AUTO SPIES WORLD EXCLUSIVE: Mercedes to add another version of their best looking car

The CLS is great looking, considering the front 3/4 of the car, but the back end is just plain WRONG in my humble opinion. The rear is strange somehow, and out of balance. Anyone else see it that way?

There is no view of this car I like. Give these over-stretched headlamps a rest, MB! It's like the car is staring wide-eyed; I so much prefer the balanced "horizontal rectangle" derivatives from their German rivals BMW, Audi and VW (except again the new VW Jetta). Along the side profile, the crease along the shoulder line curves in front and behind making the car somewhat dip downwards in front and behind (more obvious in a 3/4 view). Why do BMW and Audis (and even the current E-Class) look so sporty on the side? The crease is kept rigid and straight, like the path traced by an arrow or bullet. The back just seems to shrink into itself too strongly: the bumper rises rather abruptly from the wheel arch.

You all are gonna weep for the future then. the radical-ness of designs is not gonna decrease... the CLS is cool all around to me. The more it sells, the more MB will incorporate the design functions into its future.

You're right, actually. I have been discontent with Merc's new designs post current E and CLK - the new SLK, the horrid, bloated ML, the upcoming S. Shoulder creases that don't follow the side profile (either curving on the CLS - maybe not too bad - or shooting downwards away from the window base on the SLK, upcoming S... Nissan Altima...), bloated wheel arches delineated with curving creases on M and upcoming S (round creases hardly ever work - present over the rear wheel arches of the Z4 and is one of my few gripes on that car), wide-eyed headlamps, etc.
But this is my opinion I know enough to know every car is liked by someone (yes, even the Pontiac Aztek :) ) but no car is liked by all.

What ARE the CLS sales figures? I see tons of brand new S-Class and E-Class cars in the community, but hardly ANY CLS. You said if it sells to get used to it, but is it really selling that big? The C-Class coupe is dead, and will NOT return next year, and MB is internally disappointed with the E-Class and has big plans to revise it entirely. The folks at Mercedes are already questioning at least SOME of their designs, and that may be a good sign, hopefully. But, as I was asking . . . just what ARE the CLS sales figures? Shouldn't they have been a lot better for a new model? And, I'm willing to bet the R sales figures end up in the dumpster after the initial curiosity wears off. Ugly is Ugly. Even if it wears a three-pointed star.

I typically am not a fan of Mercedes, however, I think the CLS is one of the best looking cars on the road right now, at any price.

MB'S most beatiful car has to be the SL.

YES it is, and historically has been as well.

From the front its a nice looking car. The rear is out of balance and just doesn't look right.

A beautiful car is the SL, the CLS is the worst looking MB.

Has anyone noticed the shocking auto sales results in November in the US. Now remember in the last year or so Mercedes has introduced (i.) new SLK (ii.) a new car line the CLS (iii.) bigger engines in the E-Class (iv.) an extra engine option in the S-class. So MB auto sales should be doing rather well - WRONG.

Here are numbers from Automotive News for US car sales.

Nov 2004
Mercedes 16,898
BMW 12,796
Lexus 10,214

Nov 2005
BMW 18,419 UP 43.9%
Lexus 14,001 UP 37.1%
Mercedes 13,697 DOWN 17.3%

CONGRATS TO BMW for blowing the doors off the competition, and congrats to Lexus for outselling MB in car sales (excluding trucks) for possibly the first month ever in the US.

Here are US total sales in November including trucks (now remember MB has introduced a new ML as well as a totally new truck line the R Class) - while Lexus and BMW's truck lines largely have carried over from the previous year):

2004
Lexus 22,858
BMW 20,732
Mercedes 18,832

2005
Lexus 25,649 UP 12.2%
BMW 23,673 UP 14.2%
Mercedes 18,284 DOWN 2.9%

CONGRATS to Lexus and BMW both up more than 10%, and oh dear Mercedes despite all your new products it appears you're just stagnating. Guess the US public continues to lose faith in your brand. Just be thankful Mercedes that your trucks are doing better than your cars.

So no one is gonna say the New G35 is a CLS replica???