Styling
The 53 Coupe takes one
standard CLE and gives it the AMG treatment that sees it receiving the correct amount of visual 'hench'. So while the elegant regular car - which is designed to replace all of the C-Class Coupe and Cabriolet, and E-Class Coupe and Cabriolet lines with just two strains of its own, remember - is aesthetically quite demure, the AMG 53 is much more aggressive. Flared wheel arches bulk up the CLE's frame by 75mm across the beam and gaping front air intakes are complemented by an additional bonnet vent between the longitudinal strakes of the hood, as well as possibly one of the finest sets of OEM alloys we've seen in years. These 20-inch wheels, with their silver rims, deep dishing and complex multispoke design, look like they've been levered straight off a competition-spec CLK DTM or similar, and we could not approve of them more - even if they look like they'll be right sods to keep clean (the black finish on this Night Edition notwithstanding).
Other than that, discreet but meaningful badging, some extra breathers in the front wings and, of course, quad exhaust pipes - the 53
is an AMG, after all - complete the appearance of what is generally a handsome coupe, although the full-width light strip at the back, which looks like it was taken from one of the company's EQ electric models, and a slightly drooping appearance to the boot means the rear three-quarter view might not be the CLE 53's best aspect. Anyway, despite this, we think the Mercedes-AMG looks very decent in the main.
Interior
The quality of this cabin cannot be in doubt. All of the fixtures and fittings feel of the highest standard, while they're also bolted together in a durable, solid fashion, so the basic ambience of the AMG CLE 53 is right up there. As the 449hp variant, it also gains various AMG-specific features, like deeply sculpted and supportive bucket seats, a Dinamica-clad steering wheel, carbon-fibre trim inlays and red stitching to further up the sportiness quotient.
As with any Mercedes, if you've not been in one for a while then it can take a bit of reacclimatising to get used to this German firm's idiosyncrasies, such as a single column stalk to control all of the wipers, main-beam lights and indicators (because the CLE has another stalk on the other side of the wheel which is a column-shift for the nine-speed gearbox), plus the seat adjusters being mounted on the door cards, but once you do it all operates pretty slickly.
Same goes for the MBUX infotainment, here presented on an 11.9-inch portrait screen which is mounted at
just about the right height to not be too low for the driver's eyeline, as well as the 12.3-inch tablet that serves as the CLE's instrument cluster. However, that does mean you end up with a rather busy array of haptic switchgear on the dualled upper spokes of the steering wheel, and these are those odd touchpads that can inadvertently be activated by the errant brush of a finger while the driver is taking on a corner. Again, in a sensible decision, the left square 'master pad' controls the central infotainment panel while its right-hand analogue deals with the instrument cluster, but it's a system which takes some getting used to and therefore isn't that intuitive. Mercedes can't even stop with the 'screens' there, because the mode control satellite dial hanging off the wheel's centre boss is another miniature digital display as well - although this seems to work rather sweetly.
Practicality
For a two-door coupe, the CLE is a surprisingly capacious car, probably because it's a big old beast at 4.85 metres long and it has to replace the E-Class Coupe as much as it needs to be relatively compact to satisfy its C-Class DNA. Nevertheless, with a clever automatic system to move the front seats forward when they're tipped, getting into the back is possible for even larger adults and it's quite comfortable once you're installed back there, although you perhaps wouldn't want to cross continents sitting in the AMG's rear for hours at a time. But as something which feels more like a four-seater than a 2+2, the CLE 53 is a success. Those split-folding rear seats can also enlarge a boot which measures a generous 420 litres as standard, so as coupes go the Mercedes-AMG scores highly for practicality.
Performance
As a 53, the CLE is not designed to be as extreme as something like a
BMW M4 Competition, which itself has just been uprated to 530hp. But because there isn't a V8-toting '63' to sit above this car, the CLE 53 has to serve as the flagship performance model nonetheless, which is good news because it has a fairly healthy 449hp from its 3.0-litre turbo straight-six, which is then augmented by another 22hp of EQ Boost hybrid assistance. Merc doesn't claim 471hp for this AMG, but as the car will do 0-62mph in 4.2 seconds as standard and four seconds dead with an optional package that includes 'Race Start', it feels plenty brawny enough, thank you very much.
It helps that the CLE 53 has 4Matic+ and its rapid-acting 9G-Tronic autobox, so it deploys its ample power to the tyres as efficiently as it possibly can. You therefore won't lament the fact that the Mercedes-AMG isn't going directly head-to-head with BMW's M4, because it is every bit as rapid as the outgoing
Audi RS 5 and, thanks to its bountiful turbocharged torque augmented by the EQ Boost (600Nm when in overboost with 205Nm on top), it certainly has a greater sense of flexibility than the brilliant yet normally aspirated
Ford Mustang Dark Horse.
So the Merc's speed is not an issue, although the noise of it is somewhat more questionable. It's fairly pleasant when the CLE 53's in some of its more benign drive modes, but when you switch the car up into Dynamic, it seems to make an artificial five-cylinder-esque warbling. This is simply not necessary, given the AMG has an inline-six anyway, one of the more tuneful configurations of a big-capacity ICE as it is, which makes the vaguely Audi Quattro-like noises coming out of the 53 all the more vexing.
However, the drivetrain in the main is excellent and it also shouldn't be the most punitive to run, and certainly not as juicy as the old C 63 S with its 4.0-litre biturbo V8. The hybrid assistance of the EQ Boost allows Mercedes to claim almost 30mpg officially for the 53 4Matic+, although bear in mind that on a 65-mile loop we drove the car on, averaging 24mph (there was some motorway work, but it was mainly A- and B-roads), we saw 22.3mpg. At the end of the day, this is a six-cylinder, two-tonne-on-the-button petrol performance car with 450hp, so it's not exactly ever going to do 50-to-the-gallon, but don't expect this (mild) hybrid AMG to be massively eco-conscious either.
Ride & Handling
In this department, there's both good news and, well... not
bad news, per se, but sort of... shall we say 'odd' news? Yes. Let's do that. So in the interests of promoting the positive, let's start with the former tidings. For ride comfort and rolling refinement, the Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 is majestic. Honestly, it's a lovely thing to travel in and the reason for this is that the company seems to have worked hard on massively reducing the cavitation in the back of the passenger compartment that so used to afflict the old C 63 S Coupe. Whereas that car had high levels of tyre roar at motorway speeds and an always firm-edged, nuggety ride quality, the CLE just lopes along effortlessly at 70mph, cutting its way smoothly through the air, limiting the amount of road chatter getting into the passenger compartment and allowing the six-pot motor up front to die away to a background murmur when the gearbox is in ninth and the revs are low. As a cross-continental, mini-grand-tourer with a decent lick of pace when you need it, the CLE 53 is largely peerless.
The issue is those three little letters on its bootlid, because even though Mercedes is positioning this as a softer, less intense type of performance coupe, if you see 'AMG' on a car you demand a bit of handling hooliganism. That's not the 53's
modus operandi, though. As a relatively heavy, four-wheel-drive machine, its cornering stance is more about foursquare security, rather than tail-out antics. With both grip and traction that feel unbreakable in the dry, it's an incredibly fast point-to-point car across country, but it's never massively involving. And the chief issue here is the bizarre steering.
For a chunky machine, the hyperactive, overly light steering in the Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 is totally at odds with what you are expecting of it. The model is fitted with four-wheel steering as standard, which exacerbates the remarkably eager manners of the nose, to the point that for your first five or six corners as a driver, you're actively winding lock off mid-bend because you will have invariably inputted too much through the steering wheel to get you round safely. It's a most unusual sensation and at odds with the otherwise-relaxed nature of the CLE, and about the best analogy we can think of is that this Mercedes has a steering set-up which is almost as intense as that you'd find on a
Ferrari.
But whereas you're expecting such dartiness from the Italian marque, it just feels weird in the Mercedes and makes building a rapport with its chassis hard work. Indeed, even after you've become accustomed to it and realise you need only the slightest amount of steering angle to safely negotiate most corners on the UK's road network, it never truly gives the feeling of being 'right' for the car. So while there's a good set-up underneath the CLE 53, its all-too-capable mechanical grip/traction qualities and the overzealous steering just serve to rob the Mercedes-AMG of those crucial final few tenths of driver engagement that would turn what is a very good car into a great one. It's a shame, because we otherwise very much like the way this CLE comports itself.
Value
We've already said the AMG CLE 53 isn't designed to square up to the M4 and that reflects in the asking price. Even a well-specified Night Edition Premium Plus like our test car comes in at less than £80,000, whereas a basic BMW M4 is 87-and-a-half from the off - and will likely be a six-figure machine once you've fitted it with a few choice options. The more natural rival, in terms of sheer performance and character, is Ford's new Mustang Dark Horse, which starts from £67,995 and has a nat-asp V8 as its centrepiece, although despite the fact its interior quality and levels of technology have improved significantly in the switch from S550 to S650 generations, the Pony Car is still not as impeccable within as the Mercedes-AMG.
Standard equipment is also very impressive on the CLE 53, although watch out for the Pro Performance Package which is an option on this Night Edition Premium Plus model. If you want to shave those final two-tenths off your 0-62mph time, you have to go for this as it brings in the AMG Dynamic Plus system with the additional 'Race' drive programme, incorporating Race Start and Drift Mode as well as AMG dynamic engine mounts. The PPP also adds an AMG Styling Package, AMG Performance seats, an AMG Performance steering wheel, an AMG rear spoiler and red-finished brake callipers, but it'll also lighten your wallet to the tune of £7,500.
Verdict
Without quite recapturing the blood-and-thunder of the dearly departed W205 C 63 S, and saddled with a slightly too inert chassis at the limit which is also paired to strangely super-quick steering, the Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 4Matic+ is otherwise a big hit. It looks fantastic inside and out, has plenty of easily accessible speed, it sounds decent and it drives very well - if you temper your expectations accordingly and go into the experience with your eyes open to its more GT-like qualities, rather than wishing it was a lurid AMG coupe in the company's finest traditions. It's slightly soft and not utterly deranged, but in many respects that makes this flagship CLE Coupe all the more likeable, in our opinion.
