This segment has been causing a bit of a frenzy, lately. Fans of these brands have been getting into screaming matches over which brand makes the best uber-luxury car. When the current-generation Mercedes S-Class first debuted, it literally shocked the world with an interior and level of luxury that had never been seen in the class before. Then the current G11-generation BMW 7 Series debuted last year and it’s genuinely challenged the class-leading for the top spot. All of this leaves the aging Audi A8 struggling to keep up. But how do they actually do against each other?
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Carwow puts them to the test.
The oldest car in the bunch obviously comes in third place. While the Audi A8 is still a great car, it just can’t compete with the other two, far newer, far more high-tech cars. However, the A8 does still have some qualities that the other two could learn from. The handling, for instance, is sharper and more dynamic in the A8. This is likely because it’s still from a bit older of a time where that was more valued than it is now. However, it’s the more fun car to drive than the other two. But it looks boring, has a bland and dated interior and is seriously lacking technology.
In second place, Carwow puts the BMW 7 Series. Mat Watson, really likes BMWs technology and claims it to be the best, especially the newest generation of iDrive. He also feels that the interior feels a bit more expensive and built a bit better than the S-Class. However, it doesn’t have the absolute silky smooth luxurious ride and feel of the S Class. BMW tried to make the 7 Series feel a bit more dynamic than the S-Class but it isn’t actually all that dynamic, according to Watson. But the differences are in small degrees and the two cars are both absolutely superb luxury cars. Carwow just feels that the S-Class is a touch more superb.
Thanks to a ride that’s just slightly smoother and a driving experience that’s a bit more serene, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is considered to be a touch better than the 7 Series. While its cabin design is slightly more interesting than in the 7er, its materials actually feel a touch worse, like the fake leather dashboard. But, overall, it’s the more luxurious car and the one that people who are more concerned with comfort, quiet luxury will buy.
Of course the Mercedes wins! What else is new?
Mat does have a little bit of a Mercbromance. Never been different… never will be. I’ve seen plenty comparos where the testers chose the 7. Subjectivity… you old dog!
Nothing to really complain about. It’s clear in this review that the criteria was best limo and it’s a no-brainer that the the S-Class is the clear winner and choice short of a Bentley and Rolls Royce. If you want to add other criteria, that’s where the 7er makes up ground as trying to be a drivers car and a limo.
The S-Class is the choice above everything including your pathetic bmw-owned rolls-royce and also Bentley. And the idiotic bmw never understood that in this segment buyers look for silky smooth ride and exclusive interior. Something bmw can never provide .That’s why bmw is considered a crap all over the world.
Tell me, where is the original Maybach marque now? S-Class better than Rolls Royce. Said no one ever. Laughable.
I think reviewers focus too much on the whole chauffeur thing, Autonomous driving is being developed more and more because lots of people actually drive their cars and don’t want a driver, but would like to make less effort in certain situations.
I wonder what’s the percentage of these cars that are actually driven by their owners.
As always, Mercedes-Benz kicks pathetic bmw’s stupid ass! And this journalist is a core bmw fan, so it’s a double victory for Mercedes-Benz. Go hang yourself, shitty bmw.
There are phone lines and self help websites that can help you with whatever personal tragedy you experienced that left you so alone that you’ve nothing better to do than troll the blog sites of things you don’t like.
Of course, better moderation might help prevent this site being one that people don’t want to visit… just saying.
We’ve been deleting like crazy and blocking, but it’s always reactive.
I appreciate how difficult it can be.
Audi is coming to snatch weaves in 2018!
Yeah right. Of course they are. Silly VW – uh Audi.
Porsche, uh Seat, sorry, Skoda, my mistake. Silly Lamborghini or better, Ducati.
Labo is not a too expensive VW Porsche isn’t either. Audi on the otherhand is mot much more than that. Fact. Skoda is a cheaper VW, but has (almost) the same quality. Buying a VW if you can buy a Skoda is ridiculous. Seat at least has its own design, which can barely be said about Audi. -_-
While owning a 7 series (or for that matter, any other BMW) is still a dream for me, I have always loved the BMWs more than the cars from any other brand. My first introduction with the BMW was through a wallpaper of a E-39 5 series when I was 14 years old. Needless to say, I was instantly hooked to the car. I used to stare at it for hours even when my knowledge was a big null about the aesthetic sense. There was something very different about it. While other cars felt…normal cars. This E-39 5 series felt Different. It felt BMW while others felt cars. I decided to become something significant only in order to own a BMW and justify my purchase, one day. I am, hopefully, on my way.
I started to search about other BMWs and other stuff about all of them as I become a total BMW fan boy by then. Almost all bimmers displayed some similar traits other than the usual ones (Kidney grills and double barrel lights are usual features). They had an impeccable visual balance. The lines were well defined, over hangs were always balanced, there was a distinct Teutonic heft in stance and body, the face always looked sinister and confident and all of them had generous and well defined glass areas (thank fully this quality is left untouched, today ). These kind of qualities, I think, are not picked/ understood by an admirer at the first instance when it lays its eyes on the car. Such details take time to become apparent and, I guess, these are the stuffs that, when present, makes an automobile design a timeless one.
Designs of BMW are just one part of BMW core virtues. It’s the BMW drive that’s the prime hallmark of the brand. In search for BMW drive reviews I went all around the web world. Almost all of them had a one universal say about the drive: it made machine and human one. Steering was telepathic, tires and road were gossip partners and brakes were almost predatory in nature.(I guess BMW were real close to injecting the life inside a machine at that time ) Ok, there were variations in the human-machine connect (3s were most intense, 5s milder than 3s & 7 mildest among all ) but these variations were honest. Physics played its part for the heavier vehicles but BMW assured that Physics never spoiled the party. Oh ya, the interiors!! What interiors they did back then. Organic, driver focused, purposeful and genial. Remember E-46 3 series interiors !!
So when BMW introduced G11/12 7 series last year, tinge of disappointment, understandably, was felt all around. Although objectively, no one can point a finger at BMW for the vehicle. It imbibes mostly all the BMW virtues spectacularly. Great Engine, dynamics, space, pace etc. everything is there. But it lacks one important BMW virtue: soul. It has become a very clinical, and cold car. There is a shocking absence of personality. It is a technological marvel on wheel, for sure, but, it appears, that it doesn’t know what it should be. The interiors are disappointment in the way they are fashioned out. Frankly, this should have been the interior of last gen 5 series or perhaps current 3 series. From the front design and rear designs, it appears that both ends belong to different cars and that rear is seriously plain and flat, especially for a flagship vehicle. The interiors seriously lacks imagination in the way it is executed.
Most painful part was to see the way the car is marketed. I have a very strong feeling that BMW execs never envisaged that the W222 Merc S class will turn out to be such a knock out. While BMW was preparing for next gen 7 series , Merc gave the next gen luxury. And, I think, it is for this reason BMW has marketed and advertised the fancy stuffs through out the campaign. Half cooked and quarter impressive gesture control, a tab that can be detached, how you can change the in cabin lighting and all ( Seriously, do Rich guys prefer to do these fanciful and, frankly, stupid things through out their journey when they are sitting on those big thrones ).In India, BMW didn’t even put the picture of 7 series’s interiors on its advertisements ( is it a kind of a self-acceptance on BMW’s part that they were snoozing when interior lay out was supposed to be done). For these uber luxury cars, Interiors are probably the second biggest selling point ( after brand image of course), as per me, followed very closely by unruffled ride quality. Guess what, BMW has decided to skip on that.
I also firmly feel that BMW now has become too much marketing driven organization these days. Those days when BMW took pride in offering bespoke designs & peerless engineering seem to be long gone. These days, BMW is offering a cheap suit labelled as Armani. And here is where BMW is making a mistake. People who purchased BMW, and loved BMW, knew what it was, inside out. They are going to decipher the dilution of the brand and the products eventually. With G30 5 series out, it is even more evident that BMW cars has become more about objectively ticking the attributes of what buyers are looking for in the car rather than how BMW takes the attributes that buyers are looking for and then executing them in its own way. Oh lord, we will be seeing these G30s for atleast next six years ( it itself looks at least 2 year old the moment it came out, both inside and out).
I have a very strong feeling that most BMW car aspirants are going to turn to Audi in years to come. They are doing (and generally does) the understated designs much better than BMW. They have now decided to make their designs more edgy. There are high chances that their next gen cars are going to be rear wheel drives (that should sort out the ‘steering inertness issue’ to an extent) as Audi is going to axe the MLB platform to accommodate massive losses in dieselgate scandals (And guess what!! Most probably its going to be Porsche with whom Audi may share its RWD. talk about blessing in disguise !!) .
We don’t want to migrate to any other brand, BMW. But, it is a humble request that pl. don’t force us to take this step. Because, it’s the love for driving that brought us to you. So, the soul will always search that in an automobile first and then it will check the brand.
Audi won’t be RWD, because Audi’s base, platforms are AWD, same as every Porsche except 918/911 and Cayman/Boxster. Only small audis, which are hot hatches with base based on FWD.(and this is also good philosophy hot hatch with AWD is best solution in small sport car)