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Marketed as a 'four door coupe,' the CLS recalls the fastback saloon designs of Robert Opron in the 1970s. According to a Mercedes-Benz press release, the CLS-class was produced to combine the "strong, emotive charisma" of a coupe with the "comfort and practicality" of a saloon. Save for its four-door design, the CLS's design tends towards a coupe, as its sleek body reduces the rear passenger room, and it offers a smaller selection of engines tending towards high powered of the range, compared to contemporary sedans such as the E-Class.
The CLS-Class has a deceptively simple mission: it gives you the style and drama of a luxury coupe, but with a dose of practicality afforded by an extra set of doors in the back. In fact, the company insists on calling it a four-door coupe, which is stretching the point a bit. On the style and drama front, though, this is definitely the most striking Benz (if you discount the SLR) to come along in years. That roofline is a good 40mm lower than the E-Class saloon's and combines with the dramatically shallow side glass to create a California custom look.
The CLS sits on a heavily modified E-Class platform and slots in to the range above the E-Class and CLK coupe. It's a direct rival for the BMW 6-Series coupe but is also tempting buyers away from Audi A6s and Jaguar S-Types.
The initial engine line-up didn't last long, and has now been replaced by a selection of the latest Mercedes-Benz units: 350 CGI (a 3.5-litre V6), 500 (5.5-litre V8), 320 CDI (3.0-litre V6 diesel) and the high-performance 63 AMG (6.2-litre naturally aspirated V8). All models come very well equipped, with no choice of spec level but a lot of options to choose from if you have more money than you know what to do with.
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