S-Class flagship on its way to wealthy

The luxury S-Class Mercedes-Benz range will soon be joined in New Zealand by its premium S600 model, which comes with everything that opens and shuts.

The car, powered by a V12 engine, even has six catalytic converters to make sure exhaust emissions are as clean as a whistle.

And six of the 12 cylinders in the lightweight engine automatically shut down to save fuel when the car is maintaining a steady cruising speed.

Mercedes-Benz says fuel figures of 13.4 litres for every 100km can be achieved. But this probably won't worry the people who can afford the $279,000 for the S600.

For the record, the 5.8-litre V12 develops 270kW and 530Nm.