Volvo XC40 vs Mercedes-Benz S400

What's the difference?

The Volvo XC40 Recharge Twin Motor is a cute small electric SUV that offers a decent specs list and a sweet urban driving experience. It’s not the nicest ride on a longer journey but it does have a decent range to be able to tackle one, if needed. I didn’t love the interior design but there’s lots the XC40 gets right.

The 2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class remains a technological tour de force, a luxury sedan to be reckoned with - one that has safety, technology, comfort, finesse and performance all rolled into a stylish package. 

It's hard to see why you'd need anything more than the S 350 d, which is now much more attractively priced. It'd be my pick, but I'd have to get the Energizing Comfort Control package, and probably the AMG styling pack, too. And even then it would cost less than its predecessor.

The XC40 Recharge sees some design changes from its fuel-based counterparts and that’s mainly seen in the front because you get a body-coloured panel instead of a standard grille. The 20-inch alloys feature a chunkier-looking design but the front still boasts the cool ‘Hammer of Thor’ headlights (which I'm rather fond of).

The interior is where the electric powertrain loses me because the fuel-based equivalent is so much nicer inside with its leather-accented upholstery and trims.

It's lovely that there has been a conscious effort to use recycled materials and non-leather upholstery throughout but I'm left with the strange-feeling that synthetic seats don’t reflect the grade or price level of this car. 

Other than the cool-looking topography inserts on the dash and front doors and the 9.0-inch vertical multimedia system, it’s pleasant but a little basic in the cabin. Which is shame because the exterior is cute as hell.

I swear it has been facelifted, and the changes are bigger than they might appear. There is no doubt that the S-Class shape is largely unchanged, but the German company has kept the modifications minimal in the scheme of things.

That doesn’t mean those changes are unnecessary, though. The new headlights, for example, are standard on every model, and are constructed with 84 LEDs (including three for the daytime running lights), and of course they’re adaptive with automated high-beam - meaning they’ll shield other road users from the glare of the lights at night. And the lights themselves will throw a main beam up to 650 metres, according to the company. 

Other things are slightly more cosmetic, like the revised three-bar grille treatment, new front and rear bumper designs that feature broader sculpted sections to widen the stance of the car, and there are new LED tail-lights as well.

The smallest set of wheels used to consist of 18-inch rims, but now the base car rolls on 19s, while the rest of the expansive range sits on 20s. 

The inside has seen some changes, too, but the appearance of things in the cabin isn’t the focal point - its the usability of the technology that's the big change. 

Oh, but I should tell you there are now 64 ambient lighting colours to choose from, which is up from seven, and now you can also set the lighting in three different zones - so theoretically you can have blue, orange and green areas of the cockpit, if you’re gross.

Front passengers enjoy the most space and I have plenty of head- and legroom up front. It’s a really easy car to get in and out of and the individual storage is very good for the class. 

Front passengers enjoy a glove box, middle console with a removeable bin, two cupholders, utility tray and skinny drink bottle holders in the storage bins in the doors.

In the rear, passengers get map pockets on the backs of the front seats, two cupholders in the fold-down armrest and small storage bins in each door.

The synthetic leather-trimmed seats look neat and tidy but are very hard in the cushion, which makes them a tad uncomfortable on longer trips. The rear seats are much the same.

Charging options throughout the car are good with the front enjoying a 12-volt port, two USB-C sockets and a wireless charging pad to choose from. The rear also gets two USB-C ports and there's another 12-volt outlet in the boot.

The rest of the technology is easy to use once you spend some time with it. The 9.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system features built-in Google Maps, Assistant and Play Store apps, as well as, YouTube.

The 12.0-inch digital instrument panel isn’t customisable but I like the way it pulls through the satellite navigation screen and directions.  

Because of the dual-motor powertrain, your boot capacity drops to 419L from 452L for the single-motor variant. It is large enough for my grocery shop and random errands and you can fold the floor up to create a deep storage well for additional space. Fold the 60/40 split-folding rear seat and available space expands to 1295 litres.

I don’t like the hardened cargo liner, it feels and looks a little cheap, but I do like the powered tailgate. There’s also handy frunk storage of 31L, which is perfectly sized for any charging cables you will have.

If you’re buying a Mercedes-Benz S-Class there’s a good chance you’re more interested in the back seat than the front: you could be buying it for a business, or you could like to be driven around - and there are definitely worse places you could be.

We would suggest, though, that the best place you could be if that’s your caper is in the back of a long-wheelbase S-Class model, which has extra legroom. 

And if you happen to be in a LWB model with the 'Business Class Package', you’ll enjoy two individual rear seats rather than a three-seat bench, folding tables for your bento box or laptop, and an ‘executive seat’ on the passenger side that features a foot rest and allows you to slide the front seat forward to liberate more room. Deluxe. 

No matter if you are in one of the stretched models demarcated as such by the ‘L’ suffix or not, you will enjoy excellent seat comfort and good head- and shoulder-room. Legroom in the regular models isn’t as plentiful as you might expect: much more affordable cars like the Hyundai Sonata give the S-Class a run for its money in that regard.

There are good storage options for odds and ends, with the back seat featuring a fold-down armrest with pop-out cupholders and a storage box, as well as map pockets - and the boot space varies depending on the model, but the S 350 d has a 510-litre cargo capacity (VDA). All four doors have bottle holsters, and a bit of extra room besides. Of course there are rear-seat air-vents, and if you’re kids are lucky enough to ride around in a S-Class, the two ISOFIX/three top-tether points will be welcome.

Up front there are two cupholders between the seats, and a new wireless phone charger in the centre console (Qi compatible phones only). There are two USB ports as standard in most models, while models with the rear seat entertainment package fitted get rear USBs. 

The huge screen that runs across two-thirds of the dashboard has seen the noticeable join marker removed for this update, with the monitors being upgraded to a higher resolution and the graphics have been reworked, too. The codpiece-style controller of the Comand media interface remains, and while it still isn’t as simple as other controllers, it is reasonably easy to get used to. 

So … what about Beyonce? 

She comes in as part of the Energizing Comfort Control system, which is standard in some models and a $1400 option in those that don’t have it fitted. 

Essentially it allows you to choose between different set moods: 'Joy', 'Freshness', 'Vitality', 'Warmth', 'Comfort' and 'Training', the latter of which offers three different stretching/exercise programs that last for 10 minutes to stop fatigue. The instructions are given by voice over the sound system.

Each of the moods will adjust the temperature and ventilation (the Freshness setting offers ‘gusts’ of fresh air as if you’re at the beach!), ambient lighting, air fragrance and intensity, and the massage function for the seats. And the music bit - there are predefined songs the system can cue up to suit the mood, or it can identify songs on a hard-drive or USB that suit the programs by analysing the tempo of the tune. Amazing, right?

The new steering wheel looks a lot sportier than the one in the pre-update car, and it has finally done away with the awkward cruise control stalk in favour of steering wheel buttons for the adaptive cruise control system.

If you can call a car that starts near two-hundred grand good value, then you have much more money than I do. But there is no escaping it: the new S-Class 2018 range is better value than before.

The starting point in the range is entry-grade S 350 d, which is $195,900 plus on-road costs. 

Standard kit for that model includes 19-inch alloy wheels, leather trim, heated and cooled front seats, nappa leather-wrapped steering wheel, those great new headlights and the new ambient lighting system, a panoramic sunroof, head-up display, dark brown 'Eucalyptus' trim, auto-dimming rear-view and side mirrors, a wireless phone charging system, keyless entry and push-button start. The entire S-Class range now gets auto-closing doors and an electric boot lid, too.

The media system in the S 350 d includes sat nav with traffic monitoring, a 13-speaker Burmester sound system, digital TV, DAB+ digital radio, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the 'Comand Online' system with internet capability.

Next up the model range is the S 400d L (at $222,500), and the S 450 L ($227,500) - both of which are specified identically. Over the base model car they feature the extended wheelbase, as well as electronically adjustable rear seats with memory function, side window blinds, a rear blind, rear climate control, and 20-inch wheels. 

The S 560 sees the price head north to $270,000 (for the short-wheelbase model, which loses the abovementioned stuff in the L models), or $295,000 for the S 560 L. It adds the following nice features: nappa leather, brown burr walnut trim, a wood/leather steering wheel, 'Energizing Comfort Control', different (five-spoke design) 20-inch wheels, laminated glass and an anti-theft protection package. The S 560 L has luxury rear head restraints - they’re more like pillows, honestly - an individual rear-seat entertainment system and two wireless headsets.

The top of the regular S-Class model range is the Mercedes-AMG S 63 L, which is a princely $375,000. It builds on the kit offered in the models below, and pushes the sports luxury aspect further, with a full AMG body kit, 20-inch AMG wheels, AMG specific drive programs, AMG brakes, an uprated exhaust, sports steering and retuned suspension. Inside there are model-specific elements, special wood trim, front seats with active bolstering, and heated and ventilated rear seats.  

If you’re shopping at this end of the market, then you’ll likely also be tossing up between a BMW 7 Series, or maybe a Bentley Flying Spur. An all-new Lexus LS will arrive in April 2018, and the all-new Audi A8 isn’t far away, either.

The XC40 Recharge Twin Motor features two electric motors which are powered by a large 82kWh lithium-ion battery and produce a combined power output of 300kW and 670Nm of torque.

Which is downright fun because it can do a 0-100km/h sprint in just 4.8-seconds!

The big news for the majority of S-Class buyers is the new engine in the S 350d, which is a 2.9-litre in-line six-cylinder turbo-diesel with 210kW of power and 600Nm of torque. It has a nine-speed automatic and is rear-wheel drive (RWD).

That same diesel engine is wicked up in the S 400d L, with that model churning out 250kW and 700Nm, and remains rear-drive with a nine-speed auto.

The petrol model range is opened by the S 450 L with a 3.0-litre six-cylinder twin-turbo mill producing 270kW/520Nm. Again, nine-speed auto, RWD.

The S 560 and S 560L run the same 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol with 345kW of power and 700Nm of torque. Nine-speed auto, rear-drive - naturally!

The AMG-fettled S 63 has a thumping twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 petrol engine with 450kW and 900Nm, with a nine-speed MCT multi-clutch auto and - you guessed it - RWD.

The official energy consumption figure is 19kWh/100km and I averaged 19.2kWh over a fair mix of urban and open-road driving. The energy consumption isn't bad but some rivals do sit closer to that 16.5kWh mark.

The official driving range is up to 485km for this model but I only ever saw a top range of 410km. That's not terribly surprising given I wasn't shy with the power use but there was a little bit of range anxiety on longer trips.

The XC40 Recharge Twin Motor has a Type 2 CCS charging port which means you can benefit from faster charging speeds. On an 11kW AC charger you can go from 0-100 per cent in eight hours but on a standard three-pin house plug socket expect that wait time to go up significantly.

On a DC fast charger expect to go from 10-80 per cent in as little as 33-minutes.

The diesel models are - unsurprisingly - the most frugal in the range, with the entry-level S 350 d using a claimed 5.4 litres per 100km across a range of disciplines.

The S 400 d L - which uses a higher-output version of the same diesel drivetrain as the model above - uses only a minuscule amount more: its claim is 5.5L/100km. 

The most frugal of the petrols is the S 450 L, with its six-pot petrol twin-turbo using a claimed 8.4L/100km.

Every model has stop-start - including the AMG - and the V8 petrols also feature cylinder deactivation when in 'Eco' mode.

That cylinder deactivation system helps the S 560 achieve an incredibly low claimed consumption of 8.5L/100km. So does the longer, slightly heavier S 560 L.

The higher-out Mercedes-AMG S 63 L uses 9.0L/100km, according to its claim. Amazing for the outputs of the engine.

Like the Polestar 2 there’s no ignition button on the XC40. You shift into drive to ‘turn on’ and after you park, you simply get out to turn it off. It takes a little while to get used to but it’s a cool feature. 

The twin motors deliver a hefty kick and you never worry about not having ‘enough power’. In the city it’s zippy but on the open-road you also feel comfortable getting up to speed or overtaking because the power distribution is so well-balanced because it’s an AWD.

I customised my steering wheel ‘feel’ to firm and it makes the handling crisp and direct. You feel like you’re in total control whenever you have to tackle be it tight streets or small car parks.

The blind-spot visibility is compromised by how wide the B and C-pillars are and I find that I'm relying a lot more on the blind-spot monitoring system to compensate.

The XC40 loses a few points for me in terms of ride comfort. As mentioned, the seats aren't terribly comfortable but the suspension is hard enough that you notice every bump, as well.

Road noise is also quite pronounced and it doesn’t sound refined when you drive at higher speeds, which is a shame. The flip-side, though, is that you don’t notice those things as much on short, urban trips.

The standard regen braking isn’t customisable and you don’t notice it until you switch over to a 'one-pedal' function. I found this function uncomfortable to use as it’s very aggressive and creates a jerky driving experience. 

Because of its 4440mm length and tiny 11m turning circle, you won’t struggle in a car park! The 360-degree view camera system and front and rear parking sensors make it easy to navigate a tight spot.

This is a joy to park. It’s so easy.

Smooth. It wasn’t even because I’d chosen the Energizing Comfort Control mood to elicit that vibe. It’s smooth - and so it should be.

Whether it’s the near-silent new six-cylinder diesel, which hauls the near two-tonne sedan along with less fuss than a medical centre receptionist dealing with a room full of coughing patients. There is no fuss. You just hand over control to the engine, and trust it will get you where you need to be.

The V8 petrol in the S 560 also has a bit of a silent killer vibe to it. There’s perhaps not as much noise as a V8 fan might want, but the mumbo is there, and in both cars the gearshifts are sublimely timed and super smooth.

Admittedly, the stiff-sided run-flat tyres on both the 19- and 20-inch wheels can exhibit a slight terseness over sharp edges, but when it comes to rolling over pockmarked surfaces or rougher country backroads, the ride offered up by the air suspension with variable dampers is superb. Put it in Sport mode and it stiffens up to the degree you’d expect, but Comfort is no doubt the best place to be.

The steering is super light but accurate, meaning it’s easier than you’d think to pilot this behemoth of a sedan through corners. The grip on offer is excellent, too, even if traction can be an issue - I had a full couple of seconds of strobe light action from the traction control light when I buried the throttle in the S 560. 

I didn’t get a chance to drive the six-cylinder petrol S 450 L, or the S 400 d L. And, I’m really sad to report, there was no opportunity to drive the AMG S 63 L, either. 

But the overall feeling of the updated range is that it remains a deluxe and delightful limousine - whether you have the good fortune of being in the driver’s seat or not.

Easily one of the safest cars, if not the safest car, on the road today if technology is anything to go by. Well, we can’t go by a crash test score, because the S-Class hasn’t been crashed by EuroNCAP or ANCAP. So I can’t really give it a 10/10 for safety…

But when the standard safety kit list is as lengthy as the S-Class’s, it seems a safe bet. Items fitted include a 360-degree camera system, parking sensors front and rear, auto emergency braking, active blind-spot monitoring, active lane-keeping assist, adaptive cruise control with active steering assist, drowsiness detection, crosswind assist, and pedestrian detection with evasive steering assist (which allows you to turn the wheel harder to avoid impact with a pedestrian).

Plus there are other items like the company’s Pre-Safe crash detection system which can flash the car’s hazard lights at other road users, and tighten the occupant’s seatbelt in anticipation of being hit. And if that happens, there are eight airbags (dual front, front side, rear side, curtain).

The ongoing costs are pretty solid with the XC40 coming with a usual five-year/ unlimited warranty term but the drive battery is covered for eight years/160,000km.

You can pre-purchase a five-year/150,000km servicing program for a flat $3000 or an average of $600 per service, which is a bit expensive for the class. Servicing intervals are great at every two-years or 30,000km, whichever occurs first.

You get complimentary roadside assistance for five-years through Assist Australia and if you meet certain criteria, you can extend that by a further three years, which is handy.

Mercedes-Benz offers a standard three-year/unlimited kilometre warranty.

Servicing is due every 12 months or 25,000km on all engines except AMG drivetrains, which require servicing every year or 20,000km. 

Mercedes-Benz has a (pricey!) capped-price servicing plan. The standard diesel and petrol models in the S-Class range cost $596 for the first service, and $1192 for the second and third visits. The costs for the sole AMG model is $736 for the first service, then the second and third visits are $1472 per.