Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Price: From £55,022
For: Quiet and refined, yet agile and fun to drive.
Against:Lumpen looks; ultra-high-tech all-new model coming next year.
The archetypal German luxury car, now in its umpteenth iteration: Mercedes rarely goes wrong with the S-Class, and though this generation (W221-series) isn't the most elegant-looking S, it is an absolutely superbly-engineered super-saloon. Even its minor controls are impressively well thought-out - the Comand controller is so much easier to use than BMW's iDrive system.
High-tech functions include the Pre-Safe crash-sensing system which tightens the seatbelts and primes the airbags and brakes, as well as active cruise control and the usual Mercedes air suspension. It's difficult to find an argument against the S-Class - except the fact that you may want to hang on for the all-new S-Class due next year, which is cleverer still, and will come with a whole new set of fuel-saving technologies.
