Autocar reports in their 7-13 September issue that the CLS 350 has a faster steering rack (14.7) vs. the E-Class (16.2). Does anyone know whether ALL W211 cars (i.e. including the E55) are fitted with the 16.2 steering rack?

Maybe this can be the answer to our collective woes! Maybe it would be possible to retrofit the quicker CLS steering rack on our cars (i.e. the CLS is built using the W211 platform). However, maybe things aren't so simple -- maybe the ESP mapping takes the steering rack ratio into account, rendering a retrofit impossible/incompatible?

Other observations in the Autocar article:

-But how does it drive? Well, more like a true coupe than a regular Mercedes saloon, distilling the best of Benz in a package designed to be driven. Predictably, the steel multi-link and coils suspension of our 350 test car gets firmer springs and dampers than in the E-Class. But there's also a faster steering rack: 17.7 versus the saloon's 16.2, and bigger brakes than the equivalent E320. Airmatic suspension, standard on the CLS 500, will also be an (expensive) option on the 350.

-And it corners. Like all of the best Benzes, the CLS feels impregnable and solid, with suspension capable of ignoring the worst road-surface irregularities. Yet the low-speed ride seems superior: more supple and better able to flout speed bumps and manhole covers. Yes, there is some body roll, but the CLS never heaves or loses its natural poise. On the test car's Pirelli P-Zero tyres, the suspension is also noticeably quiter than an E-class's too.

Yet the real suprise is its steering. On paper, at 2.7 turns it is just 0.1 turns quicker than the saloon's. But it feels more precise and accurate, with sharper turn in and none of the sponginess around the straight-ahead. So you're encouraged to push this big coupe in a manner that is alien to the saloon, without it ever feeling like a hard core sports car. Faster steering also helps disguise its natural tendency to understeer. It just needs less lock in any given corner - fast sweeper or tight radii - than the saloon. You can't accuse the steering of being nervous or darty either, for high-speed stability it is excellent, while the kick-back that plagues some recent Mercedes racks has virtually disappeared. But you can hear the engine revs increase slightly it the steering's turned quickly through a wide arc at parking speeds - the computer having decided that the power steering pumps needs extra help.

-HANDLING/RIDE (Four stars out of five): Treats most roads with contempt. Nicely positioned between saloon and sports car in driving character.

-And the strong electro-hydraulic brakes seem less sensitive and more progressive that the same system in the E-Class.

-BRAKES (Four stars out of five): Slightly mushy pedal feel, but excellent resistant (sp?) to fade and always stable under braking.

 

Does this mean the CLS has the same electronic brakes as the E-Class? I cannot wait until Mercedes ditches this system.

 

Apparently, the CLS has the SBC Sensotronic brakes system (as do the SL- and E-Class cars). Autocar claims that SBC brakes on the CLS "seems less sensitive and more progressive than the same system in the E-Class," but have a "slightly mushy pedal feel."

Maybe the Sensotronic map for the CLS has been improved/refined?

 

personally I love the brakes on my E55. I dont get what the fuss is about them.

 

Oh no, another idiotic comment from Autocar. Don't they realize they will never feel brake fade with SBC as they're stepping on a brake feel stimulator? Unless they precisely measure the braking distance before and after the brakes heat up, there is no way he is in the position to comment on brake fade.

Brake fade with SBC = red alert on dash.

 

what does 14.7 vs. 16.2 mean? is that the total travel distance so response is quicker?

 

That's the ratio between the steering rack, and pinion gears. The higher the number, the (effectively) quicker the steering rate (i.e. same concept as a numerically higher differential/axle ratio, etc.).

P.S. I think that you meant to quote 17.7 for the CLS and 16.2 for the W211 E-Class.