2014 Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG and S63 AMG

The 2015 S-Class is set to be a giant leap over the uncomfortably-compromised BMW 750iL and the ungainly 2014 (and 2015) Audi A8 models.

Sidebar: What is up with the 7 series and A8 these days? The old kings are both fuddy-duddy specials lately, one might say.

— The BMW drives like an Avalon Hybrid with roid-rage, while the A8 is simply tiny in the back seat and trunk by most real-world measures.

— I do not have the stats at hand, but know for a fact the Chevrolet Impala’s legroom, headroom, shoulder room and trunk volume all put the A8 (and the A8L, if I’m not mistaken) to shame at 1/3 the price. 

— Perhaps standard Impala chase cars for Audi A8 buyers!

— The BMW adds a diesel option in USA for this year, while the 2015 A8 even adds a four-cylinder, front-drive entry car for 2015.

— Gasp! Where is the badge delete option on those two engines!?

How all-new is the S-Class for 2015? Just another dermabrasion, filler and Lifestyle Lift day-trip? Despite similar looks on first glance — no. The S-Class is all new from the pavement upward for 2015.

S65 AMG

HOW NEW IS NEW?

Up close, the cars look much newer than they do at 100 paces awat. The sexiest, and very youthful, AMG brawler styles are offered on this hot-rod limousine trio.

S550 4Matic

S63 AMG 4Matic

This starts right at the new MBUSA.com site — where the spinners are pretty darn flawless. There are even a few of auto-play animations. =]

But as good as all this very new MBUSA.com imagery is, nothing beats real-life photography to get a sense of how any car actually looks in the flesh.

Luckily, Mercedes_Benz brought the all-new (not out yet) S63 AMG 4MATIC and (very not-here-yet) 2015 S65 sedans to the Ritz-Carlton recently.

The S63 AMG 4MATIC is my natural preference, despite being slightly down on maximum horsepower versus the twin-turbocharged V12 in the S65.

Standard American-market 4MATIC is an S63 and E63 mainstay from this year forward, as are all-new transmissions and literally thousands of new features.

IN-PERSON APPEARANCE?

So, how to tell the S550 from the S63 from the S65? Not easy. Badges and exhaust pipes offer the best clues — they all wear extremely similar traditional-Benz chrome grilles versus the new ‘soft-nose’ look of the CLA and CLS — as well as the new S-Class Coupe.

How do the sedans look in person? Outstanding! Very appealing and current.

The only critique I have is the gloss-black radar shroud at the top of the grilles on every S-Class. It looks as authentic as a Calabasas deviated-septum Doctor visit.

The S65, meanwhile, keeps its traditional rear-drive layout with slightly less-advanced transmissions than the V8 cars.

— Are both exceptional luxury cars? Yes.

— Will both beat almost any supercar in a foot-down stoplight drag-race? Yes.

S63 INTERIOR IN REAL LIFE

Next Up? The Buyers Guide!  Coming within 30-minutes as next article.

But for real-world nose lightness and confidence putting down that power, this white/black S63 AMG 4Matic wins for me — hands-down.