Set to be unveiled either at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show->ke228 next week or just a tad bit later, the new S-Class ->ke359 Cabriolet is still being tested by Mercedes-Benz engineers around the world. The latest spy photos show the model undergoing cold-weather testing in northern Sweden, where most German carmakers set up camp during the winter testing season.

With so little time until Mercedes-Benz->ke187 takes the wraps off, it seems that the testers of this pre-production prototype didn't bother to camouflage it that much, with the front-end being camo free, sans the covered three-pointed star emblem, of course. We can thus get a clearer look at the S-Class Cabrio's proportions and realize one more time that the model is nearly identical with its Coupe brother. The multi-layer soft-top roof has a slightly different profile, but other than that they are two peas in a pod.

Despite being quite heavily camouflaged, it is already known that the rear-end design will also be identical with the S-Class Coupe, so the gray camo bits are pretty unnecessary at this point. Engine-wise, the S-Class Cabrio will only get the twin-turbocharged, 4.7-liter V-8 from the S500/S550 in the beginning, likely paired with the new nine-speed automatic transmission, with the 63 and 65 AMG versions not being confirmed as of yet. Rear-wheel drive should be standard, but 4Matic all-wheel drive isn't out of the question in LHD markets.

Continue reading to learn more about the 2016 Mercedes S-Class Convertible.

Why it matters

While you wouldn't know it by its more recent model range, Mercedes-Benz used to build some pretty spectacular-looking large convertibles back in the day, and I am not talking exclusively about those six-wheeled monsters that Hitler liked to ride in. The Stuttgart carmaker stopped making a convertible version of its largest coupe in 1971, and 44 years later it looks like it will right that wrong with the new S-Class Cabriolet.

Even though it uses the same platform as its coupe and sedan brothers, the new four-seat convertible was developed independently and from the ground up as a convertible. This means that we shouldn't see too much of a difference in weight because of added rigidity measures compared with its siblings, like some cars from the Volkswagen Group; pitted against the Bentley Continental GTC it may actually sound like a featherweight.

2016 Mercedes S-Class Convertible - spy shots