2026 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Arrives With Classic-Modern Styling

Although the W223 seventh-generation Mercedes-Benz S-Class is only five years old, and the premium German automaker will soon come out to fight the Audi A8 and BMW 7 Series with a traditional mid-cycle refresh, someone has already started working on the next all-new installment of the long-running full-size luxury sedan franchise.
 

More precisely, someone dwelling across the parallel universes of vehicular CGI wants us to see the next generation already – it’s a member of the imaginative guild of digital car content creators, of course. The German trifecta has been a staple of the automotive industry for decades – and the war manifests across time and space – but also the car segments. One of the oldest brawls, of course, is between the Audi A8, BMW 7 Series, and Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
 
As such, it’s no wonder how come the latter attracts so much attention from every direction. For example, just recently, Giorgi Tedoradze, the Georgia-based industrial designer better known as tedoradze.giorgi on social media, had another quick CGI idea regarding the next S-Class and shared it promptly with us. It’s not the first time we’ve seen his alternative styling in effect, but the background is fresh and appropriate for the Mercedes brand, and that’s for sure.
 
So, his unofficial, hypothetical 2026 Mercedes-Benz S-Class design project now dwells around a CGI estate, and it surely looks glorious with the mansion in the background. The CGI styling includes Mercedes script on the chrome frame of the radiator grille, a grille with shutters – which is great both for ICE models and the S-Class with all-electric EQ Technology.
 

The overall design is boxier and flatter – a return to classic form, although there are still many modern elements, such as the slim LED headlights and the massive dual-tone alloy wheels. Interestingly, the profile includes a massive C-pillar design, so there’s not a lot of space for the small rear window, which has a reduced surface compared to the current model.
 
Around the back, the fake 2028 Mercedes-Benz S-Class includes a small ducktail trunk lid for aerodynamic purposes and simple LED taillights that don’t have stars inside but a full-width strip. Additionally, we can clearly see this is the ICE-powered version – albeit by 2028, we reckon some form of electrification will come standard. So, it could be a full hybrid, and no one would mind, most likely.
 
Hopefully, Mercedes-Benz will use inline-six hybrid options and reserve the four-cylinder engines solely for the plug-in hybrid models. Also, we reckon the AMG S 63 E Performance will continue to live on, and we don’t mind that, as long as it’s accompanied by Affalterbach’s beloved 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8! So, what do you think? Do you like this design, and would you choose it over a Lexus LS, Audi A8, or BMW 7 Series?