The Mercedes-Benz W140 can be said to be the most classic generation of models in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, which is known as the Tiger Head Ben in China. If there is any other generation of Mercedes-Benz S-Class that may challenge the status of W140, it must be the same classic W126, which has been the mercedes-benz S-Class for two consecutive generations and is also the Mercedes-Benz that has impressed Chinese the most, laying the foundation for Mercedes-Benz's status in China.
Mercedes-Benz presented the new Mercedes-Benz SEC at the 1992 Detroit Motor Show and the Geneva Motor Show, which at the time was a coupe version of the W140 generation S-Class. Today, as the epidemic changes the auto show, the model of the Detroit Auto Show and the Geneva Auto Show will change greatly in the future, but 30 years ago, these two auto shows were the big drama at the beginning of the year, and Mercedes-Benz chose to launch the SEC at the first auto show of the year in North America and Europe, which was also the icing on the cake for the W140 S-Class at that time.
From the current point of view, you may feel that the SEC is a bit "old-fashioned", but if you imagine that the SEC's wheels are enlarged and its waist line is raised upwards, then this is a still fashionable coupe, and even the design of many of the current Mercedes-Benz coupes cannot escape the shadow of the SEC.
When it was introduced in 1992, the 600SEC, the version using the 6.0-liter V12 four-overhead camshaft 48 valve, was the most expensive production car on the German market at the time, selling for 220,000 marks, while the V12 version of the 600SEL, the flagship four-door sedan in the W140, was sold for 185,000 marks. In the Chinese market, the price at that time was around 2 million. What is the concept of 2 million in 1992, in the second ring road of Beijing, in the inner ring of Shanghai, buy dozens of houses, and now the price should be easily doubled by 200 times.
At that time, Mercedes-Benz SEC was definitely the top model in technology, and in the early 90s, when ABS belonged to the era of exclusive technology configuration of high-end models, the ESP system jointly developed by Mercedes-Benz and Bosch on the SEC was definitely a black technology. In addition, the use of double glazing, electric safety generation adjustment, automatic partition air conditioning and other configurations, is also a very rare luxury configuration in the 90s, at that time, Mercedes-Benz already has the awareness of enhancing luxury attributes through scientific and technological configuration.
In terms of powertrain, the SEC mainly promoted the 600SEC with a 394 hp V12 engine and a 500 SEC model with a 320 hp V8 engine, followed by a 4.2-liter V8 engine version in 1994, and the most classic powertrain is definitely the V12 from any point of view. At the SEC, Mercedes-Benz has never tried to use a small displacement engine, which also ensures the pedigree of SEC models.
In 1993, when Mercedes-Benz renamed all car series, the SEC model was simply and rudely named S, Mercedes-Benz said that from the body can see that SEC is the S-class coupe version, this statement is understandable, but always feel that this two-door coupe lost some exclusive glory, fortunately, after 1996, Mercedes-Benz renamed the SEC model CL, although this model was discontinued in 1998, but it also left its own mark.
It is worth mentioning that in the 6-year mass production career, Mercedes-Benz produced a total of 26022 SEC models, of which 8573 were V12 600 SEC, accounting for almost 1/3 of the total production, while the 500 SEC produced 14953 units. It seems that when people choose the W140 generation S-Class coupe, they yearn for the most classic V12.