Automotive evolution can make or break brands. If an OEM tries to evolve too quickly, they could sacrifice quality or even lose the true essence of their model. If they don’t evolve quickly enough, they are immediately labeled as outdated. Mercedes-Benz has been constantly evolving since 1926. Their most luxurious model, the S-Class, was always one step ahead.
The Mercedes S-Class has been evolving at the perfect pace. This model is always able to impress, never underwhelm, and always goes above and beyond to provide top-of-the-line luxury. We got our hands on the 2022 Mercedes-Benz S500 4Matic for a week, and we quickly realized its biggest shortcoming: we eventually have to park and get out of it - even worse, we have to give it back.
If you’re into luxury, if you’re the finer things in life, if you’re into the best of the best with absolutely no compromise, then you’re in the right place. Welcome to a completely different driving experience, only beat by vehicles like the Rolls Royce that carry astronomical price tags. The 2022 Mercedes S500 is simply a dream on wheels.
2022 Mercedes S500 4Matic
- Turbocharged And Electric Supercharged Engine
- Rear Axle Steering Up To 4.5-Degrees
- Available Torque Through The RPM Range
- Model: S500 4Matic
- Engine/Motor: 3.0-liter Inline-6 Turbo With Mild Hybrid Drive And Electric Auxiliary compressor
- Horsepower: 429 @ 6,100 RPM
- Torque: 384 lb-ft @ 1,800-5,800 RPM
- Drivetrain: AWD
- Transmission: 9G-TRONIC 9-Speed
- Futuristic And Comfortable Cabin
- Driver And Passenger Massage Options
- Nothing But Expensive, Quality Material
- Great Handling With No Compromise To Comfort
- Decent Fuel Economy For The Size
- Well-Engineered 6-Cylinder Engine
- Higher MSRP Than Direct Competition
Inline-6 Engine Is An Engineering Marvel
There used to be a time when the S500 meant the car sported a 5.0-liter V8 engine. Now, this number means absolutely nothing. The 2022 Mercedes S500 comes with an inline-6 turbocharged 3.0-liter engine, with a mild drive and electric auxiliary compressor. This means the S500 gets a turbocharger and an electric supercharger, as well as a 48-volt hybrid system. The combination of compressed air and electricity have one job and one job only: to never leave you wanting more regardless of the RPM you’re at.
The S500 delivers 429 horsepower at 6,100 RPM, and 384 lb-ft of torque between 1,800 RPM and 5,800 RPM. The engine works collaboratively with the 9G-TRONIC 9-speed transmission to send power to all four wheels.
The 2022 Mercedes S500 is hefty in weight, but somehow, it carries that weight gracefully. This heavyweight, full-size sedan is able to sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.9-seconds. This is quicker than a lot of production sports cars on the market today. In addition to the impressive sprint, the S500 gets 21 mpg in the city and 30 mpg on the highway. While numbers don’t lie, I’ve been in the industry long enough to know that some like to hide the truth. So, we had to take the S500 on the road to see for ourselves.
Tasteful Styling That Screams Elegance
The intensely long, smooth exterior is elegance at its finest. While Mercedes calls their AMG Line “Aggressively Elegant,” we believe it’s just pure class. This package brings some of the body features lower, like the front and rear bumpers. Some of the trim pieces around the exterior is gloss black. It almost feels like a classy roof-top martini bar. Upon approaching the S500, all four door handles will pop out of the body, extending themselves for you. When it’s locked, they tuck back inside to create a shaved, smooth look. The AMG package comes with the optional 21-inch V-multi-spoke wheels, which come wrapped in high-performance summer tires. All in all, there is nothing to dislike about the exterior. It’s bold, it’s luxurious, and it truly grabs all eyes.
Futuristic Cabin With Spa-Like Experience
When you open the door, the black piano Lacquer “Flowing Lines” dashboard will immediately capture your eyes and heart. There are other options, but we don’t even want to see them after experiencing this one. Of course, with how intensely glossy it is, we can see every spec of dust and the annoying finger smudges. To complement this, hundreds of LEDs, as counted by Mercedes, create quite the spa experience around the cabin. All lights are highly customizable, from having a solid color, to multi-colors, you won’t lack options.
Speaking of spa experience, the Mercedes S500 doesn’t just give you the vibes, it also massages you. The driver and passenger get to choose between numerous massage patterns with the optional heating capabilities. Unfortunately, the rear passengers don’t get this luxury. Given this vehicle screams chauffeur, it sounds like Mercedes put this feature in the wrong seats. Of course you have to build your S500 to your liking, but there are tons of options for everyone. The highlight of the cabin is the giant 12.8-inch OLED touchscreen display. Not only does it flow elegantly in the center console, it’s a home to one of the best infotainment systems on the market. It’s almost as responsive as an iPad, with a “Hey Mercedes” voice-activated assistant that does most of what it’s told. Directly in front of the driver, the 12.3-inch 3D instrument cluster will simply make you happy, while providing you with an array of information, including a full-screen map.
The cabin truly goes above and beyond to ensure your comfort, safety, and enjoyment. In fact, you can teach the interior to turn the light on as you reach for something, say the mirror. If we try to list all of the features here, we might as well serve pop-corn with it (it wouldn’t surprise us if the S500 offers the snacks), but instead, let’s get behind the wheel and see what this fancy hotel of an experience can do on the road.
Quiet Cabin With Impressive Performance
It’s truly quite unique how the Mercedes S500 can satisfy all of your driving needs. For car enthusiasts like myself, acceleration and handling always come before comfort. For other drivers, comfort and luxury trumps speed. Well, you no longer need to choose, the S500 is as athletic as it is luxurious. The first thing you will notice when getting behind the wheel is how quiet the cabin actually feels. You won’t feel the road, nor will you hear it, thanks to the adaptive suspension absorbing every last pebble on the road. Despite its heavy body, the S500 just simply glides over everything with ease.
When the time comes and you decide to stomp the throttle, you will always find peak torque. From 1,800 RPM all the way to 5,800 RPM, the S500 keeps pulling, completely changing personas in the process. In sport mode, the suspension stiffens and while it never becomes punishing, the vehicle handles like a champ. The rear-axle steering allows the rear wheels to turn up to 4.5-degrees, which really points the sedan into the corners sharply. When equipped with the high-performance tires like our tester, the Benz truly eats up the corners more athletically than it looks. We can't wait to get behind the wheel of the more-powerful Mercedes S580e and see how much better it can get.
Everything on this vehicle feels smooth, especially the brakes. In fact, it feels too smooth that I started to question its effectiveness. When I went into the “Info” tab on the screen, I realized I was pressing the pedal less than 50-percent. To get to the 100-percent, you will have a long press to go. The driving experience gets even better at night as the sun sets and the cabin lights rise. Truly a unique experience. There is a small list of luxurious executive sedans on the market today, and the S500 definitely belongs there. Overall, driving the 2022 Mercedes S500 4Matic is an absolute pleasure, and while it’s funny to say the worst part about it is having to get out of it, it truthfully is the case.
Unparalleled Luxury, Safety, Performance, And Experience
The 2022 Mercedes S500 sits in a unique place. In a way, it’s quite more expensive than its direct competition in the BMW 7-Series and the Audi A8. However, another way to look at it is that it’s far less expensive than the Rolls Royce. Is it outrageous that we are comparing a Mercedes with a Rolls Royce? Yes! It’s outrageous; however, do you really need any more luxury, quality, or even performance (for a full-size luxury sedan) than this? We can't speak too much about reliability for the 6-cylinder engine, but German cars can be reliable, too.
The 2022 S500 starts at $111,100, but our tester came with a $127,000 price tag, with the addition feeling well worth the cost increase. It’s not exactly in the price range of most people’s budgets, but if you can afford it, we promise you that it will change the way you perceive being on the road. It's truly unfortunate that these vehicle depreciate in value so rapidly, but it will work out in your favor if you decide to wait a few years and get yourself a used one.
We wish this model came with more amenities for the rear passengers. While they get the luxury treatment and more room than they ever need, we feel all of the “cool” features are in the front. With that said, I’d drive this car everyday without complaints, average 21 mpg, and feeling my stress melt away as it massage me into the morning.