I meant 3/06.

M5/CLS5 AMG

1st Place 2nd Place
0-60 4.5 4.4
0-100 10 10.1
1/4th time 12.9 12.7
1/4th speed 114.9 113.6
45-65 1.8 2.1
curb weight 4130 4307
HP 500 469
Torque 383 516
Lat Accel--g ave. .87 .90
600 FT slalom 67.7 66.6
MPG 12/18 14/20
Price as tested $95k $92.5k

 

WHAT! whats the explaination of the CLS being so much faster... just because from the TQ?

 

Not much faster. But, yes, torque is the answer. And, note that the rear-end ratios for the cars are: M5--3.62 and Merc--2.65. This factor most likely is a large-ish advantage to the M5, but I have not checked all the gear ratios yet. I would think that the Merc certainly could handle a 2.9 up to, say, a 3.15 rear end without hurting its MPG too much. That's 9 to 19 percent more road torque. But, I am sure that both manufacturers have done a good job of optimizing their cars given their goals for them.

 

The last line of the article really sums up the two cars:


"One blast in the CLS55, and you'll feel like you've been there, done that. One sortie in the M5, and you'll want more."

 

 

I thought that was a good line too. There was something before it, as I recall, that indicated that both cars are very good at what they do.

 

I thought that was a good line too. There was something before it, as I recall, that indicated that both cars are very good at what they do.
[/quote]

The Merc is basically a super-luxury car with 'effortless power', but a bit disconnected. I've test driven it and the E55 a few times, and I have to agree with the above quote. The M5 is a luxury sedan that's really in a different league in terms of performance.

Tommy Kendall (representing Mercedes), and Bill Auberlein (for BMW) demonstrated their respective cars for the press during "Track Days" at Willow Springs. The article looked at the best laptimes each driver recorded.

Comparing the best single laptimes, the M5 finished 24 carlengths ahead of the CLS55 after one lap.

 

The Merc is basically a super-luxury car with 'effortless power', but a bit disconnected. I've test driven it and the E55 a few times, and I have to agree with the above quote. The M5 is a luxury sedan that's really in a different league in terms of performance.

Tommy Kendall (representing Mercedes), and Bill Auberlein (for BMW) demonstrated their respective cars for the press during "Track Days" at Willow Springs. The article looked at the best laptimes each driver recorded.

Comparing the best single laptimes, the M5 finished 24 carlengths ahead of the CLS55 after one lap.
[/quote]

The "disconnected" feeling may cause the driver to hesitate from pushing the car's limits. I wonder if this happens to professional drivers unconsciously. What do you think?

 

I doubt it. The test results don't appear to imply so. But, of course, the handling tests are not extensive. In a full-fledged race things might be different.

 

Damnit! Where is my March edition? (postman must be enjoying it!)
At any rate, thanks for the info, Don.

A little more insight to this information:

The M5 for this test was equipped with the US SMG III transmission. Stand-still acceleration times "may" be different with the 6-speed manual M5.

I love the 45-65mph acceleration times for both cars, however, I wonder what gear this was performed at and the RPMs. ???

The trap speed at the quater-mile is a good indication that this car will begin pulling away at speeds above 115-120mph.