最近谍照记者拍到了奔驰S级照片，虽然第一眼看上去像是一辆普通的S级车型，但该车进一步外延的轮拱表明这很可能是一辆下一代S级的早期测试车型。这辆原型车可能是为了测试新的行驶机构或其他类型的硬件，虽然它的车尾贴上了“S500”标志，但实际上这并非真正的S500车型。几个月前，奔驰刚刚发布了S级改款车，新车采用了更多新技术，引擎获得升级，某些车型的名称改变了，包括S550和S500e分别换成了S560和S560e。现行版S级还要在市场上存在相当长一段时间，奔驰已经表示，新一代S级不会在2020年前上市，但这辆车是什么呢？实际上，该车极有可能就是新一代S级，从其硕大的轮罩看，新车的轮距更宽。当新一代S级在大约2020年（美版车将作为2021款车型上市）发布时，由于采用了更多铝制和碳纤维增强塑料，车身将更轻。目前对于下一代S级还知之甚少，但奔驰显然正在开发其四门轿跑车版本，该车很可能会被命名为“SEC"。

2020 Mercedes S-Class Possibly Spied For The First Time
It may look like a run-of-the-mill Mercedes S-Class at a first glance, but the extensions applied onto the wheel arches could be a sign we are actually dealing with an early test mule of the next-generation model. The prototype might have been used for testing new running gear or other type of hardware and there is a good chance it wasn’t actually an S500 like the badge on the back would want you to believe.

The flagship sedan from Mercedes was revised just a few months ago when it received even more technology, an updated engine range, and some model name changes as the S550 and S500e have been replaced by the S560 and the S560e, respectively. The current S-Class will be available for quite some time as the company has made it clear the next-gen car will not arrive before the end of the decade, but is this it? There is a distinct possibility we are in fact looking at the new one, which could have slightly wider tracks judging by the beefier wheelhouses.

When the next S-Class will debut in 2020 or so (2021MY in the United States), it’s going to be lighter than today’s car by making more extensive use of aluminum combined with carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP).

Little else is known about the next S-Class, but a four-door coupe derivative is apparently in the works and could bring back the “SEC” moniker.