2000 Mercedes-Benz CL-Class A pretty face with power and grace to match. By Dan Carney, New Car Test Drive .com

Mercedes has delivered the best, most exclusive luxury coupe available with its new CL-Class. Totally redesigned, the CL500 features an array of innovations that should impress the most jaded technophile. Yet it wraps all that technology in leather and walnut, so as not to offend the most dedicated technophobe. Mercedes says the new CL-Class is designed for people who believe "good just isn't good enough."

The all-new 2000 CL500 will be available in January. (A CL600 will be introduced next September as a 2001 model.) The V8-powered CL500 lists for $85,500, which is less expensive than the outgoing version. (U.S. pricing for the CL600 hasn't been set, but in Germany the V12 model is 28 percent more expensive than the V8, which would equal $109,300.)

If that price doesn't provide sufficient exclusivity for you, Mercedes is offering the CL in customized Designo versions with striking paint, leather and wood combinations that make the cars unique. (The company also plans an AMG high-performance appearance package that tilts styling toward the racy end of the spectrum.)