2007 Mercedes-Benz CLS550

2007 Mercedes-Benz CLS550

When designers began drawing on their imagination for the Mercedes-Benz CLS, they must have started with a roofline and worked their way down because everything seems to fit so perfectly beneath that arc.

Looking as though it were carved from a single steel ingot, the CLS is arguably the best looking four-door on four wheels.

Yes, it's a four-door, despite the maker's insistence on calling it a coupe. The idea behind the design and the marketing was to give the midsize luxury car the swept lines of a coupe with the access of a sedan.

The notion that a buyer would care whether this car is called a coupe or a sedan must stand as further evidence that the wealthier you are, the more refined your tastes.

The CLS is not the most expensive machine to bear the Mercedes-Benz star, but it's hardly entry level. The lowest price available is $67,675 for the CLS550 and $92,975 for the CLS63 AMG coupe.

Introduced in 2006 as the CLS500, the sedan gains more combustion capacity as a 2007 model bearing the CLS550 label. The numbers indicate the engine size: The 32-valve V8 measures 5.5 liters in its combustion chambers, which deliver a wholly excessive but still gratifying 382 horsepower.

With very little encouragement, the V8 will take you from 0 to 60 mph in 5.4 seconds, relaying the torque through a seven-speed automatic transmission that glides through the gears in one fluid motion.

If you really must have more performance, you can pay extra for the 507-horsepower CLS63 AMG that will get you from 0 to 60 mph 1.1 second sooner.

In the CLS550, the wondrous V8 provides 27 percent more power while providing the same fuel efficiency as the previous model. And that's not a whole lot to brag about. With a rating of 15 miles per gallon in the city and 22 mpg on the highway, we should consider ourselves lucky that this beauty is an instant classic -- designed for the classes, not the masses. In the event of global warming, simply turn up the air conditioning.

The 6.3-liter V8 in the AMG version is a direct descendent of the racing versions with variable valve timing, bucket tappets rather than rocker arms, an 11.3-to-1 compression ratio and a variable intake manifold. Not to bore you with the details, but the cylinder bores feature a twin-wire-arc-sprayed coating to minimize friction and create surfaces twice as hard as conventional cast-iron cylinders.

The AMG Speedshift automatic transmission can be shifted manually by either a conventional lever or Formula-1 style shift paddles on the sport steering wheel. In the most authentic racing mode, the manual mode of AMG Speedshift doesn't permit any automatic upshifts even at top engine speed or automatic downshifts, even under full load. So watch that redline. It comes at 7,200 rpm.

For the luxury market, the winning formula is a combination of power and pampering. In true Euro-luxury style, the CLS stops at nothing to make its passengers feel special.

As a mid-size sedan, the CLS could have accommodated five passengers, but the designers decided four would suffice. That allowed creation of bucket-style seats in the back with a console between the passengers. Large passengers may find the legroom a little snug, but the headroom is decent when you consider the arc of that roofline.

Up front, the driver manipulates a four-spoke steering wheel with instrument and audio controls. The instrument cluster includes three chronometer-type gauges and two LCD (liquid crystal display) bar graphs in the instrument cluster accented by chrome rings and wood trim.

Four-zone climate control allows adjustments for each front and rear seat. The rear passengers get their own digital control panel for setting temperature and airflow.

A large color display screen uses one set of controls for the audio system, optional GPS satellite navigation, optional satellite radio and integrated phone. The system includes an array of mobile communications with the optional phone.

A standard harman/kardon Logic 7 digital surround sound system converts conventional stereo from the radio and CD player into surround sound with seven output channels. The 480-watt sound system includes a digital signal processor and 12 speakers.

The system also adjusts volume automatically to compensate for ambient driving noise.

Mercedes continues to lead the safety sweepstakes with a brake system that automatically flashes the reds at the trailing vehicle when you pound the pedal in crisis mode.

Richard Williamson writes about automobiles for Scripps Howard News Service.

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