Mild updates keep the four-door coupe
fresh
Ten years ago, Mercedes-Benz hit an E-class
on the head with a hammer, smoothed out the result and gave the world the CLS.
The first mainstream four door coupe looked as sexy as a plunging neckline and
it did well enough to convince Audi and BMW to come out with their own versions
of long, low and swoopy. In 2010, the CLS got a massive makeover and the one
you see on these pages is essentially that car. It’s been in India for three
years, it’s a rare sight and I’m willing to bet you’ve probably never seen one
in the wild. It’s why we are driving one now. At the receiving end of a mild
massage recently, the CLS gets a chance to keep its head above the water till
the full facelift comes in much later. End of history lesson.
The updates are mild even by mild standards
– the paint shade of our car is new, the design of the 18-inch alloy wheels is
new, there is an improved reverse camera and more detailed maps for the navigation
system. Merc also says the reworked ‘manual’ mode for the gearbox improves the
generally sluggish 7G-tronic transmission’s responses. That’s it.
The
Mercedes CLS 350 is a visual standout from every angle, inside and out
What’s it like to drive? The engine is a
lovely old school, naturally aspirated motor. At idle, it’s quieter than a
Vipasana center and power delivery is best described as soothing. You don’t get
that knee-jerk bottom-end torque of a current, big displacement turbo-engine
but what you do get is smooth, turbine-like build up of pace. The engine makes
302bhp and 370Nm of torque – 6.1 sec from now you’ll be crossing 100kmph, so it
is quick. It may not rev up fast as some of the newer motors but this trait
really suits the laid back character of the car. Also, the transmission has
noticeably improved in its responses – it is far more willing to downshift than
before without compromising on the smoothness Merc’s torque converters are
known for.
That silky drivetrain and unshakeable stability
characterise the CLS. The steering is accurate enough and body control is good
– it’s just that the CLS doesn’t really like being hustled through challenging
roads and prefers more relaxed driver inputs. It is nowhere near as engaging as
a BMW 640d.
Shaped
LED lights at the rear are meant to link them to the sides of the car
The ride is nice and with the air
suspension set in ‘comfort’, does a good job of absorbing small imperfections.
It’s when a wheel drops into a deeper depression that you get tossed
side-to-side a bit. There is also some suspension noise entering the cabin as
it deals with sharp intrusions.
For such a low car, the ground clearance is
good and the suspension even has a lift mode to clear big speed breakers.
What else? The rear seats have a surprising
amount of legroom, but six-footers might need to slouch to sit in there. It is
a strict four-seater – the high transmission tunnel allows for two big
cubbyholes that extend up to the front seats.
New
instrument cluster and a rejigged dash are the only changes inside
The cabin is typical Merc – the piano black
slab across the dashboard, the vertically stacked center console, the dials and
the silver-finish air-con vents are all beautifully finished, solidly built
items. We only wished it felt a bit more special than what is essentially an
E-class dashboard.
The CLS 350 costs $146,570 (ex-showroom,
Delhi) which is a fair bit more than the E-class. What you get for that money
is a fat helping of exclusivity, sat-nav, reverse camera, a Harman Kardon audio
system, sunroof and electric everything. The CLS is everything we love about an
old school Mercedes-Benz. It is built like a tank and is very relaxing to drive
– the kind of car that slows your pulse down, and that’s not entirely a bad thing.
