What kind of car is the Mercedes CL

"JR1" (type35bugatti)
05/23/2016 at 21:09 • Filed to: Mercedes CL

The CL is a massive and regal two door coupe. But I can’t seem to decide if it is built for crushing highways and spirited back road trips or your local high class mall. What I am asking essential is if the CL is a personal luxury car or grand tourer? What say you Oppo?

DISCUSSION (57)

TractorPillow > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:14

It's a luxury coupe for people that think they need a backseat for the 5 times in 3 years they have more than one passenger, and are therefore making a much more practical decision then a 2 seater.

not for canada - australian in disguise > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:16

Non-AMG = Personal Luxury

AMG = GT

GT to me basically means a personal luxury car with more focus on performance.

If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:16

I think it’s one of the last of the personal luxury coupes. If you want driving fun you buy an SLK.

DrScientist > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:17

i’m going to go with personal luxury coupe.

but its home isn’t at the local upscale mall, it’s:

1) in the reserved spot in front of the ubiquitous office buildings in office parks around the country, or

2) in front of the local capital grille with the valet.

oh no... wait... all of the CLs, now at least 2 years old, have been traded in for S-coupes, and are now only at home in one of tavarish’s editorials!

Jonathan Harper > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:18

Kinja'd!!!

jkm7680 > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:18

one with wheels, and an engine, and a transmission

interstate366, now In The Industry > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:21

Either, depending on the owner.

Trunk Impaired 318 > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
05/23/2016 at 21:21

But if you really care about driving you buy a BMW or Porsche.

Land_Yacht_225 > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:24

You can put the ABC in sport mode and stick the transmission in manual and make a fine grand tourer of it.

But 90% of the time it is used, and therefore better marketed, as one of the last personal luxury coupes. And I think, given that it can do both, it performes better as a PLC than a GT.

DrScientist > TractorPillow
05/23/2016 at 21:26

i (have) own(ed) three cars in my life. each has had two doors, two seats, and two vestigial nooks into which an adult human may be able to contort himself/herself for a few minutes if absolutely required.

that space is used exactly how you describe. that, and as a spot to keep an overnight bag, ski boot bag, grocery bag, bag of fireworks, all kinds of bags. :)

JR1 > not for canada - australian in disguise
05/23/2016 at 21:27

That's kinda what I thought. But then again the normal 500 and 600 have so much power!

JR1 > DrScientist
05/23/2016 at 21:27

They are so so tempting...

JR1 > If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent
05/23/2016 at 21:27

True but he SLK is rather plebeian

JR1 > Land_Yacht_225
05/23/2016 at 21:28

I suppose you would know from experience with an S600

not for canada - australian in disguise > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:28

A personal luxury car can still be powerful, they’re just focused more on comfort than a GT.

Steve in Manhattan > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:28

I think if I’m going to drive 8 or 9 hours from NYC to Chicago, I’d like to drive this car. I once drove 8 hours without stopping - steel bladder. This car would be perfect for that. Carving up the roads, not so much, but I’d gladly drive it on the twisties, just to see.

JR1 > TractorPillow
05/23/2016 at 21:28

And the back seats are actually useable!

DrScientist > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:31

go for it!

if you can afford it... hell, if you can’t afford it... go for it!

youre talking to a guy who has owned 2 25 year old lux-coupes.

Land_Yacht_225 > JR1
05/23/2016 at 21:35

Well, think about it this way: what are your classic GTs? Ferrari 575, Aston Martin DB9, Porsche 928, Maserati Gran Turismo, etc.

These are all either two seaters or 2+2, that later designation referring to a vehicle which technically seats 4 with the technicality being those in the rear can’t have legs. In the Mercedes lineup, that would mean the SL is the Grand Tourer because, for as spry as its handling is, it’s pretty freaking enormous.

I’ve been in the back of a CL and you can sit back there moderately comfortably. It genuinely seats 4, like a Mark VIII or an Eldorado. Therefore, PLC.

Brian McKay > Jonathan Harper
05/23/2016 at 21:44

exactly - It’s 0bviously a grand-touring coupé or “GT car.” It’s a “personal” car, not a municipal bus.

JR1 > Steve in Manhattan
05/23/2016 at 21:46

Damn that is a steel bladder. And one hell of a gas tank

JR1 > DrScientist
05/23/2016 at 21:47

One day... I gotta be able to afford it

JR1 > Land_Yacht_225
05/23/2016 at 21:49

Good way to look at it. I always thought of the SL as Mercedes sports roadster though because unlike most GT cars it is a two seater.

ranwhenparked > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:00

The personal luxury car is kind of the American equivalent of the grand tourer. Superficially similar, but developed in a parallel fashion for a different purpose with different attributes (see also the history of the estate car vs. station wagon & shooting brake vs. 2-door station wagon). So, I would say the CL is a grand tourer.

hike > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:12

And even heated! (well at least in the S coupe) headroom is tight though.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:17

An accord coupe for rich people.

Short-throw Granny Shifter is 2 #blessed 2b stressed > Jonathan Harper
05/23/2016 at 22:17

Agreed. With the powerful turbo engines, stiff chassis, wiiiiiiide tires, and trick suspensions now-a-days, even the two ton luxury beasts handle the back roads as well as any “true” GT of yore. There are no more Eldorado’s or Coupe de Villes.

JR1 > ranwhenparked
05/23/2016 at 22:21

I like that reasoning. The American float like a Cadillac and the Europeans sting like a Bimmer. (Cars reference)

JR1 > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
05/23/2016 at 22:22

Haha unfortunately that's probably how most are used

Hot Takes Salesman > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:35

Wait, the fuck? They still sell those things?

Steve in Manhattan > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:36

I’d go until the light came on ... usually ... 340? Uh, can’t remember, may be misremembering the whole thing.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:40

Grand tourer

ranwhenparked > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:42

Yep. Grand tourers were designed to cover long distances at high speed, in comfort, with the ability to maintain speed around corners. Think of a wealthy Briton hopping a ferry and driving south across France to his winter home on the Med, for example.

Personal luxury coupes were designed to be supremely comfortable and highly styled - often ostentatiously so - as a means of projecting a certain image desired by the owner, but handling and performance were, at best, minor considerations. The priority was straight line cruising. They were also produced in much larger numbers and at a much wider range of price points, from near the bottom of the market all the way up to the true luxury field. I think of a personal luxury coupe as a democratized version of the grand tourer, or if you will, the fast food-style equivalent.

Steve in Manhattan > JR1
05/23/2016 at 22:42

‘97 SHO has a 16.1 gallon gas tank. The best I ever did was 27 if I was careful. Clearly I have no memory of what happened. 430 miles if I feather it.

JR1 > Hot Takes Salesman
05/23/2016 at 22:58

No the S Class coupe is the new CL

JR1 > hike
05/23/2016 at 23:00

Really? Pointless for sure but awesome either way

JR1 > ranwhenparked
05/23/2016 at 23:01

That is an excellent way of looking at it.

Alex Zapata > JR1
05/23/2016 at 23:53

If I had to put a name on it I’d say the SL is the actual sports grand tourer, plus convertible, and the S-Coupe would be a personal luxo-barge.

Though if I’m honest I’d doubt there is a car for more than 30k USD that you can’t do touring in with relative ease.

Hot Takes Salesman > JR1
05/24/2016 at 00:14

Yeah I thought so

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > Short-throw Granny Shifter is 2 #blessed 2b stressed
05/24/2016 at 01:38

I disagree. My Harley handles about as well as a Coupe de Ville.

Tapas > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
05/24/2016 at 02:01

Well, you could get a ‘07-’09 CL550 for about $35k from Carmax. The new Accord V6 starts at $30k and the Touring trim tops at $35k.

I’d say the older CLs are Accord coupes for smart people. Because why would you get an Accord coupe if you knew about Carmax warranties and shit?

random001 > JR1
05/24/2016 at 06:25

No such thing as a two door coupe. I stand by this.

JR1 > random001
05/24/2016 at 08:07

Then what is a coupe?

Dru > JR1
05/24/2016 at 08:44

I always thought a coupe designation had more to do with the roofline than the number of doors.

JR1 > Dru
05/24/2016 at 09:59

Interesting I always thought it was number of doors not roofline

Dru > JR1
05/24/2016 at 10:04

The was a piece either on Oppo or Jalop a while back about it. I think Coupe comes from one of those romantic languages and means (trying to recall from fuzzy memory) "cut" or something to that effect.

random001 > Dru
05/24/2016 at 10:17

The literal definition of coupe is "noun: a two door automobile"

random001 > JR1
05/24/2016 at 10:19

I actually typed up a long response, which apparently got kinja'd. And by long I mean I said it was too early, I was stupid, I thought we were talking about the CLS, which has that stupid "four door coupe" BS... My bad.

Dru > random001
05/24/2016 at 10:31

Well it looks like the word comes from mid 19th century France, and meant “cut carriage” suited for two occupants inside and a driver outside. A designation for number of doors isn’t made, but I suppose two internal occupants would necessitate no more than two doors, quite frankly I wouldn't be surprised if they had had only one door. At this point, BMW and VW have made four-door coupes, and there's nothing we can do to stop them.

random001 > Dru
05/24/2016 at 11:02

No, they made slope roofed sedans.

Dru > random001
05/24/2016 at 11:09

You're not giving up on that are you?

random001 > Dru
05/24/2016 at 11:54

Give up on what? The truth? The entire effin’ English language?
You can technically have a two-door sedan, which is quite literally a coupe, but you cannot have a four-door coupe, because that is quite literally a sedan.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/coupe?s…

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/sedan?s…

Dru > random001
05/24/2016 at 12:13

Okay, are we joking or are you serious? You can be right about it. It's fine by me.

Dru > random001
05/24/2016 at 12:14

ETA I think the whole idea of a 4 door coupe is naught more than marketing BS. But I think the BMW Gran Coupes are magnificent.

random001 > Dru
05/24/2016 at 14:00

We're just joking around. I need more /s tagging, or something...

Dru > random001
05/24/2016 at 14:13

Well at any rate, you have me building a 4 series Gran Coupe Sedan. Really a lovely car, but no manual gearbox option.

random001 > Dru
05/24/2016 at 15:38

I actually don't mind the Gran Sedan. I even like the way Gran Sedan sounds...