Mercedes is preparing a raised notchback vehicle borrowing as much from traditional sedans as from SUVs. Find out what this new model could look like, which could be called SUL and whose origins can be found at Maybach.
[Mis à jour le 11/10/2021] Mercedes tends to blur the tracks around its future raised sedan. Thus, after a Class S W222 mule, the German manufacturer is using a prototype using a Class C generation W204 (2007) hull for this project. For the occasion, the model, seen in the Austrian Alps, is based on a shortened wheelbase and has a smaller overhang than the original model. If it seems obvious that Mercedes is looking to develop a sedan with SUV accents, it remains to be seen in which segment this future model will be integrated …
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A strange previous generation Mercedes S-Class (W222) with a shorter wheelbase and widened track was recently spotted partially camouflaged near the Nürburgring in Germany. This “mule” seems to confirm the development of a model intended for a new segment at Mercedes, located between SUVs and limousines, which could therefore be qualified as SUL.
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An All-Terrain with trunk
If we trust the prototype in question, the car looks like a high legged notchback sedan, a segment in which a handful of manufacturers, like Volvo with its S60 Cross Country, have had their teeth cut out in the past. It is therefore a daring bet for Mercedes.
As on the E-Class All-Terrain raised station wagon, one can expect to find characteristic elements of SUVs such as black body guards on the wheel arches and side sills. But rather than integrating into an existing range like that of the E-Class, the SUL could inaugurate a new “family” within the Mercedes offer. The car should therefore be identifiable thanks to its own lights, among other things.
Raised sedan or notchback SUV?
At the 2018 Beijing Motor Show, Mercedes formalized its reflection on an all-road notchback vehicle by presenting the Maybach Ultimate Luxury concept, which looked more like a trunk SUV than an adventurer sedan.
Between these two orientations, the choice of Mercedes still remains to be clarified even if we tend to prefer the second today. It also remains to be seen whether the car is intended for Europe or only for China, much more fond of the notchback model than us but just as much of the SUV. The serial SUL would be scheduled for 2024.
Source : motor.es
