hyperion667

LOL, I was JUST on the amg site.......drooling.......

ahhh........508...........

RJC

WTF, how do you come up with this crap...

The CL and E Coupe have no B pillar, maybe you're confused from listening to the sound of your "08 Turbo S"

K-A

False. Both have B-Pillars, big ones. Have you sat in either? Lol.

WEBSRFR

I agree. That back seat is completely ridiculous. There was obviously space there for a seating position but they added that piece of crap console in the middle. Who is going to use that and for what?!

Oh and how are you supposed to engage in some "extra curricular" activities on the back seat with that piece of crap console splitting the back seat in half.

Just plain idiotic for a car that large...

Also I thought the CLS had 4Matic as an option and my mistake that's only the CL so without 4Matic the CLS is even less desirable for me.

The more I think of options other than the E class for my next car, the more I think Mercedes should bring the short wheelbase S550 to the US. It would be the perfect car and the perfect size. I just don't need to haul around en extra 15" of car with me with tight parking in DC but a short wheelbase S550 would be the perfect car and I'd get everything I want...

hyperion667

wonder how many pillars he thinks the new XJ has...........LOL

threeMBs

This is #3 on your latest "greatest" posts list. It sounds like you do not know much about both CL and E coupe.

You do not "understand" E coupe (like E550 cpe?), but you drive C63 - fun car for sure, but IMO with uncomfortable (as compared to E coupe) front seats and as "usable" rear seats as E coupe's.

CLK had the same "problem"? They couldn't make enough of them especially in the first 2 years of production (convertibles - first 4 years of production).

FYI, while both CLK and E coupe was/is based on corresponding C class plarform, both cars are much more upscale in both execution and road maners.

threeMBs

CLS will absolutely will be available with optional 4matic for the first time in the US.

DCist

CLS and VW CC do have B pillars.

In CLS it is sort of "concealed" by absence of upper door frames as well as smart use of glass. But it is there. The only cars in MBs line up that do not have B pillars are E coupes and CL coupes. Even the upcoming C coupe will have a B pillar.

And btw Ned - I cannot disagree with you more on your judgement of CL. 2011 CL550 does about 65mph on 600ft slalom. This is 2mph faster than E550. And CL is almost 10 incheas longer than E. Braking for E550 is 128ft from 60mph while CL does 111ft when CL weights 600lb more!

CL class along with S class are flagships. That's all there is to it.

ngerstman

You make some valid points. It still seems to me that it is one of those flagships of impracticality. Needless to say, it is a niche product with very low level of sales, as it doesn't appeal to the s class buyer or appeal to a sports car driver. An odd duck IMO. Regards. Ned.

Quadcammer

fwiw, I"m pretty sure the "leather" on the dash on the cls is actually mb-tex.

It certainly is on my mothers 07 CL550.

K-A

To be honest, that makes it more appealing to me. One of the negatives of the CLS to me was having real leather on the dash, as again, if I had one and wanted to keep it long term, I wouldn't want to worry about maintaining my dash with Leather cleaner regularly in order to keep it from aging prematurely. Some nice stitched M-B Tex would be the perfect alternative to me.

lfranklin

I just traded my cls for an e350 sedan. The exterior photos don't tell the whole story. The interior of the CLS is far superior to the E. Where there is plastic on the E, there is leather on the CLS, and it goes on with subtle features. I finally came to the conclusion that as I have grown older, the CLS (and yes, the S too) is too flamboyant for my tastes, and the E is more of a "grown up" car; but I will miss that beauty.

threeMBs

Absolutely. No sane person would say otherwise.

Arrie

Anyone thinking of switching out?

Absolutely YES.

After reading all of these posts it seems our German luxury car builder is not that luxury any more. Too many stupid quality issues and total "stupidification" of the U.S. customers. It seems they don't care much of us any more. Perhaps because they sell the same cars for double price in Europe.

But, as they have and are riding on the European quality and quality statement we should be able to keep them in the trap they themselves choose to be in. MB quality in Eurppe especially in Germany is far better than in U.S.

K-A

It's a double-edged sword. The interior of the previous (haven't sat in the new one yet) is much more refined, soft, and elegant than the W212, but the fit and finish isn't nearly up to par, used models start showing easy wear and tear on all the soft Leather surfaces, chrome starts cracking, basically it starts falling apart. The E won't suffer from that.

So build quality isn't on par. I personally like the E's interior more than the CLS's (personal preference), just as I did the W211's to the CLS's. CLS's interior instill far more sense of occasion and elegance (maybe not elegance as much as flashiness, but both), but IMO it lacks a bit of the stateliness and reservation of the E (maybe a bit too flamboyant).

K-A

Saw the CLS today. Very nice, but I gotta say, I think the E is more my style. At least, at the moment, after sitting in it, being around it, etc. I don't see it justifying the price difference that much. But, as we all know, you only truly know how good a car looks when you see it on the road, in different elements, enough times, around other cars/architecture, etc.

The interior is very nice (actually nicer than the new $20K more expensive 6-Series, in look AND material touch/workmanship), very soft touch, yet the straight-from-C Class A/C unit is horridly cheap, it makes the W212 A/C unit appear as if it's from a $200K car. Other than that, very nice, very soft, dash is padded, even the plastics are padded. Not gonna be as durable and long lasting as the E's, I assume, but very nice and quality. The cupholders being constantly exposed is gross looking, and regressive from the E-Class.

However, like before, I actually enjoy and prefer the E's interior ambiance. The CLS is a bit claustrophobic, sightlines are small, and there's a lot of "materials" (plastics, etc.) around you, that kind of cave you in. Little things like carpeting inside the lower door consoles are nice (a'la W211).

The A-Pillars are thinner, and I wouldn't be surprised if, with that dramatic bend as well, they aren't as strong as the E's.

The doors surprisingly are heavy, and they do close with a nice M-B "clank" (like the E).

The Command is the exact same as on my car, nice, intuitive, does the job, and I'm no car-tech-freak, but if I traded in my E for one, I'd expect maybe some different Command graphics. The I/C display on the other hand is a huge improvement.

The exterior is nice, very elegant, and the front end is a mixture of absolute gorgeousness, and EU pedestrian regulation overly-blunt clumsiness. It's nice all in all though, but it isn't as pleasing as the W212, especially when analyzing from up close (W212 has a dynamic raked face, whilst the CLS's is very flat). I don't like the upper character line, still, and IMO it isn't a cohesive or great look, also is a bit messy and makes the car look rather ungainly from the rear, but it's individual I guess, and looks better in person than in pics. And the stock wheels are TERRIBLE, way worse than any W212 Sport wheels.

All in all, I like the E more, but I like stately Sedans with dynamic proportions. I think the E looks both more conservative, and more muscular, stately, imposing and dynamic, while the CLS looks more beautiful, svelt, elegant, pretty.

Oh, and here's the good news: Even if I wanted one, it couldn't work. At 6'5, headroom was adequate when I stick my head in the Sunroof opening, but if I even touch the actual roof, I have to kink my neck, no way my head fits in there. I'd assume it would even be a safety concern. In my E, I have the wider Pano opening to have my tall head comfortably in, and even if I put my head under the steel surround portion, I have almost-decent room, which is better than the CLS's non-livable.

So I'm good with the E for now, but I must say I love the new CLS!

P.S: There's no Lease/Incentive support for the CLS yet, but this Dealer said the several they have sold, have all been about $5K down and $12-$1700 a month Leases. WAY not worth that coin to me, but hey, some people gotta have the new kid on the block!

VERDICT: I went in there with an "I might really want this car" state of mind, and left without an "I want it" factor at all, and assured in my E. Yet, I still really liked and was pleased by it. I'll see how I feel when I see it on the road!

Oh, on another note, saw the new SLK as well, interior was nice (save for the awkwardly off-center screen), but the exterior, although nice and elegant, was a little blah. Still the nicest SLK yet, and a solid and easy on the eyes offering.

With the new ML looking like the FIRST NICE LOOKING ML yet, I gotta say, well done M-B!

SeaMerc

Here's Motor Trend's first take on the '12 CLS with some pretty good test numbers and positive impressions. This is consistent with my driving impressions of the new CLS 550. It's very fast and sticky in the corners. Luxurious interior too.


http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...est/index.html

RJC

Thanks for posting, good write up and pics. FYI at the moment the link opens to the second page first.