Due to poor sales of electric models, Mercedes has rethought its development strategy. Thus, after the current Mercedes S-Class W223 generation whose lifecycle will end in 2030, a new generation will follow that will sell well after 2030.
It seems that Mercedes was over-optimistic when they said that from 2030 they will only sell electric models where market conditions permit. The steady decline in sales of electric models has proven that this plan is unrealistic. In the third quarter of 2024, Mercedes sold just 42,400 electric models, 31% less than in Q3 2023, and as a percentage, electric car sales account for just 8.5% of total Mercedes sales.
Originally, the plan was for the current-generation Mercedes S-Class W223, launched in 2021, to go through two facelifts in 2026 and 2029, with the lifecycle ending in 2033, with no successor with a thermal engine.
At the same time, the Mercedes EQS would receive a facelift in 2026 and a new generation in 2028. Forget those plans, however, because Mercedes has canceled plans to develop the MB.EA’s large platform would have underpinned the second-generation Mercedes EQS, and there will also be a new-generation W224 S-Class.
The eighth generation W224 Mercedes S-Class will arrive in 2030
Thus, plans are still unchanged for the Mercedes S-Class to undergo a facelift in 2026 that will keep the model fresh until 2030 when an all-new generation will be launched. This new generation will be based on an evolution of the current MRA II platform and will have the entire engine range electrified but will still be offered with a diesel engine that will be coupled with mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid.
Thus, the eighth-generation Mercedes S-Class will be produced well beyond 2030 and even 2035 considering that the life cycle of the current generation will span 10 years.
The second generation Mercedes EQS will arrive in 2028 with a new name
The Mercedes EQS will undergo an intensive technical facelift in 2026, following which the current EVA2 platform will be upgraded from 400V to 800V technology. On this occasion, Mercedes will fit its own electric motors coupled to two-speed gearboxes.
In 2028 a second generation is planned, after which the name will change from EQS to S-Class EV.
Mercedes has made the decision to drop the EQ name starting with the new CLA EV, which launches in 2025. In the same vein, the electric versions of the C-Class and GLC will be called the Mercedes C-Class Ev and GLC EV.
It’s unclear at this point what body type the second-generation Mercedes EQS, aka the S-Class EV, will have. Chinese clientele has criticized the poor rear access, and we expect Mercedes to radically change the design, it is possible that the future S-Class Ev will have a classic three-volume body. We expect the Mercedes S-Class and its electric derivative to share as many components as possible to cut costs, just as BMW did with the i7 and 7 Series.
But on the other hand, Ola Kallenius, Mercedes CEO, said Mercedes will not compromise on using a common architecture for conventional and electric models.