Setra ComfortClass

The ComfortClass is Setra’s series of high-deck touring coaches, sold as the ComfortClass 500 and built by Daimler Buses at its Neu-Ulm plant; Setra’s data sheets describe the brand as “A Daimler Truck AG Brand”. Setra’s international site lists six HD models: the S 511 HD, S 515 HD, S 516 HD/2, S 516 HD, S 517 HD and S 519 HD. Daimler Truck reported on 21 June 2022 that the Neu-Ulm plant had launched series production of the new ComfortClass and that “the first ever next-generation ComfortClass has already rolled off the production line”; the generation had its world premiere at the IAA Transportation 2022 press days on 18 September 2022. A release of 7 December 2023 says that “the latest generation of the two models has also been produced at the site since 2022” and describes an S 516 HD delivered then as a vehicle “of the facelifted model series”. Setra’s model page describes the ComfortClass as “a versatile bus concept”. Beside it Setra sells the TopClass, three-axle HDH coaches and the S 531 DT double-decker.

The specification tables on this page come from Setra’s “Technical data and equipment” sheet for the ComfortClass 500 HD models, footed 03/2026, which the international site served on 7 October 2026; the German sheet of the same footer carries the same figures and adds a section on seating. The sheet marks equipment ● standard and ○ optional, and prints a dash where a model has neither mark. Daimler Truck’s press material supplies the vehicle profiles of the S 515 HD (18 September 2022 and 2 October 2025), the descriptions of the 2022 generation, the announced update of the drivetrain (13 September 2026) and the dates of the earlier generations (23 April 2026).

Six models on the data sheet

All six share a width of 2,550 mm, a height of 3,770 mm, a maximum front-wheel lock (“Wheel impact front axle max.”) of 54°, a cockpit height of 920 mm and an inner standing height of 2,100 mm in the central aisle. The front overhang is 2,890 mm on every model except the S 511 HD, at 2,265 mm. Daimler Truck’s release of 2 October 2025 describes the range as running “from the compact, 10.5‑meter‑long S 511 HD club bus to the seating giant S 519 HD with its length of just under 15 meters”. Rows of this kind are explained in how a coach specification sheet is read.

The S 516 HD/2 and the S 516 HD are both 13,115 mm long. Daimler Truck’s release of 4 July 2023 describes the S 516 HD/2 as a coach on “two axles” and says that with the S 516 HD “the introduction to the world of the three-axle coach begins”, naming its “actively steered trailing axle”; the same release gives the S 515 HD “two axles”. On the sheet the S 516 HD/2 has the longer wheelbase, 6,910 mm against 6,090 mm, and the longer rear overhang, 3,315 mm against 2,785 mm; its turning circle is 23,754 mm against 21,408 mm, and its gross vehicle weight 19,500 kg against 24,750 kg. A release of 21 April 2026 reports 16 new ComfortClass coaches for one operator and its subcontractors: eight “three‑axle Setra S 517 HD coaches” with 52 seats each and eight “two‑axle Setra S 516 HD coaches” with 48 seats each. That 2026 wording gives the S 516 HD two axles, whereas the release of 4 July 2023 gives two to the S 516 HD/2 and three to the S 516 HD. The sheet prints no row for a trailing axle and no wheel formula, and no document opened gives the axle count of the S 511 HD or the S 519 HD in so many words.

On page 4 of the sheet the fuel row is headed “Capacity fuel tank left / right” but gives one figure per model. The vehicle profile of the S 515 HD shown at Busworld Europe 2025 (2 October 2025) prints the sheet’s length, wheelbase, overhangs, turning circle, luggage volume, fuel and AdBlue volumes and weights. The profile of 18 September 2022 printed a fuel tank of approx. 400 l and a central-aisle height above the road of 1,170 mm, where the sheet and the 2025 profile give approx. 480 l and 1,370 mm.

Daimler Truck’s releases of 18 September 2022 and 4 July 2023 describe a variant of the S 519 HD with door two behind the rear axle instead of the usual central entrance, with the washroom and kitchen at the rear; in the 2023 wording, “the luggage compartment between the axles has increased from 12.6 to 13.7 cubic metres”, which the release puts at “more than 200 litres per passenger”. Setra’s model page calls the S 511 HD “the club bus for high-quality trips with small groups” and says the S 515 HD “drives in the classic 12-metre class”; it gives the S 517 HD “plenty of space for up to 59 passengers”, where the sheet gives that model 59 seats in standard seating and a maximum passenger capacity of 61.

Engine

Every engine row on the sheet reads “OM 470 Euro VI”, a 6-cylinder in-line engine of 10.7 litres, with one row per model and no optional engine. The S 511 HD has 290 kW and 1,900 Nm; the other five have 315 kW and 2,100 Nm. An “At speed” row reads 1,100 rpm for every model. The vehicle profiles give the displacement as 10,677 cm³. The S 515 HD shown in 2025 is listed with “315 kW (428 hp) at 2200 rpm” and 2,100 Nm at 1,100 rpm; the S 515 HD shown in 2022 with “335 kW (456 hp) at 2.200 rpm” and 2,200 Nm at 1,100 rpm.

Daimler Truck’s releases list further ratings. The program article of 18 September 2022 and the release of 4 July 2023 give the OM 470 three power ratings, 290 kW (394 hp) for the S 511 HD only, 315 kW (428 hp) and 335 kW (456 hp), and add, in the 2023 wording: “The three-axle models are also available with the larger inline six-cylinder OM 471 engine (12.8-litre displacement) at a power output of 350 kW (476 hp).” Releases covering the ComfortClass and the TopClass together (31 August 2023, 2 October 2025, 23 April 2026) list the OM 470 from 290 to 335 kW and the OM 471 at 350 kW (476 hp) and 375 kW (510 hp); the release of 31 August 2023 adds “They are designated depending on the model”. Setra’s model page says the ComfortClass “relies on the proven Mercedes-Benz OM 470 and OM 471 engines”. The sheet prints the EU emissions standard as “VI”; the vehicle profiles write Euro VI e (2022) and Euro VI-E (2025). The sub-stages are set out in Euro 6 and Euro 7 explained.

Setra’s model page speaks of “A new engine generation in combination with the ZF transmissions and an optimised electronics architecture”, and Setra’s 2026 magazine article on the update says that “a new generation of engines is used in the TopClass and ComfortClass touring coaches”, that with the ZF TraXon 2 Coach or the ZF EcoLife CoachLine it reduces diesel consumption “by four percent for the OM470 and by up to six percent for the OM471” and AdBlue consumption by up to nine percent, and that “the technical prerequisites for the regulatory requirements of the future Euro VII standard are already being delivered”. Daimler Truck’s release of 13 September 2026, issued for IAA Transportation, says: “From 2027, Daimler Buses will equip its coaches with the new engine generation and new transmissions”, naming the Setra ComfortClass, TopClass and double-decker models and the Mercedes-Benz Travego, Tourismo and Tourrider, with fuel consumption expected to fall by up to six percent depending on model and configuration. The same release says the new OM 470 and OM 471 will be built at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Mannheim. The data sheet footed 03/2026 lists the OM 470 Euro VI. No document opened reports series production of ComfortClass coaches with the new engine generation.

Gearbox

On the S 511 HD, S 515 HD and S 516 HD/2 the sheet’s transmission row reads “Mercedes-Benz GO 230-6, 6-speed”, and a second, starred row, explained as “* Optional equipment”, offers the Mercedes-Benz GO 250-8 PowerShift, 8-speed, which the S 511 HD column writes as “PowerShift 3”. On the S 516 HD, S 517 HD and S 519 HD the only row reads “Mercedes-Benz GO 250-8 PowerShift, 8-speed”. Daimler Truck’s release of 4 July 2023 gives the choice with the OM 470 as “a six-speed manual transmission (for two-axle models only)” or “the fully-automated GO 250‑8 PowerShift transmission”, and says this unit “is consistently paired with the larger engine”. Both S 515 HD vehicle profiles list the GO 250-8 PowerShift as a fully automated manual transmission. How a gearbox of this kind shifts is covered in automated manual transmissions.

Setra’s model page names two ZF gearboxes for the updated coaches: the ZF TraXon 2 Coach, which it says “optimises the driveline”, and the ZF EcoLife CoachLine, an automatic transmission for which it gives “Extended maintenance intervals” and “New torsional dampers” that reduce vibration and noise. Setra’s 2026 article calls the TraXon 2 Coach an automated manual transmission and the EcoLife CoachLine an automatic transmission. Neither appears on the sheet footed 03/2026. Daimler Truck’s release of 13 September 2026 says that “From 2027” Daimler Buses will equip its coaches with “new transmissions”; it does not name them.

Axles, suspension and brakes

The chassis table gives power steering, a ZF front axle with independent wheel suspension and an anti-roll bar, and a Mercedes-Benz RO 440 driven axle with an anti-roll bar on all six models; the vehicle profiles name the front axle as the ZF RL 82 EC and give the RO 440 a ratio of 3.583:1. Air suspension with electronic level control (ENR), a raising and lowering system and kneeling are standard on all six. Daimler Truck’s cockpit article of 18 September 2022 says the next-generation front axle has a stiffer connection and rearranged shock absorbers. The tyre size is 295/80 R 22.5 on every model.

The brakes table marks pneumatic disc brakes on all axles, the Electronic Stability Programme (ESP), an electronically controlled braking system (EBS), ABS, Brake Assist (BAS), Acceleration Slip Regulation (ASR), a retarder, a retarder limiter, an automatic bus-stop brake with pull-away lock and the parking brake standard on all six, and a HOLD function optional. The international sheet names the limiter “Retarder limiter (RL)”, the German sheet “Dauerbremslimiter (DBL)”; the international sheet’s descriptive pages describe a continuous brake limiter (DBL), which constantly monitors the vehicle’s maximum permissible speed and, if it is exceeded, for example downhill, communicates with the other safety systems. Daimler Truck’s cockpit article of 18 September 2022 describes a new electronic parking brake as standard, with a hold function that engages when the driver presses the brake pedal harder at a standstill.

Doors, floor and access

Two doors are fitted on all six models, in door position A, each with a clear opening width of 900 mm and an entry height of 370 mm. The sheet gives the steps at door 1 as 3x 184 mm plus 1x 220 mm and at door 2 as 4x 250 mm; the central aisle floor is approx. 1,370 mm above the road, with a pedestal height of 150 mm. The doors swing outward, the glazing is double-glazed and the Opticool windscreen is standard on all six; a heatable windscreen is optional.

A wheelchair space is optional on all six. Setra’s model page says the electrohydraulic wheelchair lift “is installed in the trunk behind the front axle”; the sheet’s lighting table marks ambient lighting for the lift standard on the S 515 HD and optional on the other five. The model page describes the on-board toilet as “Integrated in the entrance area”, with an optional version for long-distance buses that has fresh-water flushing.

Seats and passenger area

Standard seating runs from 43 seats in the S 511 HD to 63 in the S 519 HD (table above). The sheet lists four seat types, marked the same way on all six: the Setra Voyage standard, and the Voyage Plus, Voyage Ambassador and Ambassador optional. Its driver’s seat is the air-sprung GRAMMER Linea MSG 90.6 P, with an ISRI 6860 with an integrated pneumatic system and a 3-point seat belt as an option. The German edition adds a seat table for the Setra Route, Voyage, Voyage Plus and Voyage Ambassador, which marks a two-point belt standard and a three-point belt optional on all four, and lateral adjustment and an adjustable backrest standard on all but the Route.

Daimler Truck’s passenger-compartment article of 18 September 2022 describes the generation’s partition walls with tinted glass inserts, the covers below the side windows and of the washroom cabin in black, service sets with round air vents adjustable through 360° and 21.5-inch monitors with a 1920 x 1080 pixel display. The S 515 HD shown at Busworld Europe 2025 had Setra Voyage Plus seating, a refrigerator, a kitchenette, a washroom and toilet at entrance two, the Coach MediaRouter for internet access and USB ports between the double seats.

Heating, air conditioning and lighting

The heating and air-conditioning table gives a heater with convectors at the side walls, driver’s-area air conditioning and the EvoCool Basic system as standard on all six, with EvoCool Comfort and EvoCool ComfortPlus optional. Cooling capacity for the passenger compartment is 32 kW on the S 511 HD, S 515 HD, S 516 HD/2 and S 516 HD, 35 kW on the S 517 HD and 39 kW on the S 519 HD; starred rows add 35 or 39 kW for the first four and 39 kW for the S 517 HD. The driver’s-area unit is 8 kW on all six. Heating power for the passenger compartment is 36 kW on the first four, with a starred 39 kW row, and 39 kW on the S 517 HD and S 519 HD; heating power at the driver’s seat is 18 kW throughout. Refrigerant filling is 6.5 kg on the first four and 7.5 kg on the S 517 HD and S 519 HD, a CO₂ equivalent of 9.295 t and 10.725 t. The international sheet prints these units as “[hp/kW]”, “[lbs/kg]” and “[lbs/t]”, the German sheet as “[kW]”, “[kg]” and “[t]”.

Halogen headlamps are standard and LED headlamps optional on all six, with LED daytime running lights, front fog lamps, cornering lights, entrance lighting and position lights standard. Ambient lighting of the luggage compartment is standard except on the S 519 HD, where it is optional; ambient lighting for reversing is optional throughout. The sheet’s descriptive page gives the high beam assistant as active from approximately 35 km/h and deactivated below approximately 27 km/h. Daimler Truck’s design article of 18 September 2022 describes the generation’s exterior: the Setra lettering in chrome on a glossy black panel framed by silver clasps on the ComfortClass, a Kässbohrer badge, a full-LED light guide combining turn signals, daytime running lights and position lights, a three-dimensional character element in silver on each side, and rear lights with continuous stripes.

Driver’s workplace

The cockpit sits 920 mm above the road on every model. Daimler Truck’s cockpit article of 18 September 2022 lists Keyless Start, with the key left in the driver’s pocket and the engine started by a button, the electronic parking brake, the high beam assistant, a 360° camera system and the Coach Infotainment Series, plus brushed anthracite trim strips on the ComfortClass instrument panel. The 360° camera, optional on the sheet, uses four cameras and a 10-inch monitor on the A-pillar (the German sheet places the screen in different parts of the cockpit depending on the vehicle); its views are shown when driving forwards up to approx. 30 km/h and always in reverse, with a field of vision of around five to six metres. The Coach Infotainment Series has a seven-inch monitor in the cockpit, DAB+ radio, Bluetooth audio streaming, Bosch mySpin, an HDMI interface and two USB ports. MirrorCam, optional on all six, replaces the outside mirrors with cameras whose images appear on 15-inch monitors on the inside of the A-pillars (release of 31 August 2023).

Setra’s model page describes the cockpit of the updated coaches as the Multimedia Cockpit Interactive, with a main screen and a touchscreen, selected functions controlled by voice command and a multifunction steering wheel; Daimler Truck’s release of 13 September 2026 presents it as part of the redesign of the driver’s workplace in its coaches.

Safety and assistance systems

On the sheet, Active Brake Assist 6 Plus, Sideguard Assist 2, Frontguard Assist, Traffic Sign Assist, Lane Assist (SPA), tyre pressure monitoring (TPM), ESP, a reversing camera, an extinguishing system, a rain-light sensor and flat wiper blades with water fed through the blade are standard on all six models. Attention Assist 2 is standard on five and optional on the S 516 HD/2, in both the international and the German edition. Adaptive cruise control (ART), a reversing buzzer, the 360° camera and MirrorCam are optional on all six; Active Drive Assist 2 is optional on five, and the S 511 HD column carries a dash. Predictive Powertrain Control (PPC) is standard and Driver Score optional.

Daimler Truck’s releases mark some of these differently. The releases of 31 August 2023 and 2 October 2025 call adaptive cruise control (ART) standard, together with Lane Assist, tyre pressure monitoring, Attention Assist and an interface for alcohol testers at the driver’s workplace; the release of 2 October 2025 names Active Brake Assist 6 as standard, and the vehicle profile of the same day shows the S 515 HD with ABA 6 Plus and with a camera-based Attention Assist 2 “which will be available from the 1st quarter of 2026”. Setra’s model page also describes Active Sideguard Assist 3 and Active Cross Traffic Assist, which brakes automatically for crossing vehicles in an angle range of 65° to 115° over the whole speed range; the sheet has no row for either, and Daimler Truck’s release of 13 September 2026 names Active Sideguard Assist 3 and Cross Traffic Assist among the systems for which a new electronics architecture “will also provide the basis”. The regulatory background is in mandatory driver assistance systems.

Daimler Truck’s safety article of 18 September 2022 says Active Brake Assist was first presented in a touring coach in 2008, and that the generation’s ABA 5, combining radar and camera, could brake to a standstill for moving and stationary pedestrians up to 50 km/h, after a warning and partial braking at up to 50 percent of the maximum braking force. Its successor ABA 6, according to the release of 31 August 2023, detects people and cyclists in front of the coach and covers the whole speed range. Active Drive Assist 2 combines adaptive cruise control and lane keeping with active steering between 0 and 100 km/h; the driver can set the lane position at the centre or offset by ten to 20 centimetres, a yellow warning follows after 15 seconds without hands on the wheel, and the emergency-stop function is activated 60 seconds after the warning cascade begins and brakes the coach moderately to a standstill. Setra’s model page gives Frontguard Assist a working range up to 15 km/h when moving off or driving slowly; the international sheet’s descriptive page writes “up to 9.3 mph”. Of tyre pressure, the sheet says that a pressure 0.5 bar too low can raise fuel consumption by up to 5%. It describes Front Collision Guard as crash elements behind a crossmember, with the driver’s seat mounted on a solid frame part that can move completely to the rear in a serious head-on collision.

The sheet marks rollover strength in accordance with ECE-R 66.02 and a row citing ECE R29, which the German edition calls a pendulum impact test (“Pendelschlagprüfung nach ECE-R29”), standard on all six; its descriptive page attributes the strength of the body in part to “all-round, weight-optimised annular frames”. What UN Regulation No 66 asks of a coach is in rollover strength.

Fuel-saving systems

Daimler Truck’s economy article of 18 September 2022 describes Predictive Powertrain Control as standard and working from 15 km/h, with topographical data of more than 95 percent of motorways, major roads and intercity roads in many European countries, taking bends, junctions and roundabouts into account and selecting neutral to coast where it saves fuel. An on-board voltage strategy that raises the charging voltage when coasting and lowers it under traction is credited with around 0.3 percent less fuel; it switches off when the batteries fall below 70 percent charge. Driver Score evaluates driving in four categories: acceleration, braking, balance and coasting. The same article gives maintenance intervals of up to 120,000 kilometres or two years and gives a drag coefficient of 0.33 for the ComfortClass 500 at its premiere; the sheet prints the same 0.33 as “Air resistance” on all six models.

Hydrogen and battery-electric demonstrators

On 9 September 2025 Daimler Truck reported that Daimler Buses had sent the “H₂ Coach”, a technology carrier with the model designation S 517 HD and a length of 13.9 metres, on test drives. It carries two hydrogen tanks holding 46 kilograms in total and a cellcentric fuel cell with a total output of 300 kW; the electric motor is rated at 320 kW continuous and 400 kW maximum output, with torques of 1,368 Nm and 2,470 Nm, and the release defines the range on a full tank as a minimum of 800 kilometres. The coach, with a permissible gross vehicle weight of 24.7 tonnes, was approved as a test vehicle on the basis of a TÜV report, “in accordance with Section 19.6 of the German Regulations Authorizing the Use of Vehicles for Road Traffic”. The release describes it as “the Setra ComfortClass concept bus” and says Daimler Buses plans battery-electric coaches by the end of the decade, with fuel-cell coaches to go into series production in the next step. Daimler Truck’s milestones of 23 April 2026 record that in 2026 Daimler Buses announced that testing of its first battery-electric touring-coach technology demonstrator, the “eCoach”, based on the conventionally powered Setra S 516 HD, “will begin shortly”. No document opened reports series production of either. Fuel-cell coaches in general are covered in hydrogen fuel-cell buses and coaches.

Earlier ComfortClass generations

Daimler Truck’s account of 7 December 2023 dates the Neu-Ulm production of the ComfortClass and TopClass series: Series 300 from 1991, Series 400 from 2001, series production of Series 500 from 2012, and the latest generation from 2022. The other dates below come from Daimler documents as listed.

Source notes

The grid above describes the S 515 HD: 12,295 mm long on a 6,090 mm wheelbase, with 51 seats in standard seating and a gross vehicle weight of 19,500 kg. Setra’s data sheet lists five other ComfortClass HD models: the S 511 HD at 10,465 mm, the S 516 HD/2 and the S 516 HD at 13,115 mm, the S 517 HD at 13,935 mm and the S 519 HD at 14,945 mm, all 2,550 mm wide and 3,770 mm high. Standard seating ranges from 43 seats in the S 511 HD to 63 in the S 519 HD. The S 511 HD, S 515 HD and S 516 HD/2 have a gross vehicle weight of 19,500 kg and the S 516 HD, S 517 HD and S 519 HD 24,750 kg. Every engine row on the sheet names the OM 470, at 290 kW in the S 511 HD and 315 kW in the other five; Daimler Truck’s releases add 335 kW and, for the three-axle models, the 12.8-litre OM 471 at 350 kW. Daimler Truck’s release of 13 September 2026 says that Daimler Buses will equip its coaches, the ComfortClass among them, with the new engine generation and new transmissions from 2027.