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Attention! This site is for information purposes only, does not promote any driving style and is not of a training nature. All cars covered by the descriptions and photos posted on this site are used in accordance with traffic regulations and with the highest security measures in order not to cause any damage to road users. The author of the blog is not responsible for other road users who in a manner inconsistent with traffic regulations or with the exposure to the health and life of others, will use vehicles on public roads and outside them.

„The Seducer"

What a beautiful day, I want to live, I love spring and the beginning of summer, this smell, warmth, smile on the people's faces. Oh yes right, that I had not thought about it before, I want to go ahead, what the hell.., but where?, I do not know, perhaps a lake, a walk to the forest or to the seaside.., ohh to the seaside.., I will go there. This is what I need, fresh air, road, music, peace. What should I wear?, ugh, does not matter, shorts, hoodie, comfortable shoes. Where is the key?, where is that star.., there it is, great, let's go. Start and.., I feel this clearance, relaxation, and where is my pendrive ?, did I forget? no, it's here phew, so I have a set. But today the route is calm, and here what ?, ohh they are building something again, and there? The car broke down? No, they took a break, after all they are traveling very far. Lots of trucks on foreign registration numbers, along the way... as they usually go in the direction of Świnoujście, probably they are going to Scandinavia... Do you remember?, do you remember this poster? "Your E class is ahead of the truck column in 5 seconds". No, come on, I'm too old for that.., or maybe not, I do not know. Ok, good, how many of them are there? Shit, the whole string, how to count this maneuver properly?.., so what? The finger is looking for a button, there is SPORT +, it starts, the order went to the computer, the adrenaline is growing and this music, which? from pendrive or exaust? Both... Fire!!! Now there is no way out, the left lane, direction, foot stuck in the floor.., I'm driving hard, a cloud of dust behind me, quick look at the rear view mirror of the truck, I see the face of the driver, a foreigner, he looks at me, he sees me.., he smiles slightly as if intoxicated with this mutual adrenaline he wanted to say “Go ahead baby", free way. My eyes are slightly squinted, I can see the tachometer indicator, which rushes towards freedom, the asphalt behind me resembles a wave that breaks the ridge, tries to catch up with me, it's time to change gear, the right paddle shifter "click", how long does it take ?, I do not know, a few dozen milliseconds, a drop of fuel falls into the hot exhaust, combustion, a shot from the pipe, the sound is reflected from the semi-trailer, the walls of the forest and circling comes back, well come on, the next gear and again shot of dopamine in the brain.., free, now I am a free man, how I love it, I love this feeling, feeling of power, strength, euphoria and freedom... Back to earth, the road gets wide, calm again, chillout again, I turn on the sailing mode and relax...Wowww...What was that? I will tell you what. It is a very dangerous weapon and strong force, the power of the car, which seduces with charm, class and style. This is it, this is the Mercedes, I will tell you about it today :) I remember that when I used to be a student I went after classes on the tramway, stopped at the red pedestrian light, turned my head and saw the "strange" Mercedes. Any prototype? In Szczecin? No, it is not possible. Although, tramways bought from the DDR demobil, which were actually so futuristic that they could be associated with technology that unexpectedly came and surprised everyone, but what would it have to do with Mercedes? Actually not much.., and the car I saw on the street was the first generation of the CLS 320 CDI model. I ran home, switched on a computer with Windows 2000, which started up after an hour and the tenth time, and I started searching the information about this spook on the internet. The first cars designed by Michael Finek left the factory in Sindelfingen in 2004. The car was based on an E-class floor slab, but the appearance of the body did not resemble any of the Mercedes I have seen on the roads so far. I think that the biggest mystery to me was the "class affiliation" of this Mercedes. I did not know if it was a model higher than S or maybe some kind of "S ". CLS has been extremely exotic and still is. During the time I was a student, I absolutely had no access to it in 2004, despite the fact that the world of expensive cars I had already started to get to know better. It happened that, here and there I was able to look inside in order to draw rather simple conclusions about the price of this car. Inside, this car was no less futuristic than outside, full of luxury and lots of details to enjoy the eyes of visitors.., and that's what I knew about the C219. In 2011, the Stuttgart concern presented the second generation of CLS. The car got a bit more sporting vigor, but it did not lose its elegance. Together with the more aggressive body line, came a new range of engines and 4MATIC drive. Both of these "freebies" made this car really sharp player on the road. Particularly noteworthy was the 63 AMG S motor, which generated 585 horsepower, and in combination with four-wheel drive accelerated this luxurious athlete in 3.6 seconds to the first hundred. What has changed the C218 model in my automotive life? Nothing. I have not driven this car so far, and even in my life I have not sat in it. Luckily, as my grandmother used to say “what is not now, can happen soon” so finally came the day when the sun came out, it lit a bright glow in my face and brought the keys from the latest Mercedes CLS model :) My first date with a car, which, as I mentioned before, was quite effective in seduction, took place in the spring of 2018 and it was the copy with a three-liter diesel of 340 horsepower (designation of the model, CLS 400d ). I consider that it does not make much sense to describe the 400d version because I have just got out of something much more exciting.

The very name of the varnish of my test copy makes me feel a great feeling that you can have for a machine, within reason. Gray Magno Selenite in Mercedes CLS 53 AMG 4MATIC Plus sounds great, and looks even better. The body of this fastback looks like one, very streamlined, stretched, slender ball. The roofline very gently falls downwards, creating a neat whole with a rear fender. The front of the car reminds me of the mouth of a predatory fish, there is no delicacy and compromise but aggressiveness and uncompromising attitude. All aerodynamic, streamlined and focused on high performance. You can see that strength and power are contained in this elegant packaging. A small exception are the side windows whose shape brings a bit of order, harmony and peace to the life of this warrior. In a word, CLS looks beautiful to me and I would not add anything to describe its appearance. The interior of the car reminds me of a little S class, but is it wrong that it has been taken from one of the most luxurious limousines in the world? Definitely not. At CLS, I see the balance, the boundary between sport, luxury, ergonomics and elegance, and this is a great art. Usually a jack of all trades is master of none, but not in this case. I sat, watched, pressed and kneaded trying to find something but there is nothing to complain about. I do not like ubiquitous electronics, so basically I will only say that monitor screens could be a little more rounded because these are simply too rectangular. While in S-class, this shape is matched with the character of the car, here would be more of a fantasy, which would lengthen the already long claw of CLS. AMG armchairs and steering wheel which is equipped with galvanized gearshift paddles, are elements that have been designed.., for me. Such at least I got the impression of sitting down in this chair and grabbing this beautiful steering wheel with the tuner logo from Affalterbach. The Ambiente lighting in CLS has been exposed to the limit. Literally everything from doorsteps to the door, dashboard, clocks, which we can change not only the color, but also the whole look, up to the air vents, which are illuminated as well. Is this cool? At first it makes a huge impression but later, I know from experience, it can irritate. Here, the color is tiring, it is reflected somewhere in the glass and so on. Fortunately, you can turn it off right after you have brought a group of jealous friends home.

"The blind date"

I have heard opinions many times that AMG Performance has little to do with the real cars of the German tuner, whose engines are hand-made. Some say that this is just a Mercedes marketing operation, which wanted to refresh the range of its models. Well, it's not quite like that. In fact, the engine of my CLS was not hand-made but it is a 3-liter serial base from which the rest of the car is made, but what does this rest mean? The “rest” means hard work of people who manually make the engines in Sindelfingen every day. The suspension of this Mercedes, its engine equipment, gearbox, the steering system, exhaust system, transmission and motor control, as well as driving programs are created by the same people who personally sign the tags stuck on engines in higher models with the designation 45, 63 or 65 AMG. My specimen was equipped with a three-liter engine, 435 horsepower, a 9G-Tronic transmission and a 4Matic + drive. The CLS accelerates in 4.5 seconds to the first hundred and has one more surprise in a package, that works closely with the engine. An electric compressor that is something like an additional drive that generates 22 power horses, whose task is to support the car at the start and leveling the turbo-hole. Remember that the car weighs almost 2 tons, and despite this it accelerates to hundred faster than the sporty Porsche Cayman S. The end of wisdom and time to go to deeds and it's really what to do. The Engine Start and we're moving. CLS has more sports genes than I thought. A pneumatic suspension can provide us with a comfortable experience, but unfortunately there is a difference between being able and wish. Perhaps in Germany on the road resembling a table we will feel like on a foam cushion because in our realities we can feel bumps, potholes regardless of the driving mode we have. Is it really like in a wheelbarrow? No. I believe that the sporting character of this car should be taken into account and evaluated using some other criteria. If I start measuring this car according to a sports measure, it turns out that CLS belongs to a group of more comfortable cars in the "sport" range of limousines. The "sailing" mode is excellent, driving in Eco Pro mode. Suddenly, while driving, the car itself can move in and reduce engine speed to zero, allowing us to drive on the road saving fuel and reducing noise. If, on the other hand, I slightly turn the steering wheel or add gas, there is a rapid start and restoration of the car's "vital functions". The sound of the exhaust system is phenomenal and can be heard practically all the time, but with varying intensity, strictly depending on the driving mode we have. The steering is.., sports and, and that's it. Top-class gearbox and it's not because it switches gears faster, slower, anyway. The real magic is Sport + mode, in which the reaction to gas is immediate and for this reason the transmission knows somehow, when not to drag gears indefinitely if there is no need. The sounds that these four "chimneys" make in sport mode are more like a drill than a gurgling V6. The sound is not as brutal as for example in E63s, because there is out of the line. As recently, some guy passed me by, “something like that” at full throttle that I thought would drop the threshold strips in my Honda Civic 1.4 from 1998. Nevertheless, emotions emanating from the exhaust pipe can be heard, and that's good. If you ever have the pleasure of driving an AMG car, pay attention to one very important thing before you start to play harder. Using the "Home" button on the steering wheel on the left and the touch field you will find the AMG Performance function on the display between the speedometer and the tachometer. Enter this function and you will see temperature indicators for oil and moving parts in the gearbox and engine. Components in modern cars are so precisely matched that their temperature, and in consequence the thermal expansion of the material is crucial. We need to remember this if we want to enjoy a trouble-free and long car operation. Everything that glows blue there, means "Do not full gas", everything that is white means "OK". The car driveability: You have to read about it somewhere else. I got a car when it was -1.5 degrees Celsius outside, adittionally a lot of strange, moist and colored asphalt covered with white "moss" every piece. Safety first, so I have no idea what's going on in the sharp bend. Due to the fact that is autumn outside, the first frost, raininess and blues, it will be a “mantra” today. Beloved, no AMG systems, "intelligence, multifunctional immortal performance" do not protect you against an accident if you turn off thinking. If it's slippery, slow down. It is really no disgrace or stain on your honor if you drive the right lane with the most powerful M-Power, Carrera or Mercedes calmly and conservatively. If some "show-off" overtakes you, laughing stupidly in the old banger, believe me, that this guy will either have „full pants of sh....” or be a complete idiot, or he does not know what is black ice on the road. The worst view is the one in which the ESP system blinks like crazy, the car flies sideways without control, and the curbs pull out all the wheels together with the axles... Please, be careful !!!
Would I buy a Mercedes CLS 53 AMG 4Matic +? Well, yes.., but in a few years. I still do not feel especially integrated into the interior of this beautiful ship. If you are looking for a car that will look the same in 10 years, that is, like million bucks so CLS is for you. If you are looking for a sports limousine for small l, and a large S, then CLS is for you. If you love saving, CLS is not for you because it will end with a heart attack. If you have jealous neighbors and want to make their life miserable, of course this Mercedes is perfect, but remember.., this car costs over 120,000 Euro and burns about 15 liters of petrol.., just why save money as you can spend it :) on toys that make „little puppy” smile come back on its face, during the trip the tachometer indicator to.., the FREEDOM!
At the end, thank you very much to the company DDB Auto Bogacka, which is an authorized dealer of Mercedes-Benz cars and made this gem available to me. Thank you Dagmara, thank you Bartek.
I invite you to look at the pictures !!! :)

Artur Rojewski

"Really?.. AMG?"