German Car Zone

When it comes to the CLS its more about what the eye sees then what the name says. Out of all 4 door sedans Mercedes has done the best job creating the illusion of a four door coupe.

Personally don't care about sedan and coupe classification too much, what makes the CLS special to and most people who like it, is the sexiness. No other four door sedan ooze the same level as sexual attraction as the CLS.

For me, and I've always maintained this, the overall presentation of the concept of a coupe lies not in the number of appetures a car has but rather the overall proportion and silhouette that a car has.

In the modern idiom of the concept I think that cars like the CLS and RX-8 are true coupes irrespective of their number of doors.

In my mind a true coupe's salient features are an elongated profile with a shallower than normal DLO and high belt-line. The silhouette should exhibit a low and cab-backward form with the emphasis on a sleek and powerful profile.

A fastback with 5 doors and an upwardly hinging tailgate (hatch) is not a coupe.

So, in my mind, Mercedes' execution of the CLS is true to the concept of a coupe whilst BMW's X6 is not.