Mercedes-Benz S-Class W126 (1979)

The W126 changed into the Mercedes Benz S-Class produced among 1979 and 1992. The specific fashions produced carried out mixed income of extra than 800,000 devices, making the W126 the maximum famous Mercedes-Benz S-Class to date. Available as a long- (SEL, SDL) and quick wheel base (SE, SD) sedan, in addition to a coupé (SEC).The W126 changed the Nineteen Seventies-era W116 (together with the flagship Mercedes-Benz 450SEL 6.nine). It carried ahead the hydropneumatic suspension of the 6.nine as an alternative at the 500-, and preferred at the 560- fashions.Following the Nineteen Seventies oil crisis, Mercedes-Benz made gas performance a pertinent purpose of the model, even withinside the massive V8-engined fashions.It had grow to be culture for Mercedes-Benz to elevate the requirements of vehicle engineering, comfort, protection and era with every new era of the S-Class, and the W126 changed into no exception.

Many of those innovations, however, had been to be had most effective to the fairly priced 500 and 560 fashions, and include:

+ Airbags, as an extra degree of occupant protection. + Traction control, to save you wheelspin (a Mercedes first). + ABS brakes (as delivered with the aid of using its predecessor, the W116) + Self-leveling suspension Novel luxurious capabilities include: + Courtesy lighting fixtures on the bottom of the doors, to permit the occupant to peer the floor while exiting the automobile withinside the dark. + 5-manner powered, heated seats, with a reminiscence feature to preserve settings for 2 specific occupants

Whilst nearly all of those capabilities are to be had nowadays on contemporary-day luxurious cars, every in its personal proper changed into taken into consideration very great withinside the 1980s. The harmonious and "matter-of-fact" manner which those had been mixed, in addition to their famend durability, has introduced to the enchantment of W126.

The W126 era changed into changed with the aid of using the W140 in 1992. The 500SEL has an thrilling vicinity in US history, for the reason that American call for for this specific automobile drove the established order of a massive gray marketplace. The detuned, but very pricey US specification 380 SE/SEL/SEC changed into underpowered, consistent with cutting-edge reports, and fueled call for for the extra effective version. 25,000 devices in line with yr of the gray marketplace automobile had been bought withinside the early 1980's