With the active suspension switched to normal mode, the CL's ride is downright plush, and handling is excellent. Switch to sport mode and the CL hones the edge on its handling, and ride suffers so little that no enthusiast is going to care. In sport mode there is less body roll and the car feels more responsive on turn-in. Side-to-side transitions in switchbacks are also better controlled in sport mode.
On Interstates, the CL cruises serenely. Top speed is electronically limited 155 mph, according to Mercedes.
The 2002 Mercedes-Benz CL600 is about 400 pounds lighter than the previous-generation (pre-2001) V12-powered coupe. Mercedes accomplished the diet by making the roof, hood, door panels and rear fenders from lightweight aluminum and using plastic for the trunk lid and front fenders. The V12-powered CL600 is about 200 pounds heavier than the V8-powered CL500 and CL55 models; and the CL600 does feel heavier than the CL500 when hustled along winding mountain roads. But while the difference is detectable, it is not intrusive, thanks to its excellent active suspension system.
CL600 accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in less than 6.0 seconds, which edges both the Jaguar XK8 and Aston Martin DB7. CL500 accelerates from 0-60 in 6.1 seconds, while the CL55 AMG performs this in just 5.7 seconds, according to Mercedes-Benz.
On the road, the CL500's aluminum 5.0-liter V8 is as smooth as you'd expect from a Mercedes and feels every bit as strong as its 302-horsepower rating. The V8 left us wondering why anyone would want the CL600's V12.
The answer: more power. The V12 leaves the V8 feeling sluggish by comparison. The CL500 is by no means slow, but the CL600's V12 makes the car feel even faster and even smoother, thanks to the perfect primary balance inherent in V12 (and inline six-cylinder) engines.
That means that when the CL600 switches off half its cylinders to save gas, the driver cannot tell, because when running on six cylinders, the CL600's V12 remains just as smooth. Mercedes-Benz's Active Cylinder Control system in its V12 is nothing like Cadillac's long-ago failed experiment with V-8-6-4, but it does switch off cylinders. When driving in the third, fourth or fifth gear below 3000 rpm and with the throttle only partly open, the cylinder-control system deactivates the driver's-side bank of cylinders. A computer adjusts ignition timing and throttle position to make the transition seamless. And it works: the driver cannot tell when there are six cylinders running. The benefit is a 20 percent improvement in fuel economy, which lets the CL600 match the CL500's EPA highway rating of 23 mpg.
Acceleration comes in a steady rush with no perceptible spikes or flat spots in the torque curve and the transmission seems perfectly matched. The five-speed automatic transmission changes ratios imperceptibly.
However, manual-minded enthusiasts looking for Porsche Tiptronic-like action from the Mercedes Touch Shift will be disappointed. Touch Shift functions like a traditional automatic transmission that is shifted manually. It can be forced to a lower gear, but it continues to shift automatically among the selected gear and lower ones. It will downshift unexpectedly mid-curve, and then won't respond to the request for a manual upshift at full throttle on the ensuing straight. We think a manual shift option should provide true manual shifting, not automatic shifting with fewer available ratios. The Touch Shift seems pointless because even skilled drivers do just as well to leave the selector in Drive. Otherwise, the CL is perfection. Our solution: leave it in Drive and the transmission works perfectly. Life is good. Next Page