With the arrival of the CLS, Mercedes now has 10 cars in its line-up. Clearly racier than every other sedan of the make, the CLS is described by Mercedes as a 4-door coupe. To compliment the CLS's swooping lines, the beltline is very high. Regardless of what PR people say, the CLS seriously looses out on rear headroom. Ingress and egress is also complicated by the low roofline.
Offered in two versions (CLS 500 and CLS 55 AMG), this pseudo sedan is attempting to create a new niche in the luxury sedan segment. Built on the E-Class platform, it also borrows many of its mechanical components. The 500 receives the 302 hp 5.0L V8 mated to a 7-speed automatic transmission. The AMG must make do with the 469 hp 5.5L supercharged V8. Its 516-lb/ft torque help to rocket the car to 100 km/h in only 4.7 seconds. Thanks to the new Speedshift system, gear changes are 35% faster than regular programming.
Price: $92,600 (CLS 500), $ 125,600 (CLS 55 AMG)
Availability: Now
Auto123.com's impressions:
Long considered as traditional luxury cars, Mercedes-Benz cars are now amongst the most technologically advanced strongest performing cars in the world. The CLS certainly is stylish looking but will that be enough to keep it out of dealerships for constant repairs? Mercedes cars are certainly not what they used to be reliability wise.
B-Class Sports Tourer
Mercedes showed off their new B-Class, powered by gas or turbodiesel 2.0L inline-4 engines. 70% of the length of this vehicle is dedicated to interior space.
R-Class Grand Sports Tourer
Looking quite like the B-Class but bigger, the R will be available in the fall of 2005.
Offered in two versions (CLS 500 and CLS 55 AMG), this pseudo sedan is attempting to create a new niche in the luxury sedan segment. Built on the E-Class platform, it also borrows many of its mechanical components. The 500 receives the 302 hp 5.0L V8 mated to a 7-speed automatic transmission. The AMG must make do with the 469 hp 5.5L supercharged V8. Its 516-lb/ft torque help to rocket the car to 100 km/h in only 4.7 seconds. Thanks to the new Speedshift system, gear changes are 35% faster than regular programming.
Price: $92,600 (CLS 500), $ 125,600 (CLS 55 AMG)
Availability: Now
Auto123.com's impressions:
Long considered as traditional luxury cars, Mercedes-Benz cars are now amongst the most technologically advanced strongest performing cars in the world. The CLS certainly is stylish looking but will that be enough to keep it out of dealerships for constant repairs? Mercedes cars are certainly not what they used to be reliability wise.
B-Class Sports Tourer
Mercedes showed off their new B-Class, powered by gas or turbodiesel 2.0L inline-4 engines. 70% of the length of this vehicle is dedicated to interior space.
R-Class Grand Sports Tourer
Looking quite like the B-Class but bigger, the R will be available in the fall of 2005.
Article Gallery