Where did the 'S' come from?

[ringway]

is "S" not american slang for station wagon

Or Shooting Brake?

 

[hawk20]

Long been accepted that MB use S to denote the estate versions and W for saloons. Here’s a few links: -

http://www.autoevolution.com/cars/mercedes-benz-e-63-amg-t-modell-s211-2006.html

http://www.autoevolution.com/search.php?s=s211&section=auto_models

http://www.autoevolution.com/search.php?s=S210&section=auto_models

http://www.whatgreencar.com/view-car/19279/MERCEDES-BENZ-E-Class%20Estate%20(S211)-Manual-6-speed

 

[219]

With all due respect , none of these references come from Mercedes-Benz , and most of them come from across the Atlantic .

The W (Wagen) no does indeed cover every variant on a basic chassis , however as with my namesake who started this thread , I cannot recall anything directly from Mercedes-Benz using these other designations , even if they are common parlance in the aftermarket and certain non-endorsed publications .

If you can find any direct reference from Mercedes-Benz themselves then I will be happy to accept them .

 

[hawk20]

With all due respect , none of these references come from Mercedes-Benz , and most of them come from across the Atlantic .

If you can find any direct reference from Mercedes-Benz themselves then I will be happy to accept them .

OK. Try the MB shop and new products for March refers to the S140 estate car: -
Mercedes-Benz World Online Shop

 

[hawk20]

Better link: -
Mercedes-Benz World Online Shop

320 TE Estate S124 1:43
[B66040516]£28.00

320 TE Estate S124 1984-1996 Silver 1:43

 

[ringway]

If you google S210 Estate or W210 Estate both searches result in "E-Class Estate".

Searches for W210 Estate yield far more results than S210 Estate.

 

[scumbag]

well.......my VIN number starts S204......


and its a c class estate.

The MB Phone selection brochure also states the W/S 204 as not compatible with some phones.

So it certainly is Mercedes chassis designation for a C class estate and the MB produced literature confirms it.


Not sure about other models however.

 

[wemorgan]

All I can add to general confusion is:

in a vehicle's development a model number/name is assigned to each separate vehicle variant, but this doesn't necessarily get carried on through to a VIN number.

Maybe this is how the 'S' has been originally used but then lost once production begins.

 

[Nasco12]

Wasn't there some connection (adopted unofficially perhaps) of 'S' being 'Station Wagen' or something?

The confustion doesn't stop here with 'S', 'W' and 'T' - we also have 'C' (coupé?), 'R' (roadster) and 'A' (cabriolet?)

Any more for any more?

Will

I've seen "V" being used for limousines on Wikipedia.

 

[SL300-24]

I think also this has arisen due to Mercedes Enthusiast who insist on the 'S' designation, to it will always be a 'W' 211 estate or whatever. Surely the VIN number must be right?

 

[Charles Morgan]

If you can find any direct reference from Mercedes-Benz themselves then I will be happy to accept them .

S 124

 

[jasonyw]

There is no hard and fast rule where the S comes from. It a marketing term any manufacturer can labelled it to distinguish a particular model. Look at those stupid names they gave to some models ......Fabia, Roomster etc

In Mercedes, S means the S-class they have been using it since before the war. The W is the model Mercedes used internally to labelled their classes of cars.

 

[Mactech]

Wikipedia definition: Anoraksia nervosa

“ The fear of knowing trivia that less that 10 people in the world care about”

I've suffered from it myself

 

[wemorgan]

The W is the model Mercedes used internally to labelled their classes of cars.

So internally how do they distinguish between estate and saloon variants?

Mmmm is this debate becoming circular?

 

[Diesel Benz]

Really? In Merc speak T is estate.

T has been used in the visible car name like that shown in the trunk but this is completely different from the chassis type letters in the technical documentation. A W211 is an E-class, I would say the T is something similar to this E even if one is used for one specific body style and the other is used on several body styles.

The "S" is not on an eststes chassis number.

I was not able to interpret this comment. The chassis number does not have any of the A, C, CL, R, S, W, V etc. etc. letters. The WDB or WDD or so is a world car manufacturer identity with some additional identification info and then there can be a letter for the factory site etc. but none of the body style characters (perhaps this is what the comment was about).

 

[Diesel Benz]

well.......my VIN number starts S204......


and its a c class estate.

The MB Phone selection brochure also states the W/S 204 as not compatible with some phones.

So it certainly is Mercedes chassis designation for a C class estate and the MB produced literature confirms it.


Not sure about other models however.

Your S204 (assuming it is an estate/wagon model) VIN number must start with WDD204, could you check again please?

 

[Diesel Benz]

I've seen "V" being used for limousines on Wikipedia.

My W221 is actually a V221. The V refers to a long wheelbase model or a limo but we often talk about W211 as an example when the discussion is not specific to W/S/V models. This does create some confusion but one cannot always list all model options and referring to 211 alone looks a bit odd.

 

[Spin_bowler]

So internally how do they distinguish between estate and saloon variants?

They look at them and decide that the one with the big backside is the estate.

 

[Shude]

They look at them and decide that the one with the big backside is the estate.

In the EPC you find a drawing of the shell, that usually clears up which model it is

 

[Benzowner]

Just to add a bit more confusion, wasn't the T only refered to on the W124 E Class and not on the C class estate? But I suppose the C class was out at the time of the E Class and not the 124. The 124 diesel estate was the first TD I saw that wasn't a turbo