Question: The Mercedes-Benz W116, is a series of flagship luxury sedans, produced from September 1972 until 1980, the W116 automobiles were the first Mercedes-Benz models to be officially called S-Class, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, formerly known as Sonderklasse S-Klasse, is a series of luxury flagship vehicles produced by the German automaker Mercedes-Benz, a division of which German company ?

Context articles: Mercedes-Benz W140
BMW New Six
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Mercedes-Benz W116
Mercedes-Benz X-Class
Mercedes-Benz C-Class (W202)
Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W221)
Mercedes-Benz W126
Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W220)

The Mercedes-Benz W140 is a series of flagship vehicles that were manufactured by the German automotive company Mercedes-Benz.
 On November 16, 1990, Mercedes-Benz unveiled the W140 S-Class via press release, later appearing in several February and March editions of magazines.
 The W140 made its public debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1991, with the first examples rolling off the production line in April 1991 and North American examples on August 6, 1991.
 Short (SE) and long (SEL) wheelbase sedans were offered initially, as well as the coupé (SEC=S-Klasse-Einspritzmotor(Fuel injection engine)-Coupé) body style C140 from October 1992.
 Like all Mercedes-Benz lines, the W140 S-Class was rationalized in late 1993 using the new "letter-first" nomenclature.
 The SE, SEL, and SEC cars were renamed the S-Class, with alphanumerical designations inverted.
 For example, the 500 SE became the S 500, and the 500 SEL became the S 500 L.
 In 1996 the coupé models following a mid-life update were separated into the CL-Class.
 The W140 series S-Class was superseded by the W220 S-Class sedan and C215 CL-Class coupe in 1999 after an eight-year production run.
The BMW New Six (E3) is a line of full-size luxury sedans produced by the German automaker BMW from 1968 to 1977.
 All models used the then-new M30 straight-6 engine.
 It marked BMW's return to the full-size luxury sedan market after a hiatus of 5 years, was introduced as a response to growing market segment dominated by Mercedes-Benz.
 It was important in establishing BMW's reputation as a maker of sporting, luxury sedans.
The Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG (C197 / R197) is a front mid-engine, 2-seater luxury, limited production supercar automobile developed by Mercedes-AMG of German automaker Mercedes-Benz and was the first Mercedes-Benz automobile designed in-house by AMG.
 The car, which has gull-wing doors, was the successor to the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren and was described by Mercedes-Benz as a spiritual successor to the Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing.
 SLS stands for "Sport Leicht Super" (Sport Light Super).
 The Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG was assembled largely by hand, with its chassis and aluminum body shell produced by Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria and then transferred to Sindelfingen, Germany for assembly, with its engine being hand built by AMG in Affalterbach, Germany.
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class, formerly known as Sonderklasse (German for "special class", abbreviated as "S-Klasse"), is a series of luxury flagship vehicles produced by the German automaker Mercedes-Benz, a division of German company Daimler AG.
 The S-Class designation for top-of-the-line Mercedes-Benz models was officially introduced in 1972 with the W116, and has remained in use ever since.
The Mercedes-Benz W116 is a series of flagship luxury sedans produced from September 1972 until 1980.
 The W116 automobiles were the first Mercedes-Benz models to be officially called S-Class, although earlier sedan models had already unofficially been designated with the letter 'S' – for "Sonderklasse" or "special class."
The Mercedes-Benz X-Class is a luxury pickup truck produced by the German automaker Mercedes-Benz, a division of German company Daimler AG.
 Unveiled at a world premiere in Cape Town in July 2017, the new Mercedes-Benz pickup takes its chassis and some body panels from the Nissan Navara and employs many Mercedes-specific features and technologies.
 It is expected to go on sale in late 2017.
Mercedes-Benz W202 is a compact executive car which was produced by the German automaker Mercedes-Benz in 1993–2000, under the C-Class model names.
 In May 1993, the first generation Mercedes-Benz C-Class was introduced as a replacement for the 190.
 The C-Class sedan was the company's entry-level model up until 1997, when Mercedes-Benz launched the smaller A-Class.
 Styling themes were carried over from the previous W201 series, but the new series had a smoother and rounder design than the previous generation of the compact Mercedes-Benz.
The Mercedes-Benz W221 is a chassis code of S-Class, the successor of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W220) and the predecessor of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W222).
 The S-Class are the flagship vehicles of Mercedes-Benz and each generation typically introduces a range of technical innovations and developments that over time will find their way into smaller cars.
The Mercedes-Benz W126 is a series of S-Class automobiles manufactured by Mercedes-Benz between 1979 and 1992.
 Premiering in September 1979 as the successor to the W116 line, the W126 was the second generation to officially bear that prestigious designation, an abbreviation for the German "Sonderklasse" or "special class."
 It introduced many Mercedes-Benz safety innovations, including the first seatbelt pretensioners.
The Mercedes-Benz W220 was a series of flagship sedans which constituted the Mercedes-Benz S-Class during the early to mid-2000s.
 Development for the W220 S-Class started in 1992, with the final design, helmed by Steve Mattin being approved in 1994 and frozen for production in the first half of 1995.
 The completed prototypes were presented in June 1998.
 The W220 started production in August 13, 1998, and the C215 CL-Class coupés started production in 1999.
 The W220 was a replacement for the earlier W140 S-Class after the 1998 model year.
 Compared to its predecessor, the W220 had somewhat smaller exterior dimensions but offered more interior space, particularly in the long-wheelbase versions (although the trunk is smaller than on its W140 predecessor).
 Production of the W220 totalled 485,000 units, slightly more than the production totals from the W140.
 Production ended in 2006 when the W220 was replaced by the W221 S-Class and the C215 was replaced in 2006 by the C216 CL-Class.