Mercedes-Benz S600
What it costs to keep fuelled
$3,000a year, fuel only
The 2017 Mercedes-Benz S600 is EPA-rated at 16 MPG combined (13 city / 22 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 938 gallons, $3000 a year in fuel, or $0.200 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 1996–2017 run it averages 14.1 MPG, improving by 2 MPG over 20 model years.
The band is how far one gallon carries it: 16 of the 60 MPG this scale runs to. The square tick is the large cars average, 21.6.
- Fuel, per year
- $3,000 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.200
- Per kilometre
- $0.124
- Gallons burned/yr
- 938
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
Test figure — not a road resultSOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Start from the EPA combined figure for the model year — a laboratory test cycle run to a fixed procedure, not a road result. Where a year sold several engines or drivetrains, the trims are averaged and the trim count is printed beside the row so you can see how much averaging is behind it.
- Fix a pump price. This site keeps one reference price, $3.20 a US gallon, fixed JUL 2026 and printed next to every dollar figure it produces. It is an assumption with a date on it, not a quote — put your own price in.
- Fix an annual distance. Every annual figure on this site uses 15,000 miles a year, roughly the US average. A cost per year with no stated distance is not a number, it is a mood.
- Divide distance by economy for gallons, multiply by price for the year's fuel, divide price by economy for one mile. The per-kilometre line is that last figure divided by 1.609344 — the same money, in the unit most of the world drives in.
- Stop there. No depreciation, no tyres, no insurance, no servicing. This is the fuel line of the ledger and it is labelled as one; depreciation usually dwarfs everything on it.
gallons/yr = miles/yr ÷ MPG fuel $/yr = gallons/yr × $/gal cost $/mi = $/gal ÷ MPG cost $/km = cost $/mi ÷ 1.609344
The full method, the licence note, and what a test figure cannot tell you →
Re-run the ledger at another pump price
Every line above rests on one pump price. Here is the same entry re-costed at six others, because the price is the part that changes while the test sheet stays put.
| Fuel price | Per mile | 10,000 mi/yr | 15,000 mi/yr | 20,000 mi/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50/gal | $0.156 | $1563 | $2344 | $3125 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.188 | $1875 | $2813 | $3750 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.200 | $2000 | $3000 | $4000 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.219 | $2188 | $3281 | $4375 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.250 | $2500 | $3750 | $5000 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.281 | $2813 | $4219 | $5625 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.313 | $3125 | $4688 | $6250 |
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole service history, sheet by sheet
20 model years on file. Read down the combined column: a nameplate that got heavier shows it here long before any brochure admits it.
| Year | Combined | City | Highway | EPA fuel cost/yr | CO₂ g/mi | Trims |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 16 MPG | 13 | 22 | $4800 | 547 | 1 |
| 2016 | 16 MPG | 14 | 21 | $4800 | 547 | 1 |
| 2015 | 16 MPG | 13 | 21 | $4800 | 572 | 1 |
| 2013 | 14 MPG | 12 | 19 | $5500 | 621 | 1 |
| 2012 | 14 MPG | 12 | 19 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2011 | 14 MPG | 12 | 19 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2010 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2009 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2008 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2007 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2006 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2005 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2004 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 2003 | 14 MPG | 12 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2002 | 16 MPG | 13 | 21 | $4800 | 555 | 1 |
| 2001 | 16 MPG | 14 | 21 | $4800 | 555 | 1 |
| 1999 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 1998 | 13 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 1997 | 14 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 1996 | 14 MPG | 11 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
Where a model year offered several engines or drivetrains, the figure is the average across all EPA-tested trims that year — the trim count is shown so you can see how much averaging is involved.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Marked against the rest of the large cars bay
Among the 149 large cars models tracked here, the Mercedes-Benz S600 ranks 124 on current figures, against a class average of 21.6 MPG — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: Dodge Charger SRT8 (17), Ford Crown Victoria Police (17), Maserati Quattroporte GTS (17), Mercedes-Benz S500 (17), Porsche Panamera GTS ST (17).
Tailpipe CO₂ is rated at 547 grams per mile, which works out to roughly 8.2 tonnes a year at 15,000 miles.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Mercedes-Benz S600 get?
The 2017 Mercedes-Benz S600 is rated at 16 MPG combined by the EPA — 13 city and 22 highway. Across all 20 model years in the database it averages 14.1 MPG, ranging from 13 to 16 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Mercedes-Benz S600 cost in fuel per year?
At 16 MPG and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 938 gallons — roughly $3000 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.200 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2017 model is $4800.
Has the Mercedes-Benz S600 become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 14 MPG in 1996 to 16 in 2017 — an improvement of 2 MPG, or 14% across 20 model years.
Is the Mercedes-Benz S600 efficient for its class?
It ranks 124 of 149 in the Large Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 21.6 MPG. That is 5.6 worse than typical for the class.
Pull another logbook off the same shelf
Same class, nearest economy first — the ones a buyer is genuinely choosing between.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Cost per mile, per kilometre and per year are computed at a reference price of $3.20 a gallon over 15,000 miles, fixed JUL 2026 — set your own pump price. Estimates based on official test figures and average fuel prices. Real-world consumption varies with driving style, load, terrain and maintenance.
