Four doors, four seats and a £40,000-plus price tag. No prizes for guessing that this chic, sleek machine is for the chosen few.

Anyone concerned about carting around cycle racks, roof boxes or transporting half of the under-11 team to next Tuesday's football practice can steer well clear.

This is a car with a strictly defined purpose — whisking around up to four beautiful people and their designer luggage in an elegantly exclusive Grand Tourer.

The test car, even with its eye-watering price tag, is the entry level of the CLS range.

If you have the wherewithal you can part with more than £75,000 for a terrifyingly powerful, 514 horsepower, 6.2-litre V8 AMG version. The power plant secreted under the test car's long bonnet was an altogether more sensible 3.2-litre, V6 turbodiesel, linked to a silky, seven-speed automatic gearbox, capable of delivering a satisfyingly useable 224 horsepower and the theoretical possibility of more than 37 miles per gallon. I managed 32.

Get in and you feel immediately at home. The interior matches the elegant exterior, with hand-finished Black Bird’s-Eye Maple forming a large area of decorative trim spanning almost the entire face of the instrument panel.

Controls are easily accessible, instruments are classy and clear and features include speed-sensitive volume control, a keypad for entering telephone numbers and radio frequencies, an MP3-compatible CD and DVD player, and a Bluetooth interface which can establish a wireless connection between a mobile phone and the vehicle's hands-free system. The large size of the car melts away at speed, delivering a superb blend of taut, precise handling and comfortable ride.

With a wide, louvred radiator grille, the large, centrally-located Mercedes star and striking headlamps extending well into the front wings, all the members of the current Mercedes coupé family share design features which display their common heritage. Mercedes-Benz coupés have always been special and the new CLS has had some subtle restyling. At the front, it is the radiator grille that stands out, with two louvres now instead of the previous four. The diamond-shaped, grey-painted, grilles that cover the air intakes project an even greater air of self-assurance and add further emphasis to the vehicle's width.

The exterior mirrors have also been given a new look. The LED side indicator lamps that are built into them are arranged in the form of an eye-catching arrow and the mirror surface has been enlarged by a third.

Just like the side indicators in the exterior mirrors, the rear indicators look like arrows when they light up. The same is true of the optical fibres at the side, so even in the dark the CLS proves an exquisite eye-catcher.

Auto facts Mercedes-Benz CLS 320 CDI

  • Price: £46,255
  • Ins group: 18
  • Fuel consumption (Combined): 37.2mpg
  • Top speed: 155mph
  • Length: 491.3cm/193.4in
  • Width: 187.3cm/73.7in
  • Luggage capacity: 17.8 cu ft
  • Fuel tank capacity: 17.6 gallons/80 litres
  • CO2 emissions: 215g/km
  • Warranty: 3 years/unlim mileage