DaCeptak0n

CLS500...ugly...not worth it... The one in Princeton MB has the ugliest wheels on it and the color was so gross....

Saw a black one and was not amazed at the slightest bit...

Anyone else in my boat...??

TammamB

Not me :p

adam76

me neither...

bm75204

I'll be the third. Enjoy your E320.

john87699

Even without the AMG sport package it's hot...sorry, looks like you're alone on this one.

Lov2xlr8

not me, although i think the AMG will look better.

jasab

I think the it looks hot, but my concern is how practical is a low slung coupe four door. Is there room in the back.

factoid junkie

just to be redundent, I'm with the group. CLS is cool, sleek, and well designed. i'm a first time MB buyer - and it's due to the CLS - MB body styles never appealed to me that much before this one (except for the smaller coupes, which were either too small or too expensive for me).

vrracr

the car looks damn good...i think 99% of the population will agree with that and even the worst critics say it looks good, but dont like too much else. you are probably of those who love the looks of the pontiac aztec.

northbenz

While I find the CLS to be a stunning design, I can understand how others might see it differently. I think it appeals to those of us who have always found the Jaguar attractive but could be a turn off for those who prefer a more conservative look. That said, I do sense it is overpriced for what it is - a modified E Class with coupe pretentions. There has to be a lot of profit built into this car especially since the CLS350 is being sold in volume overseas which should take care of the R&D expenses in short order.

bm75204

I agree about the pricing --- Mercedes is really pushing it for what the car is under the sexy styling. My 2003 540i 6-speed stickered for $60K, and will probably be better than the $13K-higher CLS I've ordered in almost every way. But there are people out there (me included) who will pay extra for something unique, and there isn't too much on the market right now that gets me excited. I only wish I could justify a 997 Carrera S as a business vehicle. After seeing the first pics of the CLS and then experiencing one in person, I'm quite comfortable with writing that somewhat inflated check.

adam76

sadly mistaken on the 5 series being better then the CLS. i took the CLS over the 7, and its definitely better in every aspect then that...

i really see no similarites between the CLS and the jag, and in fact, i really cant stand the look of jags, let alone the quality...

bm75204

Adam --- Have you ever spent any time behind the wheel of an E39 5-Series, specifically the V8 with a manual? The Mercedes can't compete in terms of performance. I don't have a reason for giving it up other than trying something new. Now the new 5-Series...ugh. Ugly, overpriced, and the interior is terrible.

As for the Jaguar comparisons, some people might be thinking about exterior styling similarities, but that's just part of the equation. Jaguars are more "emotional" cars --- they appeal more to ones senses than does a conservative German vehicle. A lot of that is in the interior materials and shapes, and the CLS was created along those lines. It's a car that grabs you when you first see it, as opposed to the E-Class that is attractive but probably didn't make you stop in your tracks the first time you saw one. I've had Jaguars as well as an SL500 & 400E, and they're completely different animals. There has to be something compelling enough to make people choose a Jaguar over a MB or BMW with their horrible depreciation and reliability (though that has drastically improved), and it's the emotional appeal that generates a lot of their sales.

adam76

i have, and im sorry but Bimmers are just not in the same league as MB when it comes to quality, styling in and out, reliability, and in my experiences, dealer professionalism. im surrounded by Bimmer lemons regularly, ive not heard of one instance of MB replacing a lemon, not saying impossible or never happened, but i have horror stories in my immediate group of friends from 330Ci's, M3s, 7s and 5s. I dont really consider the CLS to be a performance car either, would have to go to the CLS55 if i wanted that (and could afford), so maybe in that aspect, the 5 might have more pep. i look forward to your comments after owning the CLS for a while. enjoy!!

just not seeing the jag CLS relation. had really bad experiences in the Jag too. was in New Hampshire and had an XJ8 for the week, it was every bit of a Taurus in terms of interior controls, and driving feel. have not driven the S, but there must be some reason for the horrible resale, assuming some the qualities of the XJ8, which would be NONE.

bm75204

Still not with you on this one. My E39 is easily as nice on the inside as the CLS material-wise, and frankly I think the plastics and leather in the 90s-era Benzes (like my 400E) are superior to the new models by a significant margin. And reliability-wise I haven't had a single thing go wrong with the 540 since I got it, and the same for my 530 before that. Added up, that's 3 years of not having ONE thing go wrong on a car. That's pretty incredible. Regardless of all that I'm willing to take a chance on getting one of the first CLS's and hope it's as reliable as any car costing over $70K should be.

adam76

as long as its not like a first year 7! i know youve had to of heard stories yourself on that one...

i think Bimmer fails miserably on interior appointments. i considered the 7 long and hard, must have gone to the delaership at least once a month since i ordered my CLS last May, and once again, im happy to say the CLS is superiror in every aspect. i did not focus much on the 5s...

i agree with u on the new 5s, they look like a train wreck!

bm75204

I love my E39 and the E38 7-Series (especially a 2001 740i Sport), but can't stand the new ones either. Styling, I-Drive, interior...ugh. I have 4 neighbors with 645Ci's, one with a 545i, and one with a 745i, and not one of them draws any kind of positive reaction for me. The 6 might if it had a complete trunk restyle. It's a shame, as all of the cars drive like a dream. A friend put it best...the new BMWs are like sleeping with someone who is really good in bed but frightening to look at in the morning light. Mercedes' timing with the CLS for people like me jumping ship is ideal.

adam76

LOL, great analogy! i think im in the same boat as you, i had been drawn to the 7, but waiting for the CLS was well worth it...i would have jumped ship if MB had not produced the CLS.

bm75204

I'd have kept my 540 had the CLS not been built. Have you seen the upcoming Range Rover Sport (between the RR & the LR3)? Very cool, though I'd rather not have an SUV as a daily driver. That would've been the only other consideration.

adam76

once again, i feel the interior appointments of the RR were sub par. some stuff was even broken on the showroom model, i cant recall what, but i was disappointed. i had been looking for an SUV for the winter, and im not finding a lot of good options here, just way overpriced vehicles that do not warrant the frivolous spending that the CLS does

MB has come a long way in their interiors, i used to favor Lexus when it came to interior cosmetics and quality, but MB finally has caught up IMO.

factoid junkie

"What's wrong with a little emotion?" asks Bernhard Glaser, general manager of passenger-car product management for Mercedes-Benz USA. "We don't always want to be known for boring cars. We saw a niche between the E and the S for a halo car, and we wanted to give the brand a more dynamic image."

This quote is from the December 2004 issue of Car and Driver and I think it hits home on some of the points being made in this thread. I see a little of the S type Jag in the CLS (owned one - broke me of the Jaguar habit, maybe forever) and I fully understand the different reactions to the 7-series (own a 2003 745i). I enjoy driving the 7 series a great deal (iControl isn't a problem once you get it figured out) and I feel I will enjoy the CLS more. My wife already sees the Nappa leather in the CLS as having more appeal for her than in the bimmer. But she also loves the lines of the new 7 series.

I changed my mind about MB in general and the E and CLS series specifically four or five times over the past 18 months. Which is what i usually do before i make a big decision. at this point - can't wait until the end of the month when the 2006 CLS arrives.

ruykava

i got very interested at comments about how older benzs and BMs were of higher quality, so i decided to go out and give it a real, thorough, objective check, since i have access to an old 230E ('95) and 500SEL ('86).

guess what, to me, the real reason why material quality seems better is because of the colour: the dark blue/black plastic just FEELS tougher. it is actually hard to the touch though -- something which would just be unacceptable today. also, some wood has cracked, and bits of trim have fallen off -- revealing them to be mere plywood veneers (on the doors, at least). i go to my W211 E240, and everything is nice and squishy. i had often felt that some minor bits of plastics were slightly below par -- coarse and hard to the touch -- especially around the door handle recess, and under the arm-rests -- but now i realise they are EXACTLY the same as what was found on the same areas in the older benzs!

the W140 S-class is another story, though. i think that was the single car that made every other recent mercedes, and indeed every other car, look like a basic, OK-quality piece of engineering when mercedes set their minds on "building the best car in the world", they can really do it -- ah, if only the public reception in Europe was better =)

Jim Banville

My wife and I both think the CLS is not a great looking car. We have seen it several times, close-up. When I first saw the pix of the rear end, I thought it was going to be awesome. In reality, it's NOT (and the shape of the headlights SUX!). BTW, why is it called a coupe? Coupe=2 doors, no?

vrracr

the strange thing is that i find most people don't like the rear, but everything else (front/side views especially).

bm75204

I was originally concerned about the rear but once I saw one in person, found the rear 3/4 view to be my favorite.