Big, solid and stocky, the two-ton-plus Mercedes M-class charged up and around the mountain path like an enraged rhino trying to shake off a tranquiliser dart from its hide. Doing circuits for the camera normally should have been a muscle-burning exhausting chore, but nothing could be further from the truth. Cocooned in side the cool, wood and leather-lined M-class, the CD-changer punching out your favourite track, the big S UV pampers almost as much as its limo brethren.

All you do is sit pretty, mash the accelerator pedal into the deep-pile carpet and hang on tight - 37.7kgm of torque yanks this beast uphill with all the agility of a big-thighed Carl Lewis. You, the driver, have an easy time. State-of-the-art electronics, control traction, distribution of power to the four wheels prevent the wheels from locking up. Oh yes, there is one strenuous act you’ll be called on to perform should the terrain get steep enough to give a mountain goat nose bleed. You’ll have to use your left index finger to select the innocuous looking ‘low range’ button on the centre console - it’s that user friendly. Directly imported from Graz, Austria, and sold through select Mercedes-Benz outlets, the M-class is aimed at the super-rich who want all the luxuries and comforts of a saloon car along with that feeling of safety and invincibility which only a tough SUV can offer.