The best or nothing: The new Mercedes S 580e 4Matic is more powerful, has more range and can charge the battery quicker than its rivals BMW 745 Le xDrive and Audi A8 60 TFSIe.
In the previous generation S-Class, Mercedes had a PHEV version with rear-wheel drive only. But there are many customers who want a PHEV but do not want to give up all-wheel drive.
Now, Mercedes also offers them an alternative. The new Mercedes S 580 e is also available with 4Matic all-wheel drive for both the normal wheelbase and the long wheelbase version.
Rivals from Audi and BMW already had PHEV all-wheel drive luxury limousines on offer. Last came to this club, Mercedes promises better performance but also greater electrical range and faster battery charging.
The new Mercedes S 580e 4Matic uses the same propulsion system as the S 580e. The new 6-cylinder in-line 3-liter engine with 367 HP and 500 Nm is mated with an electric motor of 150 HP and 480 Nm and the assembly provides a total of 510 HP and 750 Nm. Power is transmitted to all four wheels via a 9-speed automatic transmission.
Audi and BMW also use a 6-cylinder 3-liter engine at the base, but the total power is lower.
In the case of the Audi A8 60 TFSIe quattro, the 3-liter V6 engine with 340 HP and 500 Nm is mated with an electric motor with 136 HP and 350 Nm and the assembly provides a total of 449 HP and 700 Nm. Power is transmitted to all four wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission. As in the A8 range, because all models have standard all-wheel drive, the A8 PHEV is only available with all-wheel drive for both normal and long-wheelbase L versions.
The BMW 7 Series PHEV is called the 745e and is available with rear-wheel drive on versions with normal and long wheelbase and all-wheel drive only on the long version (BMW 745 Le xDrive).
The BMW 745e combines the 6-cylinder in-line 3-liter turbo engine with 286 HP and 450 Nm with an electric motor of 113 HP and 265 Nm, with a total power of 394 HP and 600 Nm. As with Audi, the transmission is provided by an 8-speed automatic transmission.
Mercedes S 580e 4Matic is not only more powerful but offers a much greater electrical range. With a battery with a gross capacity of 28.6 kWh (21.5 kWh net), the Mercedes S 580e 4Matic has a range of over 100 km.
By comparison, rivals have smaller batteries: 12.4 kWh gross at BMW (10.4 kWh net) and 14.1 kWh net at Audi. Thus, BMW has an electric range of 45 km, and Audi 44 km, ie less than half of Mercedes’ range.
Another big advantage of Mercedes is that the Mercedes S 580e 4Matic can also be charged to DC stations with up to 60 kW while BMW and Audi cannot be charged to DC stations.
Charging to the DC socket is optional at Mercedes and it allows you to charge the battery from 0 to 100% in just 30 minutes. By comparison, the batteries of Audi and BMW need over 3 hours for a full charge.
