Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake unveiled

Mercedes-Benz has revealed the definitive production version of its radical new CLS Shooting Brake.

The swoopy estate is set to go on sale in the UK from November at a starting price of around £48,000 following its public debut at this weekend's Goodwood Festival of Speed. The new model, which was developed under the codename X219, will be positioned well above the E-class estate, which is priced from £31,485.

The CLS Shooting Brake was given the go-ahead by Mercedes-Benz boss Dieter Zetsche following positive reaction to the earlier ConceptFascination, unveiled at the 2008 Paris motor show, and subsequent CLS Shooting Break show car, which was revealed at the 2010 Beijing motor show.

It will be sold in the UK with a limited range of engines from the existing CLS line-up and, surprisingly, boasts more luggage space than key rivals such as the Audi A6 Avant and BMW 5-series Touring.

The modifications required in advancing the CLS Shooting Break show car to production readiness are slight. Only detailed features — and the spelling of the name — have undergone any alteration.

The new car sits on the same mechanical base as the CLS saloon and shares the same heavily sculptured styling through to its substantial B-pillars, including its signature frameless doors.

From the B-pillars aft, it receives a unique roof that slopes back at a more acute angle than any existing Mercedes estate. The rear door retains the same outer skin but receives reshaped glass and, in a measure to extend the car visually, there is an additional rear side window that serves to extend the glasshouse all the way back to the rear lights.

An angled rear window with rounded corners forms part of a shallow, automatically operating tailgate that opens to reveal a flat-floored boot.

Dimensionally, there are only minor differences between the CLS saloon and Shooting Brake. The length has extended by 16mm to 4956mm, width remains the same at 1881mm and height drops by 2mm to 1413mm. Both variants share the same 2875mm wheelbase as well as 1595mm front and 1625mm rear track widths.

Despite its distinctly sporting profile, the CLS Shooting Brake manages to pack an impressive 590 litres beneath its rear luggage cover. This is nowhere near the amount of space provided by the E-class estate, which possesses a sizeable 695 litres.

However, it is an impressive 25 litres more than Audi claims for the A6 Avant and 30 litres more than the BMW 5-series Touring offers. With the rear seats folded down, the CLS Shooting Brake’s overall luggage capacity increases to a class-competitive 1550 litres.

The CLS Shooting Brake shares its interior with the CLS saloon. Among the changes made to accommodate its reworked layout is a new three-abreast rear seat with back rests that can be folded down from the rear.