2008 Mercedes-Benz CL Safety Review
Based on analysis of 34 CL reviews and test drives.
Mercedes-Benz CL Safety Review
Safety - NA
The 2008 Mercedes-Benz CL has not been crash tested by the federal government or insurance industry. However, it comes standard with plenty of advanced safety features.
Accident Avoidance
The CL's accident avoidance features include anti-lock brakes with Brake Assist, electronic stability control, and adaptive xenon headlights. All but the base CL550 come equipped with a Pre-Safe Brake system, which can apply up to 40 percent of the vehicle's braking capacity when it senses an imminent collision.
Crash Protection
The CL comes standard with Pre-Safe, which helps prepare occupants for a possible collision by adjusting the front passenger seat for maximum air bag effectiveness, inflating the outboard side bolsters and seat cushions (on cars with multicontour front seats), and closing the sunroof and windows.
In addition, the CL features dual-stage front air bags, front and rear side-impact air bags, and a driver's-side knee bag. Window-curtain air bags deploy along the front and rear side-door windows in side impacts exceeding a preset threshold. The front passenger's air bag comes with an Occupant Classification System, which turns off or adjusts the air bag inflation rate based on the occupant's weight.
Advanced Safety Systems
Mercedes offers several advanced safety options. These include Disctronic Plus, a programmable cruise control system that can sense slow-moving vehicles ahead and reduce speed as well as provide warnings. Kelley Blue Book says that the system "will even brake the car to a complete stop if necessary." They go on to note another high-tech option, Night View Assist, which "illuminates the road up to 500 feet ahead with infrared light and displays the view on a high-resolution screen in the instrument cluster."
