Mercedes-Benz's 'four-door coupé', the CLS, will be replaced next month at the Paris Motor Show. The dramatic looking car mixes lithe coupé styling cues with the four doors of a saloon. The German firm claims to have introduced a new niche with its 2003 original. Good as that original still looks, Mercedes-Benz has decided it's time for it to be replaced.

Details of the new car are limited prior to its official unveiling but the CLS's styling has been updated to incorporate the company's current design themes. The upright grille and its single-piece headlamps are reminiscent of the SLS AMG, while the bold kicked-up rear wheelarch is shared with its E-Class relative.

The CLS's design remains true to the achingly desirable (if ridiculously named) Shooting Break concept - an estate-cum-coupé. For now the CLS will retain its four-door coupé/saloon shape, but it's possible a version sharing the concept's more capacious rear will feature in Mercedes' future product plans.

Details are deliberately scant on the new CLS. There's no word on engine and transmission options, but the CLS will almost certainly debut with a 5.4-litre V8 in CLS 500 guise, a 3.5-litre V6 direct injection petrol engine and a 3.0-litre turbodiesel. All are likely to be mated to Mercedes' seven-speed automatic gearbox.

What is certain is that AMG will have been busy preparing a performance flagship model - most likely powered by the 5.5-litre twin-turbo engine recently fitted to the updated S 63 AMG.

As with every new model introduction by Mercedes, the on-road performance gains will be matched by economy and emissions improvements. We'll know further technical, specification and pricing details when it's unveiled at the Paris show, though if it follows the E-Class pricing then it will undercut the outgoing model. We'll bring you driving impressions in October, too.

Kyle Fortune - 22 Aug 2010