GTP Cool Wall: 2004-2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS (W129)

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2004-2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS (W129)


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Wiegert

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United Kingdom
2004-2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS (W129) nominated by @JASON_ROCKS1998

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Body Style: 4-door sedan
Engine: 3.0L V6 (Petrol & Turbo Diesel), 3.5L V6, 5.0L V8, 5.4L SC AMG V8, 5.5L V8, 6.2L AMG V8
Power: 224 hp (3.0L Diesel V6), 231 hp (3.0L V6), 272 hp (3.5L V6), 306 hp (5.0L V8), 388 hp (5.5L V8), 476 hp (5.4L SC AMG V8), 514 hp (6.2L AMG V8)
Torque: 380 ft-lbs (3.0L Diesel V6), 221 ft-lbs (3.0L V6), 269 ft-lbs (3.5L V6), 339 ft-lbs (5.0L V8), 391 ft-lbs (5.5L V8), 516 ft-lbs (5.4L SC AMG V8), 465 ft-lbs (6.2L AMG V8)
Weight: 1660 kg (CLS 350), 1760 kg (CLS 550), 1845 kg (CLS 55 AMG) & 1830 kg (CLS 63 AMG)
Transmission: 5 or 7-speed automatic
Drivetrain: Front-engine, rear wheel drive
Built by Mercedes to slot in between the E Class and the S Class as an executive coupe, built on the W211 E-Class platform, after the E-Class coupe went out of production in 1995. Mercedes say the CLS was designed to offer the "strong, emotive charisma" of a coupe with the "comfort and practicality" of an executive sedan. The CLS' design, aside from having 4 doors, tends towards a coupe, with a sleek roofline reducing the rear passenger room to a 2+2 arrangement, and with a smaller selection of engines catered towards the high power range compared to the large choice of engines in the E-Class.

The production CLS500 was unveiled at the 2004 New York International Auto Show and European models went on sale that year while the United States would have to wait until 2005, and the CLS500 and 55 AMG were the initial offerings. Mercedes phased out the 5.0 and 5.5 V8's in the CLS500 and CLS55 with 5.5 and 6.2 V8's respectively in 2006. This resulted in the cars changing their names to the CLS550 and CLS63 AMG in the states while some markets kept the CLS500 badging.

The 2012 CLS550 had a base price of $72,175 in 2011 with the CLS63 AMG starting at $96,775 for the base model with F1 gearbox and 19" rims. The AMG models were normal CLS' tuned by AMG, featuring bigger, more powerful, engines with early models having a V8 and later models utilizing a 6.2 V12. Features exclusive to the AMG include sports seats, 18" alloy wheels with wider tyres (in UK markets), 19" 5-Spoke alloy wheels (Standard in the US, optional for all other markets), large air intakes and quad chromed oval exhausts.

Available in 4 engine variants, the CLS Grand Edition came with designo magno platinum matte paint, radiator grill louvres, choice of 4 metallic body colours (obsidian black, iridium silver, carneol red or flint grey), bi-xenon headlights, active light function, AMG alloy wheels, "Grand Edition" insignia's, marron interior and many other unique features.

Mercedes put all of it's latest safety features into the CLS including front & side airbags, "smart sensor" system for seatbelts and airbags that can react to accident severity, "Pre-safe" system to predict collisions and, when the system is activiated, tightens seatbelts, adjusts front seats to crash position and closes the sunroof in order to minimise injuries.

More than 170,000 W129 CLS' were sold when production ended in 2011 (2012 in export markets), with 60,000 of total sales coming from the United States alone.

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I really like the way this thing looks, there used to be one up the road from me, I'd always admire it when I saw it, it stood out from the rest of the boring cars that were around. I personally don't think this car has aged much exterior wise, I wouldn't say it still looks new as such though, in my opinion the interior is the most dated part of the car. I hate the current one though, it has the same problem as the current S Class, it's just ugly and too blingy in my opinion.
 
Seriously Uncool. Looked ugly when it came out, and looks ugly today. It resembles icecream that was forgotten on the table, melted and droopy, dripping in all the wrong places.
 
I don't know...were they trying to go for that "This was supposed to be a Mercedes but we couldn't get the rights so we made a parody of the car we wanted" look?

In other words, you could have put a peace sign in place of the "three pointed star" and I could have sworn this was a cut car from Saints Row 2.

It is not the best looking Mercedes. The roof is ugly, the lights look deformed, it's just an awkward looking car in general, thanks to that phase that Mercedes and wuite a few luxury automakers were in. BMW with their rendition of the 7 Series, Jaguar with the S-Type, etc.

Uncool.
 
Engine: 3.0L V6 (Petrol & Turbo Diesel), 3.5L V6, 5.0L V8, 5.4L AMG V8, 5.5L V8, 6.2L AMG V8
You missed the V12 displacement for this bit though it's listed in horsepower and torque.
So lemon it became a banana?

Sport coupe sedan? Meh. And not only that, the value of these cars have fallen so much that it has fallen into the hands of the cheap wannabe gangster - you know those people who love to put oversized (for the components of the car) aftermarket wheels to flash their bling image. They'll ditch them as soon as the first repair bill hit, commonly reaching four digit figures. Just like the E65 7 series.

Uncool.
 
These were everywhere in SoCal when it was new. It really created a segment that a lot of other brands have catered to since its introduction. I prefer the design over the current car.

Cool!
 
Cool. Though cooler back when it first hit the market. They suffer from serious Progeria at the front while the rest still looks stunningly disparate next to the rest of their Noughties range. Pretty slick compared to the more bullish replacement (which doesn't really stand out so much in today's heavily style-concious market).

You missed the V12 displacement for this bit though it's listed in horsepower and torque.

Any mention of a 6.2 V12 in the nomination is actually untrue, since it's a V8.

Appreciate the half-catch nevertheless. ;)
 
I think this is the only Merc in AMG form even that I've never really found interest in, and gave more of a gaudy feeling than performance. The only time it caught my interest is when a driver blew past me on the freeway in the top trim but sounded great, moved well, nearly as gaudy as a rapper being towed around in a Bentley. Uncool.
 
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It looks tremendously outdated nowadays because the new one looks so much better. It started a all new niche in the car market, it was distinctive and the least boring Mercedes (non AMG) in a long time, even their coupes (CL, CLK, SL, etc.) were boring.

Solid Cool
 
The first thing that comes to mind when I see this car was that god-awful TV show about "SICK DUB CUSTOMS DAWG" called Unique Whips or something, about a shop called Unique Autosports. The shop was manages by a grumpy latino oompa-loompa that thought he was a master genious but was a complete tool.

Clari-oh-n headunits, subs, dubs, As-ah-nteeh rimz, bling bling grills, and Lori s-ah' bodykits, ya know...

Seriously uncool.
 
I've always liked these since they came out, but they landed right into the hands of the rich tossers. Now they've moved onto other cars so the reputation is improving. Meh.
 
I don't think they're overly attractive, but I think they're cool as hell.

SU.
 
The generation after this was much better looking IMO.... and then they went and ruined it again with the 2014 facelift!
 
That swooshing waistline is this model's saving grace, otherwise it would look just like any other 00s Merc saloon. Best angle is from the rear 3 quarter, but that only makes it a Meh from me.
 
Compared to the dreary S class of the time this car was much easier on the eyes. I agree it didn't age well though.

Cool for now.
 
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