Mercedes-Benz W126
S-Class II
The Mercedes-Benz W126 is a series of passenger cars made by Daimler-Benz AG. It was marketed as the second generation of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, and manufactured in sedan/saloon (1979–1991) as well as coupé (1981–1990) models, succeeding the company's W116 range. Mercedes-Benz introduced the 2-door C126 coupé model, marketed as the SEC, in September 1981. This generation was the first S-Class to have separate chassis codes for standard and long wheelbases (W126 and V126) and for coupé (C126).
Over its 12-year production (1979–1991), 818,072 sedans/saloons and 74,060 coupés were manufactured, totaling 892,126 and making the W126 by far the most successful generation of S-Class to date, and the longest in production.
History
After the debut of the W116 S-Class in 1972, Mercedes-Benz began preparing for the next generation S-Class, in October 1973. The project, code-named "Project W126", aimed to provide an improved ride, better handling, and improved fuel efficiency. The 1973 oil crisis and increasingly stringent emission and safety regulations in the United States influenced the development of the W126, leading to reduced emissions and improved fuel efficiency.
The W126 design team, led by Mercedes-Benz's chief designer Bruno Sacco, aimed to design a more aerodynamic shape and retain the unmistakable S-Class design elements. The aerodynamic drag was reduced through lengthy wind tunnel testing and reshaping of the front end and bumper along with hiding the wipers underneath the hood/bonnet for smoother flow. Reducing the weight was accomplished by extensive use of high-strength low-alloy (HSLA) sheet and polyurethane deformable material for bumpers and side claddings.
The public source identifies “Mercedes-Benz W126” as s-Class II. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Mercedes-Benz, W126 and S-Class.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q81485. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1979, 1991, 1981 and 1990.
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This entry incorporates text from “Mercedes-Benz W126” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.