Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 Cabriolet 2025 review – a V8 short of a proper thrill
The dynamic toys Mercedes-AMG has thrown at the CLE 53 Cabriolet have us pining for a proper V8
To look at the new Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 Cabriolet, anyone would be forgiven for expecting a savage eight-cylinder bark on startup. With its jutting chin, battery of vents, puffed-out shoulders (it’s 75mm wider than a standard CLE), Affalterbach badge, attitude-laden wheels, unmissable exhausts and slathering of carbonfibre inside and out, it’s about as AMG as it gets short of a Black Series. Certainly, there's visual attitude to match the BMW M4, rather than the 4-series convertible.
You’d be forgiven then, again, for being disappointed when upon slotting yourself into the Pro Performance Pack AMG bucket seats and pressing that engine start button into the carbon-clad dash, you’re met with a gruff six-cylinder chunter more akin to an old mile-munching diesel, than an AMG flagship.
Alas, we’re used to this stalemate between stubborn enthusiasts high on memories of the M156 and the equally stubborn, technology-, legislation- and performance-focused Mercedes-AMG. We also know well enough that dismissing modern cars for a slightly disappointing sound leaves one with very few cars to choose from and shuts us off from the many other points of merit to be enjoyed in the performance cars of the 2020s.
To that point, what else has the current flagship AMG CLE Cabriolet got going for it, the personality of its powertrain notwithstanding, as a thing to drive? We find out during 200 miles of mixed testing, from top-down motorway cruising to our regular winding, rutted B-roads.
Engine, gearbox and technical highlights
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It’s got all the toys but without the motor to match
That 3-litre turbocharged, mild-hybrid six-cylinder might seem nearly devoid of a soul, but 443bhp (between 5800 and 6100rpm) and 413lb ft (from 2200 to 5000rpm) are stout enough numbers to give the 4Matic 4x4 system a bit to think about, and keep an M440i xDrive Cabriolet firmly in its seat, if not a full-fat M4. This CLE 53, at least judging by the numbers, does a decent job of splitting the difference between a B-team and A-team performance variant.
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The engine of course isn’t the full AMG ticket, rather the same M256 six-cylinder seen in the CLE 450 with a couple of Affalterbach espresso shots. It features optimisation of the combustion chambers and new piston rings to handle more puff (1.5 bar, up from 0.4) from the new turbocharger. It also flows a little better, with new inlet and outlet channels. The Pro Performance Pack also means this engine sits on dynamic mounts.
The CLE’s platform reflects its remit as a coupe to split the difference between the C-Class and E-Class and replace the old two-door variants of both, mixing and matching elements (the nose is from the latter) of its two Modular Rear Architecture (MRA2) platform mates.
Key technical components influencing its driving dynamics are the variable 4Matic four-wheel-drive system, rear-wheel steering and adaptive dampers. The suspension, powertrain, all-wheel-drive system and traction management system can be tailored in the drive mode menu and via the rotary controls on the steering wheel.
The right-hand control allows you to cycle through Snow, Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Race presents, as well as the Individual preset you can arrange for yourself via the infotainment system. The left-hand control allows you to set quick shortcuts, so you can switch between modes for individual settings.
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In Comfort mode but for some reason want the powertrain in Race? You can set it up so that’s just a button click away. Likewise and more usefully on UK roads, you can make the suspension and traction modes adjustable regardless of what drive mode you’re in. It takes a minute to learn but the CLE 53 – and the current Mercedes-AMG product range in general – scores points for ease of dynamic configuration.
Performance and 0-62mph time
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It’s quick, but the powertrain is ultimately dull
As previously mentioned, this mild hybrid six-cylinder powertrain will get the admittedly heavy CLE 53 cabriolet up the road with a bit more urgency than the BMW M440i convertible, hitting 62mph in 4.4sec on the way to a 155mph limited top speed. With the Pro Performance Package and the Race Start function, that time drops to 4.2sec.
To really wake the powertrain up, you need at least the Sport setting, if not preferably Dynamic or Race. There’s a sense of linearity to the delivery, with that maximum power figure only arriving from 5800rpm.
It’s a shame then that there’s never a sense of urgency to the engine, like it never really want to reach that optimum power-generating window. Sure, you get an almost Pagani Huayra V12-esque thrumming augmented sound through the speakers in the sportier modes to synthetically stoke a sense of combustive anger but the artifice borders on jarring. In short, the CLE 53 in both Coupe and Cabriolet forms will get you there, if not with a huge smile on your face.
The engine is at least reasonably efficient when not being plumbed for all its performance. At a sturdy motorway cruise you should get well over 30mpg. Call on that 443bhp punch, though and it’ll develop a thirst.
Ride and handling
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It’s surprisingly agile, but not a real thriller
You’ll perk up when it comes to the corners, even in the Cabriolet version of the CLE 53. Race powertrain, pro (or master) dynamics and sport suspension is the setup with which the CLE 53 cab does its best work on the widest variety of roads. Turn in and the steering reacts quickly, with clarity and a bit of texture, which is somewhat surprising until you realise it’s a passive, not an adaptive rack.
The wheel you’re working with is much nicer than that found in any BMW at the moment, too. Irritating touch controls notwithstanding, it’s just the right thickness where you hold it so that it doesn’t give you cramp, which is a big win.
You also feel the tail following willingly on corner entry thanks to the rear-steering that turns in at up to 2.5 degrees. The CLE 53 as a result is surprisingly agile. The limits are high too thanks to that all-wheel-drive system and the wide (265 front, 295 rear), sticky Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres. There’s also decent wheel and body control within a certain window and on certain roads.
Great moments, usually on turn-in, are only flashes in the night in the CLE 53, though. Reach the mid corner and an early twitch of throttle won’t be enough, as in an xDrive BMW, to conjure willing throttle adjustability. The CLE 53 will take an oversteer stance with provocation but it feels out of sorts and unnatural. It's worth noting that the Pro Performance Package, as fitted here for a princely £7500, unlocks the Race mode, as well as a drift mode that makes it rear-driven, should you tire of 4Matic spoiling the fun.
The car feels happiest however, clawing its way along, its suspension strapping down its 2000kg+ mass with commendable dexterity, allowing you to punch up towards that shockingly high ceiling of available pace. It’s no M5 CS but the CLE 53 is on the whole a well controlled, wieldy and agile steer, if not an enthralling one.
The primary ride is well-resolved at higher speeds, even in Sport mode. At lower speeds, however, even in the less tense comfort mode, sudden jolts will boom through the car’s giant wheels and echo through the frame. This is a car that needs the right roads underneath it to come on song, rather than one that adapts to any surface it finds itself covering.
Happily, the roof coming off doesn’t yield glaring dynamic compromises, for the most part. A sturdy frame yields very few vibrations – none to an unsettling degree – through the rack, or visible in mirror wobble, even with the roof down.
The CLE 53 Cabriolet would be at its happiest at a medium-to-brisk cruise with the top-down (the buffeting is well managed with clever aero at up to motorway speeds), if it wasn’t for its inability to shield you from even middling shocks. Get bored of the open elements and the roof will willingly pop up at up to 37mph. The 20-layer lid keeps you well isolated from wind, even if there’s a decent amount of tyre roar.
Interior and tech
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It’s got the looks, fit and finish of a Miami night club
Like the nightclub outside which you might see a Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 Cabriolet parked, you’re initially impressed when you look and step inside but find a thinness and a tinniness to the touch. The design is boastful, bordering on brash, as those AMG seats greet you with a firm hug (though aren’t to all comfort preferences). The glitz of all the carbon and metal-look materials and impressive mood lighting is almost overwhelming. The trio of vents above the infotainment screen look like the tail end of a Star Destroyer, as the screens light up with flourishing animations.
Then like a curious toddler, you start pressing and pawing at it all. The bends and creaks and snaps (those vents feel very tinny indeed to the touch) shatter the illusion, as do the fingerprints you leave behind. Get moving and you’d better have some tunes on because the trim creaks like a spanish galleon in a storm, reacting to even the slightest flex in the platform to which it’s bolted, flexes that aren’t really felt in the way it drives.
It’s quite the thing to behold, the cabin of the CLE, even if it’s not to all tastes. It ought to be comprised of sturdier stuff, though. At least there’s reasonable rear seat room for short journeys with adults, to allow some chums to confirm you’re not hearing things when the trim creaks. The boot is fairly pathetic, mind. The proper AMG buckets featured in our car come courtesy of the Pro Performance Pack and are vital for the best possible driving position and lateral support.
The wheel is nice to steer with but the buttons are tolerable at best, and irritating at worst. Good luck swiping through your playlist without inadvertently going into a different menu on the driver’s display. At least there has been some sane thought that’s gone into the user interface of the CLE and its vertical infotainment display, with most functions accessible with relative ease. It’s overwhelming at first but intuitive to learn. Why you’d want to fold the screen forward, we’ve no idea, but you can.
Price and rivals
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A used BMW M4 convertible beckons as a tempting alternative
The Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 range – Cabriolet included – is priced according to its weird positioning. That’s to say, between a C- and an E-Class and between what you’d expect of a 43 AMG and a 63 AMG. It costs £84,485 for a Cabriolet in Night Edition spec (which gets you carbon trim, the Burmeister sound system a head-up display and massage seats). Add the Pro Performance pack and a few other goodies and our car comes to £94,835 – perilously close to the BMW M4 Cabriolet. At base, the CLE 53 Cabriolet is a £79k car, which feels more like it, while still being £10k more than the £69k BMW M440i, but around £16k less than the £95k M4 convertible.
The CLE 53 Cabriolet, like the coupe and truthfully, like the C63 E-Performance and any other under-engined AMG of late, leaves us wanting more. Mercedes-AMG’s dynamic toybox is impressive in spite of this 53-spec powertrain, not alongside it. It leaves us in no doubt the rumoured CLE 63 will be a properly epic thing, if it happens. A thumping V8 might just mask the creaky trim, too.
