Mercedes Benz s Class Coupe 2013

There was a time when Mercedes-Benz once ruled the luxury roost, but it’s been taking heavy fire from all sides lately. BMW has worked tirelessly to establish itself as more than just a manufacturer of sporty vehicles. Audi’s rapid growth has been impressive, and is paramount to Volkswagen’s plans for world domination. Even Bentley has applied some pressure on Stuttgart, as its Continental series is far more accessible than the ultra-low-production models of yore. Thus, it’s time for Mercedes to reassert its superiority, which is exactly what it’s done by revealing the Concept S-class Coupé—a thinly veiled look into the future of the two-door S-class, which will eschew the CL-class moniker—at the 2013 Frankfurt auto show.

Those of us who were critical of Benz's design strategy may need to reconsider. The Concept S-class Coupé is a convincing evolution of its four-door counterpart, with the same CLA-derived character lines and pronounced wheel arches. The front end gets a variation of the "diamond grille" that we first saw on the A-class and the CLA; the taillights, connected by a chrome strip, are stretched horizontally for an added effect of width. Noticeably lower than both the new sedan and the outgoing CL, and standing on 21-inch wheels, the Concept S-class Coupé appears sporty and luxurious.