Mercedes-Benz CLS 320 CDi - A Surprise 'Thank You' Present

[J4CKO]

Bravo !

[Jem0911]

Lovely gesture well done.

[MondeoMan1981]

Great thing to do and I love the CLS !

[ScottJB]

Top man

[harry kular]

Fantastic story, best of luck to you both.

[EdJ]

Good for you OP. Your dad looks so chuffed in that photo. Excellent story. Love the colour as well.

[Chr1sch]

Fantastic what a lovely gesture, good man!

[Jonny_]

Hats off to the OP. That's a cracking tale, and a rather nice car too!

[Talkwrench]

Splendid stuff. A genuine heartfelt gesture and I can only imagine how proud your dad must feel.
I'll just print this post off and leave it on the table next time my son comes home

[crazy about cars]

Well done OP! I wish one day I can earn enough to do the same too.

[mwstewart]

Cheers all

[TheBurgerKing]

haha your dad looks very proud

[Fattyfat]

That's properly heart warming, thank you for sharing

As an aside, I don't know the spec of the CLS but how do you rate the 320CDI engine and 7G box?

[davamer23]

Fantastic OP, I'd love to be able to do something like this for my dad. In a couple if years I may be able to with a slightly more modest budget but Bravo to you. I bet he's proud as punch.

[johnfm]

Talkwrench said:

Splendid stuff. A genuine heartfelt gesture and I can only imagine how proud your dad must feel.
I'll just print this post off and leave it on the table next time my son comes home

Michael

When he does, you'll have no room for the 850...I know a good home for it.

[mwstewart]

Fattyfat said:

As an aside, I don't know the spec of the CLS but how do you rate the 320CDI engine and 7G box?

I've been waiting to spend a bit of time behind the wheel before replying, but I can now report that the engine is a peach. I have a fair amount of experience with the modular inline Diesel range i.e. 3.2 6 Cyl, 2.7 5 Cyl, and the 2.1 4 Cyl (which is still used in the current range). I found the modular engines to be a little coarse when cold & especially so on startup, but once warm were relaticely OK. The V6 by comparison is silky smooth and makes a very pleasant sound to boot. It has that trademark Mecedes relaxed combustion noise - if you know what I mean. Performance wise it's as much power as you'd really need in a waft wagon and returns near enough exactly what the old 5 cyl used to; It overtakes effortlessy aand returns 47 (real) MPG on a motorway run and 37 combined.

The 7G is good; shifts are imperceptible, but to be perfectly honest I never really had a problem with the old 5 speed during 'normal' driving! Where the 7G excels is its - relateively - quick change speed, but in something like a Diesel CLS it's more of a fringe benefit than something that makes a real difference.

[keith2.2]

Mate...tremendous. Well done - great story. I'm hoping to be able to do the same in a couple of years' time! (for now I've promised custody of the TVR when I'm away!)

[Blib]

Well done OP. What a wonderful gesture. I must ask, what did you get your mother?

I'm doing something similar for Mrs Blib. Since seeing them pootling about when she was a child, holidaying in France with her parents, Mrs Blib has loved the original Fiat 500.

So, to celebrate her very special mumble mumble birthday next May and as a thank you for putting up with me and my shenanigans, I've secretly bought a 1970 model which I've stripped down and I'm currently rebuilding from the ground up. No expense spared. New engine & 'box, a complete respray in her favourite colour, full leather interior, etc. etc. Half the fun is trying to get her preferences from her without her realising what's going on.

I hope that she will be as happy with her car as your father clearly is with his.

[Whitean3]

This is precisely why I love PH. Threads like these.
OP- loving all of your readers' cars threads, wish I had a fraction of your talent/knowhow; Blib- hope to see a thread on the 500 rebuild when the time comes. In the meantime, I'm off to view pictures of shadows and fins...

[Erwin1978]

Properly done mate, shows how well you know and love your old man