Mercedes’ C- and E-Class Cabrio replacement spied in Europe

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Imagine you’re in charge of a car company whose model line consists of two similarly-sized convertibles, but whose customer base vastly prefers SUVs and crossovers. To make the best of the situation, what would you do? If you’ve the engineering might of Mercedes, you blend them together and make an entirely new model.

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This is essentially the raison d’etre for the brand’s upcoming CLE coupe and convertible. With sales of the C- and E-Class two-doors deader than disco, Merc is making the sensible decision to offer an entirely new model sized betwixt those outgoing cars. This permits the marque to retain an ‘entry-level’ droptop whilst still offering aspirational halo cars like the mighty SL convertible and the Mercedes-AMG GT Roadster.

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Now our spies across the pond have caught the new CLE convertible testing in Germany, still wearing camouflage but revealing a bit more of itself since the last time it was spotted by our eagle-eyed photogs. The front fascia of this test mule seems to confirm what we’ve suspected — that the CLE will look sufficiently different from the current C-Class to warrant its own name.

Slimmer headlamps, a unique grille, and an overall ‘sportier’ stance all seems to be on tap for this new addition to Merc’s lineup. Taillights also seem slightly different, though the camo does a better job of hiding the car’s secrets there, and the ragtop provides a more steeply raked roofline than its C-Class brother. The latter should not be surprising to anyone blessed with the gift of sight.

Both the CLE Convertible and Coupe are expected to be built on the MRA-2 platform. These underpinnings are shared with the C-Class, which means these two-door models will likely be offered with similar powertrain configurations. This means CLE 43 and CLE 53 AMG trims are all but assured, along with the attendant AMG and AMG-line styling cues so your neighbours understand just how much you really are like Lewis Hamilton.

The new model will be launched by some time in 2023.