Mercedes-Benz S400 L Exclusive

Kanjenk Automotive - It looks like the effect of the increase in Value Added Tax on Luxury Goods (PPnBM) up to 125 percent for cars with an engine capacity above 3.0 liter makes many luxury car manufacturers turning their sales strategy to deliver premium cars that are not exposed to the luxury sales tax. One of them is Mercedes-Benz. Manufacturing bearing the 'Three Pointed Star' was also set up a strategy to re-equip their premium cars, the engine capacity of less than 3.0 liters.

Not only that, PT Mercedes-Benz Indonesia (MBI) will multiply the premium variant of those assembled locally (completely knocked down - CKD) in the factory, in Wanaherang, Bogor. One of these is the Mercedes-Benz S400 L Exclusive of this. If the version of the S400 L CBU first slide in June, 2014, slid CKD version three months later during the IIMs in September last year. The price is cheaper by about USD 290 million of its CBU version. Even so, it has features like version CBU, with some adjustments to suit the needs of the domestic market.

Interior

Luxurious aura radiated strong upon entering the cabin. As a premium saloon, the perfection of the S-Class presented in full in the cabin. Wrapping material is dominated by leather with wood accents on the dashboard, steering wheel and trim. While the digital speedometer display screens that are attached to the Multi Information Display (MID) to provide information about the condition of the car and also adds to fuel consumption ekslusifitasnya.

Mercedes-Benz claims if the cabin space next S-Class has a larger headroom and shoulder room 12 mm by 14 mm wider than its predecessor generation. While at the rear, 14 mm increased leg room and shoulder room rose 9 mm. Not only that, Chauffeur Package made the front passenger seat can be moved forward to increase rear passenger leg room along 77 mm.

Leather upholstery is mandatory in the S-Class is the function of heating and multi-contour seat is also equipped with inflatable air chambers to adjust the most comfortable sitting position. All seating arrangements can be done electronically with storage memory. Not escape features massage chairs are also available at the rear, which can be operated using the remote separately. Unfortunately on our test car is the MBI does not include a remote to control a massage chair, so we can not directly feel the sensation of massage S400 L.

Car interiors complete with a choice of four cabins fragrance called AIR-BALANCE. Plus the AIRMATIC air suspension to dampen the shock automatically makes sitting in the back felt very comfortable. As a complement to this car is equipped with a panoramic sliding sunroof are also electrically operated.

The rear cabin is also quite ideal used as a work space walk. There are 230 V sockets for charging laptops or smartphones and sun protection in the window in order to get more privacy. The most fun of the S 400 L Exclusive are the entertainment features. As a premium car Mercedes-Benz rightly gives a complete entertainment package. Ranging from large-sized screen that is 12.3 inches high resolution in the middle of the dashboard that can be accessed via COMAND Online with a touch screen. This screen is integrated with 3-dimensional navigation, audio, video, TV tuner, internet service up parking camera.

For rear passengers, provided two 10-inch screen with wireless headphones. Again because MBI does not provide remote so we did not get to enjoy the entertainment features for the rear passengers. Though audio system alerts Burmester surround system is ready to pamper the ears. Moreover, in the back there are also two USB port and AUX-In connection for integration of MP3 players, USB sticks, gaming console, or iPod, and iPad.

Unlike the S 400 L CBU, rear trunk S 400 L Exclusive looks wider because it is not equipped with a cool box (refrigerator). The total volume of the luggage carrier can now reach 65 liters, so for those who like to play golf on the weekends to accommodate all kinds of golfing equipment is needed.

Performance

As mentioned above, the 3.0-liter V6 engine not only makes the car was rescued from the additional sales tax on luxury, but thanks to additional turbocharger, it may boost the car's performance while enhancing fuel efficiency. Yes, the turbocharger is indeed the most popular way to get around this time needs maximum power with low emissions and high fuel efficiency.

Sitting behind the wheel, we still have turned the key to start the engine. Strangely enough, given the current, luxury cars should be no need to use the key (keyless). However, the test unit S400 L lent by the MBI's, the Start / Stop is not installed, so they had to use a key.

For a car weighing 1,995 kg, torque and power produced can be channeled properly to the road surface. Mercedes-Benz claimed 0-100 kph acceleration of L Exclusive S400 can be achieved in 6.8 seconds, but when we tested the best record we achieved in 7.3 seconds. The results we get with Sport driving mode. 7G-TRONIC PLUS presents a very smooth gearshift, barely felt when the car is doing gearshift.

When driving in the city with Eco and Comfort mode, feels a little difference between the two. In the Eco mode the throttle response as hold to optimize fuel consumption, while at the Comfort mode the throttle response a bit more responsive. But if you want an aggressive driving please select the Sport mode, the engine rotation will increase immediately and the throttle response becomes more wild. Demi felt the sensation of driving a manual available paddle shift on the steering wheel crossbar.

For fuel consumption, we note the results of 6.7 MPA for driving in the city at a distance of approximately 95 km with a full method to the full, while in MID results showed the 7.4 kpl. As we were driving out of town take route Jakarta-Bandung, the results we get 9.05 kpl with a total distance of 105 km, while the figure in MID shows fuel consumption 10 kpl. For information, the S 400 L Exclusive has been equipped with Eco Start / Stop which will shut off the engine when the car stops when the conditions were met by congestion or stop at a red light.

Verdict

Mercedes-Benz great names in the world and also in the country has emerged as one of the best luxury car manufacturer. Now, Mercedes-Benz began to entrust the assembly of the S-Classsecara locally in Indonesia. Proven quality of local assemblies was no less good with a full import from Germany. Moreover, its strongest competitor yet moved to do the local assembly for the same model of luxury. And the name of quality, always directly proportional to the price, and S400 L Exclusive assemblies of the nation still remains more expensive when compared to competitors in its class. This is partly thanks to the quality assurance Mercedes-Benz, features and technologies embedded in it.