2006 Mercedes Review

Specifications

The Birth of the Four-Door Luxury Coupe

The truth hit with clarity, and it did so at about 70 mph on the highway near my hometown. That truth is this: the 2006 Mercedes CLS500 is worth every red cent (red Euro, really) that Mercedes-Benz engineers spent on wind tunnel testing the sweet exterior lines of this remarkable “four-door coupe.”

And that slippery shape of the all-new CLS isnt just pleasing to the eye — the car literally slices through the air. And cleanly. So cleanly, in fact, that with the sunroof open and all four windows down during that highway ride, my riding companion and I carried on a normal conversation with absolutely no wind noise and absolutely no wind buffeting in the well-appointed cabin. Our hair wasnt even blowing! At 70 mph!

I was already sold on the merits of this new sedan before our windless epiphany, if you will, so after that I was convinced I had a new object of desire for my what if I won the lottery daydreams. With a price tag just under $65K — or over $85K if you add up all the options — Im afraid only the wealthy will be able to afford the windless sensation.

According to Mercedes-Benz press notes, “the CLS500 is the first vehicle to combine the emotional design of a coupe with the comfort and functionality of a sedan.” While Mazda and those that designed and engineered the RX-8 - which actually uses clamshell rear doors so may not comply with Mercedes self proclaimed “four-door coupe” status - might not agree, there is no denying the CLS fits that bill.

Powered by a super-responsive 302-horsepower 5.0-liter V8, the performance figures and handling characteristics of the CLS, including suspension and braking, are in keeping with a sports car (zero to 60 mph in just 6.0 seconds with an electronically controlled top speed of 155 mph). The seven-speed (yes, seven-speed!) automatic transmission is flawless. The electro-hydraulic braking that debuted on Mercedes SL roadsters in 2003 is standard in the CLS, as are projector-type halogen headlights.

As to the sedan-like character of the new vehicle, the luxurious cabin is very accommodating (a six-foot eight friend said it offered the most legroom of any vehicle hed been in a long time), and the trunk, at a full 17.5 cubic feet, is simply cavernous. One criticism: due to the unique shape of the sculpted doors and swept-back windshield, the interior feels a little narrower than a car this large should.

As one would expect from a Mercedes, the list of creature comfort features is long and of the utmost quality.

Mercedes is definitely onto something with this four-door coupe idea, so dont be surprised when other manufacturers — particularly European and Japanese ones — use their own high-performance luxury standards to produce similar vehicles for this segment. Porsche has already committed to have just such a car to market by 2009. The Panamera will be a premium-class sports coupe with four seats, four doors, and a choice of front-mounted engines driving the rear wheels.  Porsche is probably up to the task of pulling it off (although purists are most likely as keen on the front-engine layout and V8 engine of the Panamera as they were about the Cayenne SUV when news of that first spread.

What is for sure is that Mercedes has set the bar with the all-new CLS500, and being the first to market, at least in the luxury segment, means every rival is playing catch-up.