Editor's Rating: 
The Good: Elegant interior, smooth ride, good looks
The Bad: Price, gimmicky technology
The Bottom Line: The classiest grand touring coupe around
Reader ReviewsUp Front
Every once in a while, I test drive a car I really don't want to give back. That's the way it was with the Mercedes-Benz CL550, which may be the most satisfying sports-luxury coupe I've ever driven. If one is wealthy and wants to cultivate an image of understated elegance with a touch of brio, this is the car to buy.
Of course, you would have to be monied to afford the CL550. My test vehicle listed for nearly $117,000, which seems excessive even by Mercedes' standards, but I would be hard pressed to say that it wasn't worth every penny.
The CL550 is essentially a shorter, lighter, and sportier two-door version of the S Class, Mercedes' flagship luxury sedan. The redesigned S Class (BusinessWeek, 5/10/06) came out in 2006 and was followed by the new CL550 coupe, which hit the showrooms this January as '07 models. The '07s were redesignated '08s this summer, but the '08 and '07 CL550 (the one I test-drove) are identical.
At 200 inches, the CL550 is nine inches longer than an '07 BMW 650i Coupe, with much of the extra length being taken up by the Benz's long hood. To my eye, the long front end, curvy roofline, and sculpted flanks make this Mercedes one of the most beautiful cars on the road.
There are now four new CL coupes?each with a different engine. The CL550, the entry model, is powered by a 382-horsepower, 5.5-liter V8. If raw power is a priority, there's also a CL600 with a 5.5-liter, 510-horsepower V12.
In addition, parent company Daimler (DAI) has developed two more high-performance CL coupes with sportier suspensions and amped-up versions of the engines. The CL63 AMG is powered by a 6.2-liter, 514-horsepower V8, and the CL65 AMG by a 6-liter, 604-horsepower V12. The '08 CL550 starts out at a hefty $103,875, but it's almost a bargain basement item compared with the other CL coupes. The CL600 starts at $147,675, the CL63 AMG at $137,775, and the CL65 AMG at $197,775.
The CL550 weighs in at a hefty 4,486 lbs., but it still gets decent mileage. Under the federal government's new, stricter system for calculating fuel economy, the '08 CL550 is rated to get 14 mpg in the city and 21 on the highway. In 320 miles of mixed driving, I got 19.4 mpg.
Gas-price jitters don't seem to be hurting Mercedes' U.S. sales at all. The company set monthly records in both August and September, fueled by strong demand for its redesigned C-Class entry-level sedans (BusinessWeek, 9/24/07). Overall, Mercedes' U.S. sales were up 1.8% through September, to 180,265.
The CL-Class is a niche product, but it's doing very well. U.S. sales of all CL models combined nearly quintupled in the first nine months of this year, to 2,672. In comparison, the BMW 650i hardtop coupe fell 17.6%, to 1,469 units through the end of September, while sales of all types of Porsche 911 were up 7.3%, to 9,833 units through September.
Behind the Wheel
A high-end Mercedes has a more luxurious feel than a BMW (BMWG). You can hear the engine at work, but the sound is distant, as if it were coming from a car down the block somewhere. The steering wheel?which in the CL550 is leather-wrapped with hand-polished walnut inserts?always seems to have the same solid, slightly chunky feel.
My most satisfying moments in the CL550 came while pulling around a curve or corner and giving it the gas. The smoothness with which the car takes off is confidence inspiring. I timed it at between 6.2 and 6.4 seconds in accelerating from 0 to 60. If you want more raw speed, the CL600 and CL63 AMG will do 0 to 60 in 4.5 seconds, and the CL65 AMG in 4.2 seconds, according to Mercedes. (The $122K Porsche 911 Turbo does it in 3.55 seconds.)
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