Features & Pricing

The CLS550 starts at $71,300, which seems rather high considering its standard rear-wheel drive; it's $73,800 with all-wheel drive. The E550 with the same engine has standard all-wheel drive for a starting price of $59,790. Much of that price difference is soaked up in the added standard features you get in the CLS, namely navigation, a premium stereo, bi-xenon headlights with LED running lights, and a few others that are available in a package on the E-Class for an additional $6,900.

The CLS offers performance on par with BMW's 550i, which has better dynamics than an E-Class. And again, the nearly $10,000 price difference between the two is offset somewhat by the CLS' standard features.

You can add more to the CLS, of course — most notably full LED active headlights that come as part of a $4,390 package that includes a rearview camera, a power rear sunshade, and heated and cooled front seats. That's a package I doubt many CLS550 buyers will leave off. There are a few other stand-alone options, most notably a parking-assist feature that handles the steering for you during parallel parking — requiring the driver to handle braking — for $970 and a less-necessary night vision feature for $1,780.

Despite the impressive performance, I can't help but think there's still a "styling surcharge" attached to the CLS.

    See also:

    Removing/installing the cargo compartment cover with integrated cargo net
    You can install and remove the combined cargo cover and net from the cargo compartment. – Make sure that the cargo net and the cargo compartment cover are rolled up. – To remove: press but ...

    Warning and display messages in the multifunction display
    Activate ATTENTION ASSIST using the onboard computer. Symbol 1 appears in the multifunction display. If ATTENTION ASSIST is active, you will be warned no sooner than 20 minutes after your ...

    Storing and maintaining the current speed
    You can store the current speed if you are driving faster than 20 mph (30 km/h). •► Accelerate the vehicle to the desired speed. •► Briefly press the cruise control lever up 1 or d ...