Mercedes will premiere at the Geneva Motor Show next month a new permanent all-wheel drive version of the CL - the Mercedes CL500 4MATIC. The Mercedes CL500 4MATIC will become available in showrooms from this summer. The Mercedes CL500 4MATIC is powered by a V8 engine that develops 285 kW/388 hp and features the Intelligent Light System and the preventive occupant protection system PRE-SAFE as standard. The Mercedes CL500 4MATIC has a 0 to 100 km/h acceleration time of 5.4 seconds an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h.
From the Mercedes Press Release:
CL: permanent all-wheel drive with no fuel penalty
The Mercedes Coupe family continues to be headed by the luxurious CL-Class, which offers the widest model range in this vehicle class with the CL 500, CL 600, CL 63 AMG and CL 65 AMG. In addition Mercedes-Benz will be entering the lists with the new CL 500 4MATIC with permanent all-wheel drive from summer 2008. This two-door model is equipped with a 285 kW/388 hp V8 engine, and in addition to 4MATIC it features innovations such as the Intelligent Light System and the preventive occupant protection system PRE-SAFE as standard.
Mercedes-Benz has further improved this all-wheel drive system, and uses the latest-generation system in the CL 500 4MATIC - the one that has already proved successful in the S-Class. 4MATIC is permanently active and therefore requires no response time to assist the driver in unfavorable weather and driving conditions. As a result, critical situations can be mastered better and more confidently.
With a weight of just 70 kilograms, the newly-developed 4MATIC is the lightest drive system of its kind. The combined NEDC fuel consumption of the CL 500 4MATIC is 12.1 liters per
100 kilometers, which puts it at the same level as the CL 500 with rear-wheel drive – another advantage of the new, highly efficient Mercedes all-wheel drive system. The CL 500 4MATIC requires just 5.4 seconds to accelerate from zero to 100 km/h, and reaches an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h.
