Daimler AG can dare say that it has successfully pioneered a new segment in the auto industry with the award-winning Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class, which has redefined the coupe.

Originally, coupes referred to cars that do not have rear seats. Then, for a long time, the term applied to any two-door car, though it may not be a two-seater.

But now the German automotive group has secured yet another meaning for the word, giving customers the additional choice of a “four-door coupe.”

In 2003, Mercedes-Benz introduced the world to four-door coupes with its first-generation CLS-Class, a car that combines the elegance and dynamism of a coupe with the comfort and functionality of a sedan.

So far the CLS-Class has attracted over 170,000 customers worldwide, establishing a new global market for four-door premium coupes, said Mercedes-Benz Korea.

In Korea, the CLS model was introduced in 2005. The domestic market for four-door coupes has more than doubled since.

Out of more than 12,000 four-door coupes currently in the Korean market, the CLS-Class leads the segment with a roughly 40 percent share, according to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association.

In August 2011, Mercedes-Benz Korea released the second-generation CLS-Class, which features a classy but also sporty look, selling 3,364 units as of January this year.

The company’s CLS-Class lineup currently includes the CLS 250 CDI, CLS 350, CLS 63 AMG and CLS 250 CDI Shooting Break, a five-door coupe.

Especially with the new CLS 250 CDI that launched in December, the luxury coupe has been expanded to service diesel as well, strengthening the overall lineup and satisfying the diverse needs of local consumers.

The New CLS 250 CDI is armed with a four-cylinder diesel engine and seven-gear automatic transmission, producing a displacement of 2,143 cubic centimeters. It also boasts a maximum 204 horsepower and a torque of 51 kilograms per meter, allowing an acceleration of 0 to 100 kph in 7.5 seconds.

It also comes equipped with a sports exterior package, which includes components like five-spoke, 18-inch rims and a black matte-finished rear diffuser that gives the car a more stylish and sporty design, the company said.

Moreover, the German headquarters developed an integrated navigation system and registered nearly 40,000 Korean terms in its signature Cockpit Management and Data system to better cater to the Korean market.

The Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class is fast becoming a global icon for innovation and design within the auto industry.

Besides the fact that it has reinterpreted the traditional style of coupes, the LED High Performance Intelligent Light System, the aeromechanical design that has further reduced air resistance, the innovative safety systems such as Pre-Safe, Attention Assist, Adaptive Break and Airmatic suspension, and the sleek frontal line that resembles the SLS AMG, all add up to create the uniqueness and exclusivity of the CLS-Class.

By Kim Joo-hyun (jhk@heraldcorp.com)