S500 Plug-in Hybrid is first of 10 in Mercedes Benz offensive

The Mercedes Benz S500 Plug-in Hybrid is outlined for display at Paris auto show this week.
The car is one of at least 10 new plug-in hybrid models the company plans to introduce by 2017 — as the German manufacturer looks to fulfill strict carbon emission requirements in Europe.
The new long-wheelbase S500 Plug-In Hybrid will be followed by a plug-in hybrid version of the midsize C class next year.
Then Mercedes will roll out plug-in derivatives of other rear- and all-wheel-drive models including its SUVs, executives from parent Daimler told reporters last week. 
The S500 Plug-In Hybrid will arrive in some international showrooms in March of next year.
"The S500 Plug-In Hybrid is the first luxury saloon with the performance of a V8 and the fuel consumption of a compact model.
The greatest challenge in this is to translate efficiency into superior performance.
In this respect, there is a highly interesting parallel with our successful Formula 1 racing car, which likewise has a turbocharged V6 engine and a high-tech hybrid drive," says Prof. Dr. Thomas Weber, member of the Daimler Board of Management responsible for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development.
The model offensive represents the biggest commitment to plug-in power by a German premium brand to date.
Audi plans to launch at least four plug-in hybrids, starting with the Audi A3 Sportback e-tron that is scheduled to arrive in showrooms this December.
The S500 Plug-in Hybrid offers a system output of 325 kW and 650 Nm torque, sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in just 5.2 seconds and can drive up to 33 km on electric motors alone.
The certified consumption is 2.8 litres/100 km, which corresponds to 65 g CO2/km emissions.
Key elements of this impressive output are the V6 biturbo and the intelligent hybrid drive.