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Mercedes to unveil the 4 MATIC CL-class coupé at Geneva
By Yoann Besnard on 26 February 2008 | 
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Mercedes will unveil a CL-class coupé with the in-house 4MATIC transmission at the Geneva Motor Show next week.
The 4MATIC will be available as an option on the 500 version and will be positioned between the two-wheel drives and the CL63 AMG in terms of price. It will be called CL 500 4MATIC and will be powered by the 388bhp V8 petrol engine.
The in-house transmission is an electronically controlled system which employs locking central and rear differentials to provide additional traction in slippery conditions. The centre differential contains an integrated multiplate clutch. Each clutch is controlled separately to allow for four modes of operation; 2WD where 100% of available torque is available to the rear axle, while the front axle is disconnected and three 4WD modes which allowed for 45% front/55% rear axle torque split or 50% front axle/50% rear axle torque split. The rear differential can also be locked if rear wheel slip is still present while in the 50/50 4WD mode. Mercedes claims that its system is the lightest all-whell drive transmission in the world, adding juts 70kg to the heavy CL-class.
The CL500 4MATIC should run from 0-62mph in about 5 seconds and still reach the top speed of 155mph.
