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2007 Porsche 911 Carrera front view
Coupes of grace
Porsche and Mercedes coupes dazzle the imagination
Marc K. Stengel
If youīre inclined to begrudge your wealthier (or more fiscally
reckless) neighbors their expensive playthings, it might be better
for you to turn back now. What follows is a brief glimpse at two very
fine, very costly vehicles whose raison dīÊtre is nothing more
profound than sheer self-indulgence. And it is not this columnīs
intention to incite hypertension and apoplexy amongst its more
Puritan readership.
If art can exist for artīs sake, so too can the automobile. At a
certain level"starting, say, at about $70,000"there had better be
something artful about a luxury automobile for it to dodge the
inconvenient fact that solid, reliable transportation is plentiful
within the $15,000-$20,000 bracket. Automobiles can inspire many
emotions, both aesthetic and visceral. When they are as lovingly,
cleverly turned out as the following specimens from Porsche and
Mercedes-Benz, one has to believe that Praxiteles himself would have
been designing them had the ancient Greeks ever mastered internal
combustion.
2007 Porsche 911 Carrera
What has not already been said about the four-wheeled icon known as
Porsche 911 would fill a very tiny book. This is one of those
hallowed industrial objects that give a maniacal obsession with
automobiles a very good name indeed.
It does, in fact, seem that Porscheīs perennial challenge with the
911 is simply not to mess it up. And for four decades, the company
has risen to that challenge. The coupeīs teardrop silhouette,
despite many loving manipulations over the years, remains symbolic of
that tear of joy escaping furtively from a proud ownerīs eye.
With its rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive configuration, the 911 also
preserves Porcheīs "bootīs-in-front, bonnetīs-in-back
quirkiness. But itīs not the fact that the trunk is in front of the
driver that makes the 911 special. Instead, itīs the unique
combination of power and thrust behind the driverīs seat of the
pants that renders the 911 experience virtually indescribable.
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2007 Porsche 911 Carrera interior shot
Itīs
the mechanical equivalent of a rearing stallion"only in this
Porscheīs case, there are 325 such stallions.
In its most modern manifestation, the Porsche 911 is blessed by two
important developments. One is the refinement of subtle electronics
that manage to rein-in the 911īs 325 horsepower and 273 foot-pounds
of torque. In former days, 911s in novice hands tended to swap ends
with regularity, owing to what engineers like to call the "polar
moment"? of all that weight and power at the rear of the car. Today,
traction and stability control systems can gently nudge a straying
911 back into proper trajectory, leaving sheetmetal and driversī
egos intact.
The other important modern development concerning the 911 is its
interior, or, to be more precise, its interior ergonomics. Beautiful,
drum-taut (optional) leather swathes whatever surfaces arenīt
already veneered with gleaming, brushed aluminum. Driver and front
passenger are literally installed into seating positions optimized
for rapid acceleration, deceleration and cornering. One may still
pity the short-straw-pullers relegated to the rear jump seats. But,
come to think of it, the thought of a foursome in a 911 is as
ridiculous as playing golf in a Speedo. Itīs just not done. So be
grateful that your briefcase has such a comfy spot to commute in.
For 2007, Porscheīs so-called "entry-level"? 911 sports a $72,400
base price. After wheels and leather, active suspension (PASM) and
GPS navigation, Bose audio and heated seats, the as-tested sticker
winds up to $86,085 pronto. Wow! Thatīs a lot of money for a car.
But for a work of art...?
2007 Mercedes-Benz CL550
Suddenly, the price of Porscheīs "entry-level"? 911 seems like
chump change compared to that of Mercedes-Benzī "entry-level"?
CL550. Itīs hard to know what marketing maven won the gold star for
keeping the CLīs price under $100-large; but instead of a $99,900,
base price, youīd think thereīd be some cachet in rounding things
off to $100,000. Why bother, though. As tested, the CL550 evaluated
here managed to reach $111,675
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2007 Porsche 911 Carrera shifter
without even trying.
Whereas Porsche has a genuine icon with its 911, the Mercedes CL is
an iconoclast in almost every way. Nothing else looks like it;
nothing else feels like it; nothing else even approaches its
ambience. Its roofline alone, arching from front windshield to
backlight in one graceful sweep without an intervening central
pillar, is an engineering masterpiece. And its compact, low-slung
dimensions belie the fact that front and rear occupants have
limousine amplitudes of space and luxury to swaddle in.
Yes, the CL is a coupe"a two-door coupe. But it seems as if
Mercedesī designers just wanted to see how far they could stretch
the limitations of that category. If wide doors are an Achillesī
heel when parking in tight quarters, on the CL theyīre deftly
controlled by gas struts opening and holding the doors at any
position chosen. Robot-like front seats make way for rear seat
access. And once a foursome is nestled in, the sealed cockpit is a
pod of delight in a harried world.
The CLīs road manners are so refined that one can easily overlook
the fact that its 5.5-liter V8 produces 382 horsepower and an
astonishing 391 foot-pounds of torque. And itīs all managed by a
silky seven-speed automatic transmission. Considering such power and
the CLīs 4,485-pound curb weight, itīs actually a minor miracle
that its 2007 mileage rating is as good as 15 mpg/city, 22 mpg/
highway (with premium).
Micromanaging the economics of a CL is a foolīs errand, however.
This automobile is to driving as Zen is to taking a nap. The CLīs
complex interplay of active suspension, burly power and automated
controls transform driving into a form of soaring. Dynamic seats in
front inflate spontaneously to counteract centrifugal forces while
cornering. Headlights sweep their beams around curves at night;
windshield wipers pace themselves to the severity of rain. Cockpit
telematics manage climate, audio and navigation preferences by voice
command.
Does anyone actually deserve such luxury? Who can say? But in the
case of the CL550, itīs not a machine thatīs for sale but a mindset.
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2007 Mercedes-Benz CL550 front view
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