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Five years ago, the term four-door coupe was an oxymoron. But in 2004, Mercedes-Benz used it to describe the new CLS, and logic was trampled by star-struck customers waving their checkbooks. Rival manufacturers were equally enthralled. Witness the Jaguar XF and the Volkswagen Passat CC. In 2010, BMW will launch a thematically similar four-door, and Audi will chime in with the A7. Mercedes, meanwhile, is readying the second-generation CLS. A careful evolution of the original design, the new low-roof four-seater was masterminded by Gorden Wagener, who was recently appointed head of the design department, replacing Peter Pfeiffer. Sales of the first CLS have run about 40 percent ahead of expectations, and that good news is tempered only slightly by the fact that many of those sales were stolen from the E-class, which looks rather bland in comparison.

Photo Gallery: 2010 Mercedes Benz CLS – Mercedes Benz Luxury Four Door Coupe – Automobile Magazine