Imitation game

Mercedes-benz set the trend for four-door coupés with the original CLS. Can the latest model continue to lead the way ahead of its German rivals?

WHEN WE WERE all satchelswinging school kids being programmed full of algebra equations and what date the Normans popped round for a spot of conquering, copying was an absolute no-no. Yet for car manufacturers, it’s quite the opposite. If one should invent some radical new genre of car – a new, ultra-stylish fourdoor coupé such as the Mercedesbenz CLS, for instance – the accepted form is to bang out a facsimile toot sweet.

Audi did just that in 2010 with its CLS replica, the A7 Sportback, and now there’s an all-new version, brimming with weapons-grade

tech borrowed from the A8 luxury saloon. But wily old Mercedes was ready for that play with an all-new CLS, boasting the wow-factor interior from the current E-class and some new engines, including a 2.9-litre straight six diesel.

But what of the third member of Germany’s automotive holy trinity, BMW? Well, the suave 6 Series Gran Coupé is about to be axed, leaving the 6 Series Gran Turismo (GT) carrying the baton. Now, you could argue that the 6 GT is no CLS copy, because while the CLS and A7 favour style over practicality, the taller 6 GT boasts space aplenty but, to some fashionistas, looks about as dapper as a pearshaped sideboard. However, it’s definitely a coupé with more than two doors, so it’s perfectly pertinent to this match-up.

DRIVING Performance, ride, handling, re nement

With ‘Gran Turismo’ featuring in the name of one of our contenders and pertaining to the ethos of all three, you’d expect a bit of mile-munching muscle, and that’s just what you get. Tickling any of their accelerators will generate effortless pace from little more than tickover.

Yet the more powerful CLS obliterates its competition, not just feeling the quickest but proving so in our tests. The 0-60mph sprint, for instance, takes 5.0sec – around a second faster than the others – and it’s the most rapacious in real-world exercises, too, such as whisking you from 30-70mph along a motorway slip road.

The CLS’S nine-speed automatic gearbox plays a part, swapping quickly into the right gear when asked and proving to be virtually as responsive as the 6 GT’S excellent eight-speed ’box. The A7’s eight-speed auto is poor by comparison; it dilly-dallies infuriatingly when you put your foot down, before finally ramping down a gear or two and launching you unceremoniously onwards. It’s exasperating but also worrying when you’re attempting an overtaking manoeuvre.

At least the A7’s 3.0-litre V6 diesel revs pretty smoothly, although it’s not nearly as silvertongued as the CLS’S motor, which stays velvety right through to its limiter. The 6 GT’S 3.0-litre diesel straight six delivers the throatiest growl, which is far from unpleasant. However, it does transmit a few more vibrations through to the controls inside than the others.

The A7 is easily the most restful as the miles begin to rack up, though. At 70mph, its engine is muted and there’s barely any road noise, just a flutter of wind noise around the windscreen. Its ride (on optional £2000 air suspension) is the most comfortable, too: supple yet controlled over most blemishes, with the exception of sharp ruts, which can rouse a hefty thud.

Along lightly rippled roads, things get more jittery in the 6 GT, but over really harsh bumps it’s actually the best resolved of the three. And tyre noise at 70mph is almost as well stifled as in the A7, although there is more wind noise.

At such speeds in the CLS, you hardly hear any wind noise; perhaps that’s why you’re aware of more road noise than in the other two over coarse surfaces. It won’t have helped that our car was on optional run-flat tyres, and there’s every chance that regular rubber would mitigate some of the murmur.

There’s a fair bit of suspension noise, too, and being the only car not on expensive optional air suspension, the CLS is the firmest over patchy, pockmarked town roads. It settles down at higher speeds, though, to feel broadly similar to the 6 GT on a motorway, with just a little shimmy through your seat on ruffled sections.

While none of these cars conveys the corning competency of Porsche’s Panamera, the CLS imparts a reassuring sense of grip as you turn in to a corner, decent body control midway through it and excellent fourwheel drive traction as you power out the other side.

Also with standard four-wheel drive, the A7 displays similarly good traction, and in Dynamic mode it’s equally competent through fast, sweeping bends. The optional four-wheel steering fitted to our test car makes the A7 the most agile at urban speeds but can make it feel a bit nervous above 30mph. At £1900, it’s an option we wouldn’t recommend.

In comparison, the taller 6 GT leans like a yacht in a storm, and the dead-weight steering gives you very little confidence to push on. A lot of pedal travel also means the brakes feel the least reassuring, although the 6 GT still managed the second-shortest stopping distance from 70mph behind the A7, with the CLS third.

BEHIND THE WHEEL Driving position, visibility, build quality

While the CLS’S driver’s seat is part-electric, the A7 and 6 GT

have full electric adjustment as standard. Both the CLS and A7 have all-important adjustable lumbar support included, something we’d definitely suggest adding (for £275) to the 6 GT.

If you do, the 6 GT has the best driving position. That’s because the CLS and to a lesser extent the A7 have a slight bulge in the footwell by your left leg and offset pedals, skewing your legs slightly to the right.

All three incorporate many functions into their infotainment screens to keep the switch counts down, but only the A7 does without physical climate control buttons. This forces you to look away from the road just to change the temperature, but otherwise, with a bit of familiarity, the controls of all three are fairly fathomable.

These days, plenty of premium cars come with digital instruments as standard, and of these three, the A7’s are the most configurable and easiest to use; the CLS’S are good but more of a faff to alter. Meanwhile, it’s very difficult to see what the 6 GT’S digital dials do differently from regular analogue instruments, making them feel like a case of style over substance.

With its taller glass areas, the 6 GT is the easiest to see out of, mind, although all three come with front and rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera that help take the stress out of parking.

In some respects, the CLS’S interior is the most flamboyant, with swathes of chrome and dark-stained wood veneers. Look a bit closer, though, and you’ll discover some iffy-looking plastics, which you simply won’t find in the supremely wellfinished A7 and 6 GT.

SPACE AND PRACTICALITY Front space, rear space, seating exibility, boot

Each of our test cars came with a head room-reducing sunroof (standard in the 6 GT, optional in the A7 and CLS). You barely notice its effect in the 6 GT, but in the lower-slung CLS and A7, those over 6ft tall will feel more hemmed in for height. At least front leg room is plentiful across the board.

It’s in the rear that the differences really tell. The CLS and A7 are wide enough only for two adults, and while there’s reasonable leg room for sixfooters, again, head room is tight. The 6 GT is massive by comparison, with plenty of head room and more knee room than you’ll find in the 5 Series, so you can really stretch out. It’s wider, too, so it can easily seat three abreast when required, while

the optional (£420) electric reclining rear backrests make it feel more akin to a limo than a stylised coupé.

The 6 GT also has the biggest boot, capable of swallowing up to nine carry-on suitcases. Mind you, the A7 managed eight cases and the CLS a still praiseworthy seven, although being the only one with a saloon-style bootlid (rather than a hatchback tailgate), it struggles to accept bulkier items. All three cars have 40/20/40 split-folding rear seats for added flexibility.

BUYING AND OWNING Costs, equipment, reliability, safety and security

Are you on the hunt for a bargain coupé? Then run for the hills, because the brochure price of any of these three might induce a coronary. That said, the 6 GT is cheapest by a margin, mainly due to the substantial discounts not yet offered on the other two.

The 6 GT’S comparatively decent value is a consistent theme. It’s the cheapest for company car tax over three years, by £1000 for 40% taxpayers over the A7, which itself is £1000 cheaper than the CLS. And the cheapest car to lease? Again, it’s the 6 GT, by a massive margin over the A7 and CLS. Least expensive for PCP finance? Yep, you guessed it: still the 6 GT.

Officially, the 6 GT is the most fuel efficient, but only just; a couple of miles per gallon separates it and the least efficient CLS.

All three come well equipped; adaptive LED headlights, heated front seats and climate control are standard across the board. You also get full leather trim in the 6 GT and CLS, and part-leather and Alcantara in the A7. But again, the 6 GT outshines its rivals by including a standard panoramic sunroof, metallic paint and powerfolding door mirrors. Many of its options are cheaper, too, and are available individually, rather than as part of pricey option packs, as they are on the A7 and CLS.

Only the 6 GT has a Euro NCAP crash srating; it received five stars. They all get automatic emergency braking as standard, while the A7 and CLS also come with lane assist. Blindspot monitoring is optional on all three.