2022 Mercedes-AMG CLS 53 review: Classical music that rocks

By Leow Ju-Len

Way before he became the president and chief executive of Mercedes-Benz Singapore, Claudius Steinhoff laboured in the product department back at headquarters, decoding consumer tastes and turning it into data for engineers to translate into desirable cars.

As it turns out, the final car he worked on before leaving the division was the current CLS-Class, the third generation version of a four-door coupe so pretty that it fuelled his boyhood dreams of working for Mercedes in the first place. So imagine Steinhoff’s emotions a couple of weeks ago, when he took the latest CLS 53 4Matic+ for a blast through Malaysian country roads. The experience, he says, left his hands shaking.

I can well understand. I may have had nada to do with bringing the CLS into the world, but just looking at the way its shark nose, thrusting bonnet, sweeping low roof and pert tail all come together is enough to make my heart beat a little faster.

Given the CLS is the kind of car that makes people fall in love with cars, it’s just as well that its mid-life facelift was done along don’t-screw-with-a-good-thing lines. The easiest way to tell current model from old is to look for the twin power humps that now grace the bonnet or, on the sporty AMG version, the front grille’s vertical chrome fins. Both design elements hark back to cars from Mercedes’ racing past.

The CLS is largely unchanged inside, too, which is also a good thing, since it retains the solid build, premium feel and gorgeous ambient lighting of the pre-facelift model, along with the jet turbine-like air-con vents. The twin 12.3-inch screens that dominate the dashboard only look dated compared with what’s in Mercedes’ latest digital cabins, but they still look slick on their own.

For all that, there’s no missing the new steering wheel, with its sporty twin-spoke design, touch-sensitive pads and satellite buttons that let you change driving modes or call up various settings in a hurry, assuming you can move your fingers like a Wurtlizer organ maestro. 

Yet, it’s really your right foot that coaxes music from the CLS 53. Pressing the start button fires up a brilliant 6-cylinder that mixes impeccable manners with savage punch. It propels the CLS with tireless enthusiasm, aided by a turbocharger, an electric compressor and a 22 horsepower electric motor, but it’s the silky way it revs and the gorgeously cultured voice that make it such a lovely engine.

In the CLS 53 you have to live with firm suspension settings that produce a jiggly ride over bad roads, but the payoff is sportscar-like roadholding that lets you pull off some mighty g-forces through corners. 

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Also sportscar-like is the view from the driver’s seat, which can be limited enough to make you glad the parking cameras kick in automatically if a wall wants to jump out at your car.

Such is life in a coupe, which is about trading useability for slinky styling. At least you don’t have to sacrifice practicality in this one, since the CLS seats 5 comfortably. That makes it something of a do-it-all car: it’s exciting to drive, useful on a day-to-day basis, posh inside and lovely to look at.

Mind you, you have every right to expect all that from a car that costs S$560,888. There is the CLS 450 which, for S$53,000 less, offers nearly the same performance with less aggression and slightly more elegance.

Then again, similar money would put you in a Mercedes-EQ EQS, the electric limo that is as progressive as the CLS is classical. Whichever floats your boat, there has probably never been a better time to be a wealthy Mercedes fan. The people at the product department certainly know their stuff. 

Mercedes-AMG CLS 53 4Matic+

Engine 2,999 cc, in-line 6, turbocharged 

Power 435 hp at 5,500 to 6,100 rpm

Torque 520 Nm at 1,800 to 5,800 rpm

Gearbox 9-speed automatic

0-100 km/h 4.5 seconds

Top Speed 250 km/h

Fuel Efficiency 9.8 L/100 km

Agent Cycle & Carriage

Price S$560,888 with COE 

Available Now