Monday 23rd August 2010

New Mercedes CLS Breaks Cover

Official pics of Mercedes' new four-door coupe

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The new Mercedes CLS has been officially revealed, more than a month ahead of the car's physical public debut at the Paris motor show.

Every other car maker now seems to have a rakish four-door coupe on its price lists, but the CLS - Mercedes' E-class-in-a-dinner-jacket - was the car that started it all back in 2004 and Merc has sold 170,000 examples globally, so the arrival of an all-new model is a pretty big deal.

Mercedes hasn't revealed powertrain specifications, but expect a broadly similar range of petrol and diesel motors to those found in the higher-end versions of the E-class, although a 430hp, 516lb ft 4.6-litre bi-turbo V8 is allegedly headed for a CLS550, which should top the range until the all-but-inevitable arrival of an AMG version.

The most striking visual aspect of the new has to be those full-LED headlights, which use a total of 71 bulbs each, though the rest of the car seems to move the original CLS's coupe theme forward with a more aggressive, athletic stance.

The interior, meanwhile, is intended to be warmer and more luxurious than the E-class's, with the 'wraparound' dash a particularly notable feature.

 

 

[louiebaby]

The initial message was deleted from this topic on 23 August 2010 at 11:25

[drewbagz]

Come on PH Team, i know it's Monday morning and the S and C on the keyboard are pretty close together but a little bit of proof reading never went amiss

[robsco]

They had their work to cut out to make it look as good as the last CLS; safe to say, they've failed. A nice looking car in isolation, but not side by side with its predcessor.

[Parrot of Doom]

I really, really don't like the recent preference of manufacturers to increase the sizes of their badges. Its obscene.

That said, I think this is a design that will grow on most, just like the E60 5-series did.

[Mastodon2]

It looks nice from the front, but the side profile is not as nice as the older CLS. I used to hate that car, now when I see one I look twice!

[Stu R]

Very nice indeed

[Dubmaster77]

I thought the second pic down was a standard Eclass at first... Im sure it will look stunning in the flesh.
Mercedes seem to have got back to building stunning looking cars after the late 90,s and 00,s rusty wilderness!!

[Smartass]

Looks a bit fuggly to me. Like they've taken the best bits of the old one, ignored them, and accentuated the bits that didn't work which pasting on accents from their latest design language (like the heinous rear wheel arches).

[theaxe]

Looks like a four door CL which is a good thing. I didn't like the outgoing CLS at all but that looks really good.

[Garlick]

I love my Mercs so it pains me to write this....

It looks like a smaller S-Class and has lost the purity of the original CLS, which is a shame. I don't like it from these pictures. Please can we have some un-fussy designs, too many bulges, vents and chrome these days.

[SWoll]

robsco said:

They had their work to cut out to make it look as good as the last CLS; safe to say, they've failed. A nice looking car in isolation, but not side by side with its predcessor.

Got to disagree with you here. Was a big fan of the CLS when it first came out but came to dislike the "banana" like side profile over the years, and felt it dated quickly.

I like the new design a lot and think its a definate improvement in all areas over the original. As said above looks like a scaled down CL, but with the added bonus of 4 doors (for those of us with kids).

Looking forward to the AMG version, should be a cracker.

[Luca Brasi]

A lot uglier than the current CLS. What's wrong with new Mercs? They all look much too fat and too heavy: the CL, the S-class, the E-class,... The older cars like the W220 S-class for instance were much prettier and more elegant.

Edited by Luca Brasi on Monday 23 August 11:46

[gumsie]

theaxe said:

Looks like a four door CL which is a good thing. I didn't like the outgoing CLS at all but that looks really good.

Exactly what I thought.

[andrewpyott]

I'm in two minds about the looks and will reserve my thoughts until I've seen one in the flesh. However - does the car in the pictures have an AMG body-kit fitted? - It looks to have AMG wheels at least. IMO the AMG body-kit ruins look of the current car.

[Beefmeister]

Dear Mercedes,



WTF?!?!?!

As Mr Garlick says, please return to simple forms, smooth shapes and classy restraint.

Though as this car will never be as classy as the old CLS, it makes the prospect of an old CLS55 AMG even more appealing...

[LeighW]

Hmm, too cluttered, too fussy, nowhere near as handsome as the outgoing model, which I really like. Bit disappointing.

[hammo19]

Oh dear, oh dear me. Did the man that designed the car not have a picture of the current CLS as a reference point? Another Merc that looks like all the other Mercs. At least the current CLS was different.

[kambites]

The detailing on that looks very BMWesque to me. Not good.

[thecremeegg]

I like it

[Beefmeister]

Just to reiterate my point:




No contest.

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1600608.htm

Lovely lot of motor for £17k right there...

Edited by Beefmeister on Monday 23 August 12:39