2007 Mercedes-Benz CL550/CL600/CL63 AMG

Sink into supportive sport seats trimmed in beautifully crafted leather. Fire the hand-built, all-aluminum, 518-horsepower V-8, which lights with a bark. Select first gear--the first of seven--via the paddle shifters on the steering wheel. Plant the throttle and blaze off to an intoxicating blend of throbbing intake and burbling exhaust roar. Zero to 60 mph takes a musclecar-beating 4.5 seconds. Ferrari or Lambo? Aston or Z06? No. It's just one of the newest, hedonistically luxurious four-place coupes from Mercedes-Benz.

The premium-coupe market is a fickle maiden. Most new entries sell strongly for a few years and then fade. But Mercedes has been at it in one form or another since the 1950s and defined its modern formula for them with the SEC model that launched in 1981. The subsequent C140-platformed coupe was renamed the CL a decade ago, and the outgoing C215-bodied version was the most successful ever, selling approximately 46,800 units from 1999 through this year.

From a chassis and architectural standpoint, full-size Mercedes coupes have been based on the current S-Class sedan; so is this new one, although there isn't a common piece of exterior sheetmetal between them. This CL-Class's predecessor was short on rear-seat legroom, so the wheelbase was extended by 2.7 inches. Not enough in our estimation, as it's still a bit tight back there for average to tall adults. But if you really need a sedan, Mercedes-Benz offers plenty of those. The chassis structure is stiffened structurally by 15 percent over the old CL's.

Even though the premium-coupe market is a niche one, Mercedes-Benz will offer four versions of the CL. The base variant, if there is such a thing, is the 382-horsepower, 5.5-liter V-8-powered CL550. It's backed by the superb seven-speed 7G-Tronic transmission. Those who want 12-cylinder cachet (and torque) by the boatload can opt for the 510-horsepower, 612-pound-foot CL600; its twin-turbo V-12 shares much with the Maybach powerplant and is backed by the carryover five-speed automatic. Both are currently on sale.

The driver's car of the bunch is the CL63 AMG, loaded with AMG's naturally aspirated, bespoke 6.2-liter V-8 (it's called "6.3" in homage to the performance-minded 300SEL 6.3 model of the late 1960s and early 1970s). It gets an AMG-calibrated version of the seven-speed auto tranny as well as the usual round of AMG upgrades targeted at improved acceleration, handling, braking, luxury, sportiness, and exclusivity. The CL 6.3 AMG hits our shores in April.