Photo: Theophilus Chin
This will surely be the last rendering of the CLS-Class Shooting Brake you will ever see. Mercedes-Benz is about to discontinue the wagon-bodied four-door coupe due to lack of demand, and it will certainly never put an All-Terrain model into production.
We can't say that we are disappointed, since the E-Class All Terrain is already a beautiful go-anywhere wagon and it's also one of the most technologically advanced cars in its segment.
But the CLS Shooting Brake has an extra layer of exclusivity. There's something nice to be said about a car that can be ordered with a wood deck for the trunk. We've seen only a handful of such Mercs on the road, and they were all exquisitely finished with options like Designo leather and satin silver paint. Of course, customers who order one instead of the GLE are pretty rare.
The era of building cars just for the sake of it is long over. However, most automakers are still willing to make concepts, present them at auto shows and even let journalists have a quick drive.
We can think of at least one concept that's as crazy as the CLS All-Terrain, and that's the SEAT Leon Cross Sport from 2015's Frankfurt Motor Show. It's basically a 3-door coupe with the engine from the Leon Cupra, the AWD from the Golf R and the raised suspension and tough body cladding from the X-Perience.
Of course, SEAT decided never to build it after the Dieselgate scandal put a huge hole in VW Group's development budget. But even without an emissions scandal, it's easy to see why Mercedes will never build an All-Terrain Shooting Brake.
The rendering itself is from Theophilus Chin, and it combines all the elements from the E-Class off-roader including, surprisingly, the paint. Maybe this is what the Shooting Brake should have looked like from the start. After all, if you need a hunting wagon, shouldn't it at least be able to cope with dirt trails?
But the CLS Shooting Brake has an extra layer of exclusivity. There's something nice to be said about a car that can be ordered with a wood deck for the trunk. We've seen only a handful of such Mercs on the road, and they were all exquisitely finished with options like Designo leather and satin silver paint. Of course, customers who order one instead of the GLE are pretty rare.
The era of building cars just for the sake of it is long over. However, most automakers are still willing to make concepts, present them at auto shows and even let journalists have a quick drive.
We can think of at least one concept that's as crazy as the CLS All-Terrain, and that's the SEAT Leon Cross Sport from 2015's Frankfurt Motor Show. It's basically a 3-door coupe with the engine from the Leon Cupra, the AWD from the Golf R and the raised suspension and tough body cladding from the X-Perience.
Of course, SEAT decided never to build it after the Dieselgate scandal put a huge hole in VW Group's development budget. But even without an emissions scandal, it's easy to see why Mercedes will never build an All-Terrain Shooting Brake.
The rendering itself is from Theophilus Chin, and it combines all the elements from the E-Class off-roader including, surprisingly, the paint. Maybe this is what the Shooting Brake should have looked like from the start. After all, if you need a hunting wagon, shouldn't it at least be able to cope with dirt trails?
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