Mercedes-Benz has launched an all-new new CLK Cabriolet series. The four-seater soft-top, which comes in six-cylinder CLK 320 and V8 CLK 500 versions, is longer, wider and higher than its predecessor. It also offers 40 litres more luggage capacity than the last model, with 390 litres available when a portion isn’t occupied by the folded-down roof.
The latest Mercedes offers a number of useful features. Sensor-controlled roll-over bars pop out of the rear seats in a fraction of a second when the car seems likely to capsize, and head and thorax airbags protect front and rear passengers. One feature that often irritates in two-door cars is the wide doors make the seatbelts difficult to get at for those in the front seats. As in the CLK Coupe, the Cabriolet delivers the belts to the driver and passenger’s shoulders automatically when the ignition is turned on. Reach up, grab them and plug ’em in. At the launch I kept wanting to say ”thank you” to the little robot arms that did the job so well. Back-seat passengers are snugly ensconced in twin bucket seats, and have their own climate-control ventilation to play with.
The automatic soft top mechanism is a gem, and can be operated by pushing buttons on the dash or via the remote control. It takes just 17 seconds to stow itself away in the boot, and twenty seconds to get you under cover when the rain starts. Where the previous model needed the driver to lock the closed roof into position manually once it was in position, the new one does everything on its own. The new multilayered fabric provides better sound and temperature insulation than its predecessor.
I drove the five-litre R690 000 V8 version – the only V8 in this market segment – for 250 km at the Plettenberg Bay launch and enjoyed it thoroughly. With 225 kW – that’s 300 horsepower – on tap it reaches 100 km/hr in 6,2 seconds, and tops out at 2 factory-limited 250 km/hr. There’s torque by the bucketful, and handling is superb. At speed there is little wind noise with the wind down, and even with the hat on sound levels are great below 150 km/hr and very acceptable above that.
The R608 000 CLK 320 Cabrio is only slightly less brisk, with a top speed of 241 km/hr and the 0-100 dash taking two seconds longer, so those who aren’t power freaks could use the change to buy the family an entry level runabout to keep them happy. Highly recommended for the rich.