Mercedes CLS Estate spied

First pictures of the production-ready Mercedes CLS Estate

Mercedes CLS Estate front three-quarters

Auto Express Car Reviews

Text: Dan Strong / Photos: KGP Photography

12th October 2011

Mercedes’ stunning new CLS Shooting Brake is ready for the road, and Auto Express has the first exclusive pictures to prove it.

Our spies scooped this production ready example testing in public.

Sources close to the project have told Auto Express that the car will be revealed next summer, with a UK launch scheduled to coincide with the Goodwood Festival of Speed in June.

The car will hit showrooms in September. Prices are expected to start from £48,000 - £1,500 more than the CLS Saloon.

The engine range will be identical to that offered by the standard CLS. It will include 2.2 and 3.0-litre diesel engines, and 3.5 and 5.5-litre petrol engines. A powerful AMG version will also be offered, fitted with a new turbocharged 5.5-litre V8.

Cars will be rear-wheel drive, and feature a seven-speed automatic gearbox. There are currently no plans for a four-wheel drive version, or a hybrid.

Auto Express understands Mercedes plans for hybrid power in 2012 focuses entirely introduction of the E-Class BlueHybrid, which will be launched in the first half of 2012.

These first shots of the luxury five-door don’t just prove that Mercedes has made good on the promises it made to bring its original concept to production, they also show off that almost all of the show car's detailing has been kept too.

Key details include the steeply raked windscreen, arcing roofline, and sloping hatch at the rear, all of which are virtually identical to those shown off by the concept.

Under the disguise, the window area is expected to finish in a sharp point, while slender tail lamps will wrap around the rear wings.

Inside, the four-seater cabin will be almost identical to that offered by the CLS – save for one important detail… The boot. Expected to be similar in size to that offered by the C-Class estate, it will include underfloor storage options.

One key change that has been made, however, is in the spelling of the name.

Mercedes attracted some criticism from traditionalists when it named the original concept Break – experts agreed that the correct spelling, as used by cars in the past was Brake.

As a result, Mercedes has decided to change the official name of the road going car to Shooting Brake.

The practical, stylish estate was originally unveiled as a concept at the Beijing Motor Show in April 2010.

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5 Comments

4 seater estate and space for the dog at the back. looks like a bigger version of a c-class estate

By corsamani on 13 October, 2011, 9:14am

A Shooting Brake!

WTF! A "Shooting Brake", Dirk checks calender, tugs lightly on goatee and sighs, dismayed to find it's not 1938.

It's an estate car and fugugly one at that. A great shape ruined by the need to "fill a niche", marketing strategy gone mad.

By derkdangler on 13 October, 2011, 9:48am

Thumbs up

I like it - better looking than anything BMW or Audi have to offer.

By Ian2861 on 13 October, 2011, 4:17pm

O.M.G. !! Are they KIDDING??

Let me get this straight: Mercedes takes their best sedan design in four decades and BASTARDIZES it by stapling on a flat-out butt-ugly station wagon rear end , thereby destroying all design integrity.... for what? Are they trying to compete with a frickin' Chrysler Hiemi wagon?? Which, by the way, is MUCH better looking?

I don't know (or care) who is in charge of MB design but here is the bottom line: they have lost their design direction. First, they kissed Chris Bangle's bungles and incorporated them into their lineup, then they added Subaru's wheel sideslabs onto all cars, even the S class (Subura!!! Anyone at Mercedes paying ANY attention to this??) and now they are continuing to denigrate the design of all new models with their 'broken arrow' design theme.

I am a long time Mercedes fan - I drive a 2007 E550 now - and have had dozens of models, including the 600SL, but I'm fed up with their pandering to very temporary design trends instead of sticking to their very strong, original and exemplary Teutonic design standards that made them famous for both quality and aesthetics in the first place.

Mercedes, go back to being original, reliable and the best build quality in the world. Don't try to answer every stupid niche market you can. This will spell doom for your brand over time.

By mcrosson on 14 October, 2011, 7:32am

About time!

I've long been fond of shooting brakes such as the Lynx Eventer and Lotus Elite. Yes, this is a fancy estate really, but there needs to be a car that satisfies the needs of those wanting a beautiful car, who also need to travel with the associated gubbins of life. Estates have been getting better looking in recent years but few truly look exciting. This does. The E-class estate does not.

Let's put it another way; this is a gentleman's express for when the gentleman has offspring.

By Pycraft on 25 October, 2011, 11:20am

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