Contents Show
No - the current CLS generation is not yet old. And that too CLS Shooting Brake is actually really fresh. But the model cycles are getting shorter and at Mercedes-Benz there are also some technological innovations that have to be presented on time.
Refreshed Mercedes-Benz CLS and CLS Shooting Brake
Botox and amphetamine cure for the elite Swabian
The most important novelties for the CLS facelift may not be particularly exciting for automotive laymen, but these details are likely to bring real benefits to the everyday lives of future CLS customers.
9 automatic transmission, new MULTIBEAM LED light, the large multimedia display and, with Mercedes connect me, the latest addition to the Mercedes online services.
The 9-gear automatic
7 gears for the automatic in the predecessor were quite good, 9 gears are better. The new automatic transmission (own article to this gear follows!) allows maximum efficiency with the high spread of the gears. With little more than idling speed, you can cruise relaxed on the highway. How the 9-gear automatic transmission drives, more about that soon.
The new 9 automatic gearbox is offered for the CLS 220 BlueTEC, the 250 BlueTec, the 350 BlueTEC and the CLS 500. The 4-matic models, however, are still coupled with the 7-gear automatic transmission!
MULTIBEAM LED Scheinwefer
LED technology as a light source was already available in addition to the xenon light. However, the new MULTIBEAM LED headlamp is a generation ahead. Adaptive illumination of the roadway thus becomes a daily pleasure.
The information for the illumination provides the camera-based Adaptive Highbeam Assist Plus, If it detects illuminated oncoming or preceding vehicles, it electronically controls each of the 24 high-performance LEDs of the raster light source in such a way that specific areas of the roadway are deliberately cut out according to the situation. The headlamp control combines the raster light source with the proven technology of the LED Intelligent Light System, which increases the precision of today's light sources and adjusts a high-beam gap with minimal width. In this way, other drivers are not dazzled, while drivers in the CLS Coupe and the CLS Shooting Brake always benefit from the best possible, i.e. brightest, illumination of the road and lane edges. The glare-free high beam can remain switched on permanently. This is for road safety, from which the other road users benefit in partnership.
In addition to the camera on the windscreen, the new lighting technology uses four control units per vehicle, which calculate 100's ideal light distribution every second and individually and quickly control all 24 high-performance LEDs per precision LED module, each of which can be dimmed in 255 stages ,
New base diesel engine
With the CLS 220 BlueTEC, a new basic engine is moving into the four-door coupé. Like all motors, this also fulfills the EU-6 standard. With 170 hp and 400 Nm torque, the two-stage turbocharged diesel is the most economical engine for the chic Swabian. Consumption values and eco-balance of the CLS 220 BlueTEC have not yet been announced.
Also new: the CLS 400 with the bi-turbo gasoline engine and proud 333 PS and 480 Nm force. If you are looking for more power, you can use the CLS 500 with 408 PS V8 and turbocharging, or the AMG versions CLS 63 with up to 585 PS and 720 to 800 Newtonmeter power.
The engineers in Affalterbach want to have pressed the CLS 63 AMG for a standard consumption of 9.9 liters per 100 kilometer. That would be phenomenal, but for everyday life rather a fantasy value. The own test drives in the CLS 63 AMG have shown: Who goes with 500 PS on the slopes, which often comes in the range of 15-18 liters on 100 kilometers.
4-matic for two more models
Mercedes calls its four-wheel drive 4-matic and now offers this with the facelift of the CLS for two other models: For the CLS 250 BlueTEC and the CLS 400. This should be the dream combination for me personally: CLS 400 4-matic.
Last but not least: Mercedes connect me
With the CLS facelift, a new package of service services is also being launched in Europe under the name “Mercedes connect me”. The Mercedes-Benz emergency call and accident, maintenance and breakdown management, for example, are available via a standard KOM module (mobile phone modem!) Integrated in the vehicle with its own SIM card. Customers can also connect to their vehicle anywhere and anytime via "connect.mercedes.me" via the Internet and, for example, check how full the tank is.
The first test drives with the new CLS are already in the coming week. Then more about that!