Super TestCar reviews - Mercedes-Benz - S-Class - 300SE sedanMercedes-Benz modelsOverview20 May 1986 BACK in late 1979, when Mercedes-Benz unveiled the W126 S-class at the Frankfurt motor show, it represented everything the almost century-old maker knew about cars. Its engineering depth ensured that it reigned supreme throughout the 1980s, seeing off two generations of BMW 7 Series, the all-new Jaguar XJ40 and Audi's flawed V8. So much so, in fact, that it was the yardstick for Toyota when it developed the first Lexus, the LS400, in 1989 - and that was a decade after the S-class debut. The W126's follow-up was the gargantuan but awesomely capable W140, a car so out-of-step with the lean and mean recessional early-1990s that Mercedes rather too hastily abandoned its hallowed "over-engineering" policy for something a lot more pedestrian: making as much money as it could. A decade on from that and the company is a very different entity to that it once was, with a brand that's been stretched woefully downmarket, undoing a previous century's hard work. Meanwhile its W126 models, featured here in 1986-1992 300SE guise, stands as a timeless example of what the old, much-lamented Mercedes-Benz used to be about... Model release date: 1 April 1986 to 1 April 1992 All car reviewsAlfa Romeo Abarth Alpine Alpina Audi Aston Martin BMW Bentley Chevrolet Chery Citroen Chrysler Dodge Cupra Ferrari DS Ford Fiat FPV Foton GWM Great Wall Holden Haval HSV Honda Hyundai Hummer Isuzu Infiniti Jeep Jaguar Lamborghini Kia LDV Land Rover Lotus Lexus Maserati Mahindra McLaren Mazda Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-AMG Mini MG Nissan Mitsubishi Peugeot Opel Proton Porsche Renault Ram Rover Rolls-Royce Skoda Saab SsangYong Smart Suzuki Subaru Toyota Tesla Volvo Volkswagen |
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