SA Roadtests
South Africa
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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.
*To read one of our road tests, just select from the menu on the left. Hover your cursor over the manufacturer's name, then select from the drop-down menu.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.
Published in Weekend Witness Motoring on Saturday May 25, 2013
Since shooting brakes (or breaks) became motorised, opinion has been divided over whether they should have four doors or two. In the meantime, persons of unfortunate social standing and deprived of proper education (just kidding) have even suggested that it’s simply another name for that ghastly suburban invention, the station wagon.
Such travesties are best ignored. The point is that “shooting brake” describes a low, lean and sporty estate car with as many doors as its user needs (preferably four) to transport him- or herself and three friends with their Holland & Hollands or Purdeys to and from a shoot. It goes without saying that the “bag,” animal or avian, would be included on the return trip.
Unmistakably coupé-like in its styling, Mercedes-Benz’s new CLS shooting brake opens up fresh possibilities with five doors and a roofline extending all the way to the rear end. It's an innovative development from the four-door coupé introduced as the first CLS in 2004 and copied by many ever since. The proportions indicate a crouched posture with long bonnet, narrow frameless side windows and roof sloping dynamically to the rear. Looking more closely, it becomes evident that the shooting brake is actually extremely functional.
Three models are available; a 3.5-litre V6, a 4.6-litre, twin-turbo V8 and, for those who simply need to show off, 5.5-litre AMG V8s in two states of tune. We drove the smaller V8 fitted with a 7G-Tronic Plus automatic gearbox that’s geared for about 1750 rpm in top gear at 120 km/h in ECO mode. Apart from that, there is no need to repeat what has been said before. It’s a Mercedes and the 7G-Tronic is smooth, quiet and very serviceable; so let’s move on.
The rear hatch opens and closes electrically to reveal an aluminium-ribbed loading deck with six lashing rings, a pair of bag hooks and a 12-Volt socket, while the rear seatbacks can be laid down by pulling on levers just inside the door frame. Should you choose to close the door manually, you will find that the grip is left-handed; probably assuming that you are laying down the Purdey with due (right-handed) respect.
Personal accommodations are suitably comfortable, with individually shaped seating for two at the back, although a belt and head restraint, for a third person, are provided. Head room for taller people gains a solid 9/10 thanks to an inventive cutaway in the roof lining, while kneeroom and foot space (driver’s seat at its lowest) score ten and seven points respectively. The folding armrest opens to reveal a pair of glass holders and a small lidded office tray. A 12-Volt socket, small ashtray and air conditioner controls help make it an environment conducive to business.
Our test car was provided with the optional active multi-contour seat package priced at R14 600. What that means is that the side bolsters for both front chairs can be tailored for your personal comfort and will adjust their sideways support during cornering; the seats offer lumbar support and massage functions and three memory settings can be saved. Standard equipment, apart from the usual electronic safety aids, includes a reversing camera, ECO start and stop, COMAND Online music, Bluetooth and satnav, a Harmon Kardon sound system and keyless stopping and starting.
Ride quality is silent, smooth and feels unhurried even when dashing up to 100 km/h in a touch over five seconds and on to a governed maximum of 250 - it’s simply effortless. We see it as exceptional executive transport, with or without chauffeur or bodyguard, and perfectly capable of taming tortuous roads despite its size. Thank multi-link independent suspension with anti-squat and anti-dive, Airmatic full support air cushioning and electronically controlled damping for that.
M-B sees the shooting brake as an upmarket sports car with five seats and large tailgate; a defining motor for people seeking to differentiate themselves from the herd, and who decline to compromise on either sportiness or stowage space while travelling in style. We agree.
Test car from MBSA press fleet
The numbers
Price: R1 044 000
Engine: 4663 cc, biturbo, DOHC, 32-valve V8
Power: 300 kW between 5000 and 5750 rpm
Torque: 600 Nm between 1600 and 4750 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 5,3 seconds
Maximum speed: 250 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 12,2 l/100 km
Tank: 80 litres
Boot: 590 to 1550 litres
Warranty/Maintenance plan: MobiloDrive 120
This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.
I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material. If I ever place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with that vehicle at least once already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.
My reviews and launch reports appear on Thursdays in the Wheels supplement to The Witness, South Africa's oldest continuously running newspaper, and occasionally on Saturdays in Weekend Witness as well. I drive eight to ten vehicles each month, most months of the year (except over the festive season) so not everything gets published in the paper. Those that are, get a tagline but the rest is virgin, unpublished and unedited by the political-correctness police.
Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so they can see I do actually exist.
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SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8