Mercedes-Benz Wins "Best of What's New" Car Award

Popular Science Honors the 2007 S-Class With Top Automotive Award

NEW YORK, Nov. 9 Mercedes-Benz garnered the automotive"Best of What's New" award today from Popular Science, the oldest andbest-known science and technology magazine in the U.S. The all-newMercedes-Benz 2007 S-Class sedan is the grand award winner for cars, one of 12 categories covering 100 winners.

The Mercedes-Benz Flagship The successor to a long line of premium luxury vehicles, the 2007 S-Classsedan will arrive in the U.S. in early 2006 with a significantly evolveddesign and a new-generation 5.5-liter V8 engine delivering 382 horsepower.

The well-known Distronic cruise control feature that maintains a pre-setdistance behind the vehicle ahead is replaced by an optional "Distronic Plus"system. Integrated with the latest PRE-SAFE, the radar-based system operatesat nearly all speeds up to 125 mph and can be especially helpful instop-and-go traffic.

Making its debut on the new S-Class, an optional enhanced version of Mercedes-Benz Brake Assist not only supplies full-power braking in emergencybraking situations as soon as the driver applies the brake pedal, but alsomonitors the distance to the vehicle ahead and adjusts brake pressure if thedriver doesn't brake hard enough.

Another innovative technology making its debut on the 2007 S-Class is Night View Assist, a new option that can extend the driver's ability to seethe road ahead to nearly 500 feet.Another innovative technology making its debut on the 2007 S-Class isNight View Assist, a new option that can extend the driver's ability to seethe road ahead to nearly 500 feet. An industry first, and in contrast toother passive systems, this active system bathes the road ahead with infra-redlight from two projectors mounted in the headlight assemblies. An infra-redcamera discreetly mounted in the windshield receives the reflected images anddisplays them on a high-resolution instrument cluster screen.

2007 Mercedes-Benz S550

Base price: est. $88,000
Engine: 5.5-liter V-8, 382 hp/391 lb-ft
Drivetrain: Seven-speed automatic transmission, rear-wheel drive
Length x width x height: 205.0 x 73.7 x 57.9 in Wheelbase: 124.6 in
Curb weight: 4376 lb
EPA (city/hwy): N/A
Safety equipment: Dual front two-stage airbags, front and rear side airbags, full-length side curtain airbags, NECK-PRO active head restraints, second-generation PRE-SAFE, adaptive brake light, anti-lock brakes, Brake Assist, hill-start assist, ESP stability control
Major standard equipment: Dual-zone climate control, AIRMATIC air suspension, COMAND interface, 12-way power front seats with memory, heated front seats, power rear seats, power windows/locks/mirrors, power tilt/telescope steering wheel, power sunnroof, power rear blind, cruise control, two-stage rain-sensing wipers, electronic parking brake, satellite radio/CD/MP3 sound system with in-dash changer and memory-card slot
Warranty: Four years/50,000 miles

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