2005 Mercedes-Benz CLS

full size luxury saloon - sedan

​       If there’s one thing everyone knows about the automotive industry is that Mercedes is one of the most influential auto companies out there.  Creating and changing luxury design themes all the time, Mercedes has really defined the way we see luxury cars.  

​     With the inception of the dual headlamp look back in the 90’s, Mercedes sure has changed the face of its competitors with all the imitations that followed.  But with a new century upon us and the fact that Mercedes has stretched the dual headlamp look to the limits, it’s about time for a change.  The biggest part of there new change came in the design of the new CLS Class, with its combined dual headlamp look and its sloping rear, this new Mercedes is set out to change the luxury market.  On the bottom of the CLS are two sinister looking fog lamps tucked away inside the front air duct.  The new air duct stretches from one side of the front to the other in a aw inspiring way.  Smack dab in the centre of the front is the newly styled front grille that incorporates most of the allure of the previous grille but with some new features.  This new grille features a larger panel area with less air ducts, which this time is fixed to the front of the car rather than being totally separate.  

        Next to the newly installed grille are the combined dual headlamps.  This new headlamp configuration gives those bland looking dual headlamps a more refined and aggressive allure to the front end.  Pulled back from all the points on the headlamps are well placed hood lines that separate the look of the hood from the side of the car.  Housed in moderately styled wheel wells are the relatively fashionable rims that give the CLS its defining appearance.  The new rim design is a step into the future, which gives the CLS that big wheel appearance, but still seems a bit bland for this cars design.  The best part of the newly designed rims is that they appear to be spiders hanging onto the wheels of the car.  Along the side is a radically designed bodyline that seems to glide from the front wheel wells to the end of the car. This bodyline creates the illusion that the car is moving when it is at a stand still because of the way it moves towards the rear of the car.  

        Along with this bodyline are the side windows that also seem to move with the car from one end to the other.  Even along the side the door handles seem to be flowing towards the rear of the car as well.  From the hood gliding gracefully over the roof then onto the rear of the car, the body design of the car really seems to flow perfectly from one end to the other.  It’s almost like looking at the outline of a car in a wind tunnel.  Along the back Mercedes has done a handsome job designing the rear of the CLS.  From the back window to the tailpipes, everything on the rear of this car flows with each other.  The rear taillights flow perfectly around the trunk line to meet at a solid point on the side of the car.  The only downfall to the taillights design is that the pointed edge does not fit well with the rest of the car. 

​          A properly placed chrome panel graces the top of the plate spot with ease to give the rear that upscale allure.  The best feature on the rear is how Mercedes made the exhaust pipes out of chrome so that they would stick out from the rest of the rears design.  These exhaust ports add to the sport appeal of the CLS.  The only downfall on the rear of the CLS is where the rear window meets the back.  This joining should have either been lower on the back or flattened out to create a more streamline appearance.  With all the changes to Mercedes over the years it was no surprise that they would again set the benchmark for the luxury market with its aw inspiring styling.