Meets Modern Tech

The Mercedes-Benz S-Class has spent generations setting expectations for luxury sedans. For 2027, it has given the rest of the industry another reason to pay attention. MotorTrend named the extensively updated flagship its 2027 Car of the Year on October 20, recognizing a sedan whose strongest qualities become apparent once it starts moving. The award follows changes to approximately 2,700 components, a new V8 engine, a more powerful computing platform and a cabin filled with thoughtful comfort features. Yet the quality that impressed MotorTrend’s judges was the way those pieces worked together. The S-Class delivered the quietness, ride comfort and composure expected of a flagship while remaining remarkably capable on a winding road. For anyone who enjoys the proportions and driving character of a full-size luxury sedan, the result is welcome news. The 2027 S-Class makes a persuasive case for a car designed around the experience of everyone inside it, whether they prefer the driver’s seat or the reclining seat behind it. Why the S-Class won MotorTrend’s Car of the Year award considers six areas: engineering excellence, advancement in design, value, safety, efficiency and performance of intended function. Each vehicle is evaluated against those criteria, with judges considering how successfully it fulfills its purpose. This year’s field included 16 nameplates represented by 22 variants. Testing began at a California proving ground before finalists moved onto public roads. That combination gave the judges opportunities to assess vehicle behavior under controlled conditions and on the surfaces owners encounter every day. The S 580 4MATIC Sedan stood out for the completeness of its luxury experience. Its powertrain remained smooth under load, its cabin stayed quiet at speed and its chassis combined comfort with precise control. These are qualities that cannot be reduced to a display size or horsepower figure. Together, they explain why the S-Class rose to the top. A familiar flagship with substantial changes The 2027 model is an extensive revision of the seventh-generation S-Class. More than half of the vehicle has been newly developed, updated or refined, making this a much broader undertaking than a few styling changes. Its proportions remain recognizable, but the front end has a stronger presence. The grille is approximately 20 percent larger, with an illuminated surround and chrome star detailing. An illuminated standing Mercedes-Benz star is available on the hood, while revised headlamps and taillamps carry their own star signatures. Check Out: Why Fall Is the Time to Prepare for Chicagoland Winter Those details give the sedan a distinctive appearance after dark. During the day, the long body and formal roofline preserve the visual character that has made the S-Class such an enduring executive car. New wheel designs provide another way to tailor its appearance, with choices that subtly change the overall impression. A new V8 for the S 580 The S 580 4MATIC Sedan introduces a revised 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 with a flat-plane crankshaft. Mercedes-Benz lists 530 horsepower and estimates acceleration from 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds. The engine is part of a broader effort to maintain substantial eight-cylinder performance while meeting evolving emissions requirements. Its development includes changes to the intake system, turbochargers and fuel injection. Mild-hybrid assistance complements the gasoline engine, and a nine-speed automatic transmission manages power delivery. For the driver, the appeal lies in having that performance readily available without disrupting the cabin’s calm. MotorTrend’s judges praised the engine’s refinement and the sedan’s ability to accelerate with little apparent strain. A flagship should feel equally comfortable settling into a highway cruise and responding decisively when the road opens up. Six-cylinder and plug-in hybrid choices The S 500 4MATIC Sedan uses a 3.0-liter inline-six producing 442 horsepower. Mercedes-Benz estimates a 4.3-second sprint to 60 mph, giving the entry point to the range substantial performance of its own. The S 580e 4MATIC Sedan combines a six-cylinder engine with an electric motor for 576 horsepower of total system output. It offers a different approach to the flagship experience, pairing plug-in hybrid capability with the space and comfort of the S-Class. Its estimated 0-to-60-mph time is 4.4 seconds. All three use 4MATIC all-wheel drive and a nine-speed automatic transmission. The choice centers on powertrain character and how the vehicle will be used. The six-cylinder model emphasizes an already generous balance of performance and refinement, the V8 adds greater urgency, and the plug-in hybrid introduces the opportunity to make some journeys using electric power. Suspension that anticipates the road Standard AIRMATIC air suspension gives the S-Class an important foundation for its ride quality. Available E-ACTIVE BODY CONTROL adds more sophisticated control of body movement, helping the large sedan maintain its composure as the road changes. The updated suspension technology can also use shared road information. Connected vehicles can report significant bumps and potholes, allowing an appropriately equipped S-Class approaching the same location to adjust its damping in advance. The benefit is a more prepared response to a rough stretch of pavement. Rear-axle steering is standard, with 4.5 degrees of steering movement. An available 10-degree system further improves maneuverability. In a car of this size, that is a meaningful convenience when turning into a tight garage, navigating a parking structure or maneuvering on a narrow street. It also helps make the sedan feel more manageable from behind the wheel. A cabin designed around comfort The S-Class interior remains a major part of its appeal. Available MANUFAKTUR finishes bring richly detailed upholstery and trim, while the seating and cabin equipment create numerous opportunities to personalize the atmosphere. Available heated front seat belts extend the comfort features beyond familiar heated seats and armrests. They are a small detail, but one that fits naturally into a sedan intended to make cold-weather travel more pleasant. Mercedes-Benz has also revised practical elements such as the placement of wireless phone chargers. The rear cabin can become an especially inviting place with available Executive equipment. Reclining seating and a footrest create room to stretch out, while available heating, ventilation and massage functions make longer journeys more comfortable. Optional rear entertainment adds two 13.1-inch displays. For owners who regularly travel with passengers, the back seat deserves as much attention as the driving position. A new digital experience The standard MBUX Superscreen gives the dashboard a different visual character. A 14.4-inch central display and a 12.3-inch passenger display sit beneath a shared glass surface, while a separate 12.3-inch display presents information to the driver. Behind the screens is MB.OS, the Mercedes-Benz Operating System. It connects vehicle systems and supports over-the-air software updates. Fourth-generation MBUX adds an AI-assisted voice interface designed to handle more conversational requests, along with updated navigation and personalization features. The technology is extensive, but the update also brings physical controls back to the steering wheel. That combination is useful in a car with so many functions: digital displays provide flexibility, while familiar buttons put selected adjustments directly under the driver’s fingers. Available augmented-reality navigation and Burmester audio provide further ways to configure the cabin around personal preferences. Driver assistance and everyday refinement The S-Class also advances its driver-assistance and parking technology. Cameras, radar and ultrasonic sensors support systems designed to help with tasks ranging from highway travel to maneuvering into a parking space. The expanded MB.DRIVE ASSIST PRO system is intended to add further capabilities, including point-to-point assistance through later software availability. It was not activated during MotorTrend’s award evaluation. These remain assistance features, with the driver responsible for monitoring the road and taking control when required. That distinction keeps the award in perspective. The S-Class earned its recognition through the vehicle the judges could evaluate: its engine, chassis, cabin and overall execution. Future software features add another chapter to the story, but the sedan’s fundamental strengths are already central to its appeal. A flagship that earns its place This week’s coverage places reported starting prices around $114,000 for the S 500 and $136,000 for the S 580. Optional equipment can substantially change the final price, particularly with extensive interior and rear-seat upgrades. The 2027 S-Class rewards attention because its engineering serves a clear purpose. Strong acceleration, thoughtful comfort features and a controlled ride contribute to a sedan that can make ordinary travel feel more considered. MotorTrend’s award recognizes that achievement and brings renewed attention to one of the defining names in luxury motoring. To explore the 2027 Mercedes-Benz S-Class and arrange a test drive when available, contact Loeber Motors in Lincolnwood. Check Out: The 2027 Mercedes-Maybach S-Class Embodies True Ultra-Luxury Quick Answers The Mercedes-Benz S-Class won MotorTrend’s 2027 Car of the Year award, announced October 20, 2026. The extensively updated sedan includes approximately 2,700 new or revised components. The range includes the 442-horsepower S 500, 530-horsepower S 580 and 576-horsepower S 580e plug-in hybrid. Standard equipment includes 4MATIC all-wheel drive, AIRMATIC air suspension and rear-axle steering. Frequently Asked Questions Which Mercedes-Benz won MotorTrend’s 2027 Car of the Year? The Mercedes-Benz S-Class won the award. MotorTrend evaluated an S 580 4MATIC Sedan during its judging process. What is new for the 2027 Mercedes-Benz S-Class? The update includes approximately 2,700 new or revised components, a revised V8 engine, MB.OS, fourth-generation MBUX, the standard MBUX Superscreen, exterior changes and updated comfort and assistance technology. How fast is the 2027 S-Class? Mercedes-Benz estimates 0 to 60 mph in 4.3 seconds for the S 500, 3.9 seconds for the S 580 and 4.4 seconds for the S 580e plug-in hybrid. Does the 2027 S-Class have a Hyperscreen? The updated sedan has the standard MBUX Superscreen. Its 14.4-inch central display and 12.3-inch passenger display are complemented by a separate 12.3-inch driver display. How much does the 2027 S-Class cost? This week’s award coverage reports starting prices around $114,000 for the S 500 and $136,000 for the S 580. Confirm the MSRP, destination charge, options and other applicable charges for a specific vehicle. Key Specifications Model year: 2027 Award: MotorTrend Car of the Year Announcement date: October 20, 2026 S 500 engine: 3.0-liter inline-six S 500 power: 442 hp S 580 engine: 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 S 580 power: 530 hp S 580e power: 576 hp combined Transmission: Nine-speed automatic Drivetrain: 4MATIC all-wheel drive Suspension: Standard AIRMATIC; available E-ACTIVE BODY CONTROL Rear-axle steering: 4.5 degrees standard; 10 degrees available Expert Summary The 2027 Mercedes-Benz S-Class combines extensive engineering updates with the comfort and refinement expected of a flagship sedan. Its MotorTrend Car of the Year win reflects the overall execution of the vehicle, particularly the S 580’s smooth V8 performance and accomplished chassis. Three powertrain choices, standard air suspension and rear-axle steering, and an extensively updated cabin give the range considerable breadth. 0–60 mph: 4.3 seconds S 500; 3.9 seconds S 580; 4.4 seconds S 580e, manufacturer estimates

Thirty cars. That is the entire production run of the Mercedes-AMG CLE 646 Spezialanfertigung, and Mercedes-Benz sold every one of them before the car had made a single public appearance. The order book closed ahead of the September 10 world premiere, when the CLE 646 arrived as the second model in the Mercedes-Benz Mythos Series — a program built for a customer who already owns the fast car and wants something the rest of the world can't order. AMG's home plant built the CLE 646 by hand, according to Mercedes-Benz, the same way it built the first Mythos car, the roofless, windshield-less PureSpeed limited to 250 examples. The CLE 646 takes a different path. It keeps its windshield. It keeps its road registration. And it channels its ambition into driving dynamics rather than spectacle, which makes it, by AMG's own account, the more usable of the two. The starting point was the AMG CLE 53, a car already built around a turbocharged inline-six and standard all-wheel drive. AMG's engineers removed the all-wheel-drive system entirely. Power now reaches the rear wheels only, routed through an electronically controlled limited-slip differential tuned to support a controlled drift rather than correct one out of existence. Launch Control was recalibrated for the new rear-drive layout. The result is a run from zero to 124 miles per hour in 11.4 seconds, and a top speed of 193 miles per hour — numbers AMG confirmed at the car's launch rather than projected ahead of it. Under the hood sits an extensively reworked version of AMG's M177 EVO, a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 that produces 646 horsepower, the figure behind the car's name. That represents a jump of more than 200 horsepower over the CLE 53's inline-six, and AMG built a suspension specifically to manage it: a steel coilover system co-developed with KW Automotive, with four-way adjustable dampers that let an owner tune low-speed and high-speed rebound and compression independently. Body movement under braking, acceleration and turn-in each answer to their own setting, a degree of adjustability that owes more to a customer racing program than to a factory options list. Weight came out wherever AMG's engineers could take it. Carbon fiber panels replace steel and aluminum across the body. The rear windows are polycarbonate instead of glass. Even the 12-volt starter battery was swapped for a lighter unit. Altogether, the CLE 646 weighs roughly 375 pounds less than the CLE 53 it started as — a reduction the company says sharpens what it calls an uncompromisingly direct driving experience, and one that shows up in every corner of the car rather than in a single headline component. The body itself grew to make room for what sits underneath it. A widebody treatment pushes the car's track out 2.4 inches, and a purpose-built aerodynamics package was developed alongside that wider stance rather than bolted onto it afterward. Little of it reads as decoration. Every visible change traces back to the car's stated purpose — closed-circuit lap times and back-road precision, not showroom presence. The line captures the project's spirit better than a spec sheet could. A small internal team built a prototype first and worked backward into a production process from there, treating the car less as a collection of upgrades and more as a performance system reimagined from the ground up. That approach is built into the name itself. Spezialanfertigung translates roughly to "special-order fabrication," and Mercedes says the designation reflects the depth of the rebuild rather than a marketing flourish borrowed for the occasion. Check Out: Best Places to Cool Off During Summer in Chicagoland Mercedes-Benz launched the Mythos Series to give its most committed collectors something beyond a badge or a horsepower bump: cars built in numbers small enough that ownership itself becomes part of the story. The PureSpeed leaned into theater — no roof, no windshield, a design built to be looked at as much as driven, and a run of 250 units that still sold out. The CLE 646 leans the other way, toward function, and in doing so makes the case that restraint can be its own kind of statement. It is also the first Mythos car a buyer can drive on public roads without qualification, since the PureSpeed's open cockpit limited where and how it could legally be used. The timing carries its own weight. Mercedes-Benz is marking 140 years since Carl Benz patented the first automobile in 1886, and the company has built its 2026 calendar around that anniversary — a flagship S-Class driving to 140 locations across six continents, a steady run of new and updated models across nearly every segment, and now a hand-built V8 coupe that exists almost entirely outside the normal sales channel. Energy consumption is rated at 15.8 liters per 100 kilometers combined, with CO2 emissions of 359 grams per kilometer, placing the CLE 646 in the top emissions class — figures that matter less to the buyers who already own one than to the engineers who had to account for them anyway. Each car is assembled entirely by hand at AMG's Affalterbach headquarters, the same facility where the company builds its engines under the one-person, one-engine practice that has defined AMG since the 1990s. That philosophy extends to the CLE 646 in full. Check Out: The 2027 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Stuns Where a standard CLE moves through a conventional production line, the Spezialanfertigung moves through a manufactory process more common to a coachbuilder than a mainstream automaker — panel fitment, suspension calibration and interior trim handled individually rather than at volume. It is a slower, costlier way to build a car, and it is also the only way AMG could credibly claim the level of precision the CLE 646 is meant to represent. Mercedes has not disclosed pricing for the CLE 646, and because the car sold out before its public unveiling, an official figure may never surface. What is confirmed is scarcity by design: 30 cars, every one already accounted for, none of them destined for a dealership showroom floor. The Mythos Series moves through AMG's direct client relationships rather than standard retail allocation, meaning buyers were identified and confirmed well before September's debut. For AMG, the CLE 646 is a statement about where the performance brand wants to stand as Mercedes-Benz moves through a stretch of major rollouts across its lineup. Surrounded by electrified SUVs and software-driven sedans, a hand-built, rear-drive V8 coupe with dampers tuned car by car reads almost as a rebuttal — proof that the division still designs from the driving experience outward rather than from a features list backward. Whether that proof reaches anyone beyond the 30 confirmed owners is, in its way, beside the point. The CLE 646 was never built to be sold. It was built to exist. (Sources: Mercedes-Benz Media, Motor1) Quick Answers The Mercedes-AMG CLE 646 Spezialanfertigung is the second model in Mercedes-Benz’s Mythos Series, a highly limited collector program built on select AMG platforms. Based on the AMG CLE 53, it swaps standard all-wheel drive for rear-wheel drive only, produces 646 horsepower from a reworked 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, and weighs about 375 pounds less than the car it’s built from. Mercedes-Benz is building 30 examples by hand at AMG’s Affalterbach headquarters, and every unit sold before the car’s September 10, 2026 public debut. Pricing has not been disclosed. The car is not available through standard dealer allocation, including at Loeber Motors, and buyers were selected through AMG’s direct client program rather than retail order. Frequently Asked Questions 1. What is the Mercedes-AMG CLE 646 Spezialanfertigung? It is a hand-built, rear-wheel-drive high-performance coupe based on the AMG CLE 53, produced in a run of 30 examples as the second model in Mercedes-Benz’s Mythos Series. 2. How much horsepower does it have? The reworked AMG M177 EVO 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 produces 646 horsepower (475 kW), more than 200 horsepower above the standard CLE 53. 3. Is it all-wheel drive like the standard CLE 53? No. AMG removed the CLE 53’s all-wheel-drive system entirely; the CLE 646 sends power to the rear wheels only, through an electronically controlled limited-slip differential. 4. How fast is it? Mercedes-AMG confirms 0 to 124 mph in 11.4 seconds and a top speed of 193 mph. 5. How many will be built, and can I still order one? Production is limited to 30 units worldwide, and Mercedes-Benz confirmed all 30 were sold before the car’s September 10, 2026 world premiere. 6. What does the car cost? Mercedes-Benz has not released official pricing. Because the run sold out before launch, an official figure may not be published. 7. Will the CLE 646 Spezialanfertigung be available at Loeber Motors? No. Mythos Series vehicles are allocated through AMG’s direct client relationships rather than standard dealer inventory, so it will not appear in Loeber Motors’ retail lineup. Key Specifications Engine: AMG M177 EVO 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 Output: 646 hp (475 kW), rear-wheel drive 0-124 mph: 11.4 seconds Top Speed: 193 mph (310 km/h) Weight Reduction: Approximately 375 lbs (170 kg) versus AMG CLE 53 Production: 30 units, hand-built in Affalterbach, Germany Availability: Sold out before public debut; not available through standard dealer allocation Expert Summary The Mercedes-AMG CLE 646 Spezialanfertigung represents AMG’s clearest recent statement on where its performance division intends to stand: a hand-built, rear-drive V8 coupe developed with a singular focus on driving dynamics rather than volume or spectacle. Stripped of all-wheel drive, lightened by roughly 375 pounds, and fitted with a coilover suspension co-developed with KW Automotive, the CLE 646 trades the badge-and-horsepower formula of a typical special edition for a full mechanical rebuild carried out to manufactory standards. Limited to 30 hand-assembled examples and already sold out ahead of its September 2026 debut, the car will not reach retail allocation at dealerships including Loeber Motors, making this reporting the primary way most enthusiasts will encounter it.

A look back at a truly unforgettable Martin Loeber Day! From celebrating 90 years of the legacy our founder began to hearing incredible stories from Chicago Bears Super Bowl champion Kevin Butler, it was an evening filled with inspiration, camaraderie, and a little football history. We also celebrated a remarkable milestone honoring John Martin for 50 years at Loeber Motors — a testament to the dedication and people who make our legacy so special. 90 years of tradition, a winning season, and memories we’ll never forget. Here’s to the legacy that brought us here and the future we’re building together!