[TEST DRIVE] Mercedes-Benz CLE Cabriolet: refined, even in a monsoon

The Mercedes-Benz CLE 450 Cabriolet impresses with its refined design, luxurious interior, and powerful engine, although its control system and competition with the CLE 200 are drawbacks.

Mercedes-Benz CLE Cabriolet [MERCEDES-BENZ KOREA]

BUSAN — The 2024 CLE 450 Cabriolet is Mercedes-Benz’s refined and handsome soft-top convertible, a car that kept its charm even when the top was closed under heavy rain in the coastal city of Busan. Its lower-trim sister, the CLE 200, offers similar strengths — and weaknesses — for 22 million won ($15,920) less.

The first impression of the CLE, whether it be the coupe or the convertible, comes down to its aesthetic. The lowered posture, compared to the sedan variants, gives the series a sharper and sporty vibe while keeping the luxury nature of Mercedes cars. Its design also didn’t require the “getting used to” that other recent Mercedes models infamously ask.

The CLE-class was designed to replace both the coupe and convertible versions of the previous generation C-Class and E-Class — but the basics of the CLE, including its nicer exterior design, lean closer to those of the entry-level compact.

The Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 Cabriolet with its roof down and its Aircap wind deflectors enabled. [CHO YONG-JUN]

The CLE Cabriolet is offered with a so-called 2+2 seating arrangement, a title nodding to its two full-sized front seats and two rather smaller back seats. This, however, doesn’t mean that the rear seats are only good for pets or duffel bags, as the 2,865-millimeter (112-inch) wheelbase, longer than that of the previous C-Class Cabriolet, means adults, too, can sit in the back — albeit those who aren't taller than 170-ish centimeters (5 feet, 7 inches), and ideally on shorter trips.

The test drive of the CLE 450 was accompanied by heavy rain, an undesirable and unfortunate weather condition, but one that showcased the car's strength: The cabin remained completely dry and, most importantly, quiet. The cabriolet version comes with more methods of reducing noise, according to a Mercedes-Benz spokesperson, and they showed: Voices didn’t have to be raised nor was music needed to mute the noise of the road outside, an impressive feat considering that the roof of the vehicle is fabric and comes off anytime the driver wants it to.

Both drivers and passengers of the CLE 450 will nevertheless be tempted to play music in the vehicle thanks to its high-quality Burmester 3-D surround sound system. The 17-speaker setup, complemented Dolby Atmos, produced clear audio with stage presence. It brought summer-themed K-pop tracks a refreshing vibe, despite the morose weather outside, while the hard-hitting bass and sharp guitar were evident in heavy metal tracks.

Mercedes-Benz CLE Cabriolet [MERCEDES-BENZ KOREA]

The three-liter, six-cylinder engine, equipped with a 48-volt mild hybrid system, also helped keep the car quiet and smooth. The engine, providing 381 horsepower, was tame and more than adequate to maneuver across the hilly city with many steep bridge on-ramps. Its four-wheel drive system, 4MATIC, also added stability to the vehicle.

Mercedes' in-house GPS was also no slouch. The navigation system provided a clear and mostly accurate turn-by-turn guide with helpful visualization on its digital gauge cluster, 11.9-inch vertical display and the massive head-up display (HUD) alongside a detailed voice guide — a vast improvement from the yesteryears of imported car navigation system drivers were mostly advised to ignore. Mercedes-Benz Korea also plans to give the GPS a massive makeover; all Mercedes vehicles with third-generation Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) infotainment systems will be updated, at no extra charge, to a tailored version of TMAP Auto, a popular GPS service among Korean drivers, later this year.

The head-up display (HUD) on the Mercedes-Benz CLE 450 Cabriolet [CHO YONG-JUN]

The company's driver assistance system, Driving Assistance Package Plus — standard on all CLE coupes and convertibles — also worked confidently in the heavy rain. With Active Cruise Control on, the car stayed in its lane and kept a safe distance from the vehicle in front, even managing to steer itself in and out of gentle corners.

The CLE Cabriolet also comes equipped with Aircap, motorized deflectors that help divert wind passage to protect hairstyles, and Airscrap, a dedicated heat vent located below the headrest for the benefit of users who want to open the top during cold weather.

The Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 Cabriolet with its roof down in Busan. [CHO YONG-JUN]

The CLE 450's first major flaw is its finicky and annoying-to-use control system that relies too much on touch toggles.

Like many of Mercedes' latest family cars, the CLE sports a modern-looking interior with a massive vertical touch screen display that replaces both the horizontal infotainment system and climate controls, bringing big compromises to the overall user experience over old-fashioned physical buttons.

All of the climate controls — minus the heated, ventilated seats and Airscarf — are embedded within the large main touch screen. Steering wheel buttons, too, are replaced with capacitive touch buttons impossible to distinguish by feel. As a consequence, it was difficult to pull off simple tasks, like skipping tracks or increasing the fan speed, without looking away from the road and down at the screen.

And while the soft-top opens and closes in around 20 seconds, even when driving at a maximum speed of 60 kilometers (37 miles) per hour, controlling it requires the driver to continually press the button on the center console for the duration of the operation, leaving solo drivers with only one hand to steer the car.

The other big disadvantage of the six-cylinder convertible is that it has to compete with its sister, the CLE 200.

The Mercedes-Benz CLE 200 Cabriolet [CHO YONG-JUN]

Coming in at 78.8 million won, the four-cylinder version is only rear-wheel drive, has 180-or-so less horsepower and is slow off the mark, with 7.9 seconds for its 0-100 kilometers per hour speed compared to the zippy 4.7 seconds in the CLE 450. The lower-trim version also lacks the jazzier features of its more premium counterpart, such as adaptive suspension, a special audio system, massaging seats, HUD and fancy “Energizing Package Plus” to harmonize the light system, music, seats and climate control of the car. It also comes with leatherette seats instead of the real leather seats on the CLE 450.

Mercedes-Benz CLE Cabriolet [MERCEDES-BENZ KOREA]

And these missing elements are something the driver can feel every day. Driving CLE 200 the following day felt less punchy and silky; the audio system felt flat and uninteresting; the lack of HUD meant looking down at the screen for routes and the lack of massaging seats meant, well, no massages.

But putting the soft top down as the rain stopped, many of the lacking features mattered less. This reporter ended up turning off the music with the roof down and didn’t feel the urge to push the car to its limits. Instead, he veered off the route to enjoy the scenic drive — an experience that wasn’t locked only to the higher trim.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]