INDIANAPOLIS — Mercedes-Benz makes its money on crossovers and sedans, but its soul is defined by coupes.  Sharing the basic chassis and powertrains with their more conservative siblings, coupes sit a little lower, slope a little sweeter, and cosset more personally.  If sedans get kids to school and aspiring executives to work, then coupes encourage a little more fun.  And, so it is with the 2024 Mercedes-Benz CLE 450 4MATIC Coupe.

It's actually two cars united as one, replacing C- and E-Class coupes.  Beneath the skin, it’s more C-Class than E-Class, but you won’t care because it looks and drives so well. 

Mercedes design as you know it was dominated by Bruno Sacco, chief stylist at Mercedes-Benz from 1975-1999 and who gave us such crisp designs as the 1980s “W124” E-Class Coupe and first-generation CLK.  Those cars were proud, but understated, with a minimum of bling and extraneous lines.  Gorden Wagener, under which our CLE was styled, learned well.

Looking at its face, with its chrome star hung on a single lamella, identifies this coupe as integral to a long tradition of sporting Mercedes going back to the 300 SL Gullwing.  Angled headlamps and large air intakes signal aggression, but it’s a smooth, muscular arc of a car with just the right creases to keep it interesting. Thin taillamps wrap across the trunk, under a subtle spoiler.  Gleaming 20” wheels add at least a little bling.  
 
Sit down, look around, you’re in a Mercedes.  There’s a flatscreen instrument cluster and tablet-style touchscreen kissing the console, but slabs of metal weave panel the dash (wood is available).  Round air vents recall “R107” Mercedes SL roadsters from the 1980s.  Seats and trim look like leather, but are actually MB Tex– a vinyl that will outlast you.  Front passengers enjoy seats with heat, ventilation, and massagers.  Rear seats are tight, but livable.  A panoramic glass roof, heated steering wheel, and serene Bermester audio serve vices.

The CLE uses a similar touchscreen to the current S-Class and SL roadster.  Functions stay in the background until selected, then expand.  A touch retracts them again.  It’s intuitive with use, but can be a bit confusing at first.  Devices connect wirelessly and charge wirelessly too.  Safety abounds; drivers get a head-up display to keeps eyes on the road, but they’re also aided by adaptive cruise, automatic emergency braking, blind spot warning, and rear cross path detection systems. 

The CLE’s powertrain is like nothing from the past.  Pumping behind the big three-pointed star is a 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six-cylinder engine with a mild hybrid system and 9-speed automatic transmission.  Not only is it immensely powerful with 375 horsepower and 369 lb.-ft. of torque, but it’s also incredibly efficient rating 23/33-MPG city/highway.  

Anchored to the road with all-wheel-drive, it is quite happy storming the left lane of Texas interstates or blasting through Indiana snow or… slogging city streets to the office.  Whether you’ve driven Mercedes your entire life, or are just discovering them now, you should know there’s a nimble heftiness to their manners that is incomparable.   It soaks up the road like an iron sponge, settling for hours on end, but never unwilling to chase a curve.

Mercedes coupes were never inexpensive, and neither is the CLE.  Base models start at an obtainable $56,500, but clocked in at a very luxurious $75,170 for our test model.  AMG versions climb higher still.  Competitors include the BMW 4-Series, Audi A5, Lexus RC and Ford Mustang.

— Casey Williams (MyCarData)