Mercedes-AMG CLE53 Coupe (2025) Price & Specs

The Mercedes-AMG CLE53 Coupe has arrived in SA, powered by a mildly electrified 3.0-litre inline-6 engine. Here’s what this 2-door performance variant costs…

Yes, Mercedes-Benz South Africa has added another derivative to its line-up of Affalterbach-fettled performance variants, with the Mercedes-AMG CLE53 Coupe being the latest to arrive.

Revealed late in 2023, the Mercedes-AMG CLE53 is offered in Europe in both the coupe and cabriolet body styles. However, for now at least, only the hardtop version is available locally. It slots in above the CLE200 and CLE300, which are sold in both body styles in SA.

So, how much does the 53-badged derivative cost? Well, according to Cars.co.za’s New Car Specs, the Mercedes-AMG CLE53 Coupe 4Matic+ is priced from R2 086 466 (in June 2025, including CO2 tax).

The CLE53 Coupe employs the Three-pointed Star’s familiar turbocharged 3.0-litre inline-6 engine, but in this instance, it is equipped with a mild-hybrid system with an integrated starter generator that can “briefly” supply an additional 17 kW and 205 Nm. That gives Mercedes-AMG’s newcomer combined peak outputs of 347 kW and 600 Nm (on overboost, which ‘Benz says is available for 12 seconds).

Another business-class coupe that famously trades on its turbocharged 3.0-litre inline-6 is, of course, the BMW M440i xDrive coupe; it is also equipped with all-wheel drive and delivers 285 kW/500 Nm. Although the M440i’s rival offers 62 kW and 100 Nm more, BMW fans may argue that it would be fairer to compare the Bimmer’s outputs with the Benz’s non-EQ-boosted figures (330 kW/560 Nm), so 45 kW and 60 Nm less. Also, note that the BMW, at R1 499 607 (June 2025), costs R587k less than the Benz.

The CLE53 Coupe has a 9-speed automatic transmission, mated with a fully variable AMG Performance 4Matic+ all-wheel-drive system. The 0-100 kph sprint is said to take 4.2 sec (compared with the BMW M440 xDrive’s 4.5 sec), while, like the Bimmer, the CLE53 Coupe’s top speed is electronically limited to 250 kph (if you pay R41 500 for the optional AMG Driver’s Package that figure will increase to 270 kph).

In South Africa, standard features for the CLE53 include items like AMG Ride Control suspension, rear-axle steering, 19-inch AMG 10-spoke light-alloy wheels, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, electrically adjustable (and heated) front seats, a rear-view camera, wireless smartphone charging and the MBUX multimedia system.

Meanwhile, several options are available, including a handful of exterior styling packs (headlined by the “AMG Exterior Carbon-Fibre Package I” for R64 500) and various wheel designs (culminating in 20-inch AMG cross-spoke forged wheels for R52 000).

There are also plenty of individual extras on offer, such as a panoramic sliding sunroof (R33 000), the AMG Performance Seat Package Advanced (R52 000), a head-up display (R23 000) and a Burmester 3D surround-sound system (R26 000).