2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class W223 Prototype Shows up Nearly Undisguised

Mercedes-Benz has already teased most of its ground-breaking interior and a blurry security camera leak from the beginning of this year has shown us the car's front end.

Last week, the Stuttgart carmaker tested an oddly camouflaged S-Class prototype that had its headlights and taillights completely exposed, and today it's time to check out even more design motifs from another scantily clad pre-production prototype.

This time around it's the front and rear bumpers that are devoid of any camouflage whatsoever, so if you can put two and two together you can have a pretty good idea of how the model's exterior will look.

The seventh generation of the Sonderklasse is based on the MRA II (Modular Rear-wheel-drive Architecture) and will feature a cornucopia of never before-seen technology features that should up the ante in the luxury sedan segment.

The interior will greet its occupants with an all-new design, with most of the analog buttons and knobs of the infotainment being replaced by a giant touchscreen with haptic feedback on the center console. Most of the controls will be available via either touch, gesture or voice, while another novelty will be represented by an innovative high-definition head-up display with augmented reality navigation.

On the technical side, by far the biggest feature will probably be the optional all-wheel-steering system, which can virtually give the giant sedan a sub-compact car turning radius apart from a stability improvement at higher speeds.

Engine wise, a plethora of inline-six and V8 powerplants will comprise most of the lineup in either mild-hybrid, full-hybrid or plug-in hybrid guise. The V12 will live on only on the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class, where it will be paired with the 9-speed automatic transmission and allegedly all-wheel-drive for the very first time.