GWM Cannon vs Mercedes-Benz CLS350 (2025)

It’s often said the poor man pays twice, and there’s no doubt that some budget cars are destined to be throwaways once the warranty period expires (which doesn’t explain paper drinking straws). The GWM Cannon doesn’t give off that vibe. Rather, it stands out as a way to get nearly all of the experience of a similar vehicle costing $20,000 or even $30,000 more.

We’d like dual-zone climate-control, a shifter that shifts manually, and the driver assistance programs need polish. But the fundamentals are there and its fair to say the Cannon has never been a bigger threat to the dual-cab establishment.

The specification of the flagship model seems odd to us, but this car, the Ultra is destined to be the volume seller anyway and, viewed through that prism, along with the improved performance and towing, the whole Cannon ute thing starts to gel.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals provided.

As mid-cycle refreshes (read: facelifts) go, this is a biggie. Even the way the company refers to its product has changed and what was the GWM Ute is now officially the GWM Cannon. Beyond the semantics, the facelifted Cannon is slightly bigger, has a new look inside and out, gets more performance and towing capacity.

The size increase amounts to an extra 6mm in length and 13mm in width, but GWM admits that’s all in the bumpers and the fender flares. If anything, the overall look is a bit more subtle, with a new bonnet, grille, fog lights, flares and a new tailgate with the GWM logo embossed into it. Even so, there’s a still a suspicion that GWM doesn’t mind if folks look at the Cannon and imagine a full-sized American pick-up.

Inside, the trend of twin screens continues, this time with a pair of same-size 12.3-inch screens; one for the driver’s information and a central one for everything else. A rectangular theme makes up the dashboard’s elements including the basic structure and even the shape of the air vents.

Getting the vehicle to handle ever increasing payloads and towing limits has called for constant revisions in cooling systems, suspension and, most recently, the vehicle’s body-on-chassis structure to improve capacity while still meeting in-house and engineering requirements.

Thenew-generation CLShas arrived looking slipperier than a cake of soap on the bottom of the bath. This model has always had svelte styling, but things have become even smoother with Benz’s design chief Gorden Wagener insisting more lines be removed in the creation of this latest version.

So, while there’s the familiar profile of that roof tapering down into the boot lid, the long rear overhang and that sliver of a window opening arching and turning down sharply at the rear, it's a more flowing design now that there arelessedges to break it all up.

A new ‘shark nose’ grilleopening,and broad bonnetaddsa hunk of muscle car toughness to the CLS’s face. But it’s refined thuggery, with that single-louvered ‘diamond studded’ grille flanked by flush-mounted headlights. The tail-lights, too, are so contoured to the body around them they look painted on.

AsCarsGuidesenior editor Matt Campbell pointed out in his review of the CLS at the international launch, the car looks far better in the metal than it does in any photo.

The CLS is based onthe E-Class, sharing its platform and technology, but it’s about 20mm longer (at 4988mm) end-to-end. That’s almost 50mm longer than the previous generation CLS, too. At just over 1.4m tall the CLS is low-slung but wide at 1.9m across (almost 2.1m including mirrors).

The CLS’s cabin mirrors that of the E-Class, too, with a sweeping dashboard which flows through into the doors, two large landscape displays for your instruments and media, an oversupply of air vents and some darn sexy lighting. It’s a luxurious, stylish, comfortable, but snug setting cocooned by padded leather and polished surfaces.

The Australian CLS has been fitted standard withthe AMGinterior and exterior packages.

You can pick from 11colours– eight of which are no-cost options and include, 'Polar White', 'Obsidian Black', 'Iridium Silver', 'Citrine Brown', 'Graphite Grey' and 'Cavansite Blue'. Optionalcoloursinclude 'Hyacinth Red' and 'Selenite Grey Magno'.

Having twin screens of the same size in the cabin makes for a techy look, but in reality, the centre screen is less than perfect. That’s because it’s clearly made for a left-hand-drive car and some of the menu items are w-a-y over to the left, out of reach for a driver of normal stature. The script is also pretty small in places, and those who wear reading glasses might find it all a bit indecipherable, especially on the move.

That Top-Gun T-bar shifter is also a bit confusing at first thanks to the Park button placement, but it’s also a bit baffling when you can’t work out how to select gears manually even though you’ve shifted into M (Manual) mode. There just doesn’t seem to be any way to get the shifter to, er, shift. And that’s because it doesn’t. Instead, you use the shifter to select Manual mode and then use the paddle shifters on the steering wheel to actually change the gears.

The front centre console is home to a single USB-A and USB-C charging port as well as a 12-volt outlet, and there are plenty of storage cubbies around the cabin. The interior plastics on the Ultra, meanwhile, actually feel better than they look. The door cappings, especially, look a bit hard and brittle but are actually quite compliant to the touch. Our other observation would be that the standard sunroof opening is actually quite small and there seems to be lots of buffeting from it at speed.

The rear seat is better than some dual-cabs by having a more rational back-rest angle, and there’s lots of foot-room under the front chairs. There’s also plenty of head-room in the back, mainly because the roof lining dips up at the point the sunroof stops (perhaps explaining the small sunroof opening). Rear seat passengers will also appreciate the pair of charging ports, central air vents and the fold-down armrest.

The tray of the Cannon is competitively sized (and, crucially, will accept a standard pallet between the wheel arches) but the spray-on bedliner looks a bit half-finished at its edges; almost as if the masking process before spraying was rushed. Still, the sprayed-on surface itself is grippy and feels like it would be fairly durable. Our biggest complain would be a lack of tie-down points. There are two up front which are too high to be really useful, and two in the rear corners. The problem there is that heavy loads which need the lower tie-downs would ideally be placed farther forward in the tray, not right at the back.

There’s some nice thinking with the damped tailgate, though, and the bonnet also lifts on gas struts which is a bit of a novelty on this type of vehicle. The fold-out tailgate step is another neat touch and is easy to use, even if it’s still a decent step up to get a foot squarely on it. And the sports bar? About as useful as anybody else’s version of the same thing. Which is to say, not very.

The new, bigger engine has enabled GWM to bump the Cannon’s towing maximum to a competitive 3500kg with a braked trailer. All variants apart form the XSR also have a 995kg payload which is also among the better figures in this class of vehicle.

Remember how I said you were going to have to surrender something if you wanted a CLS? Well, yes, you’vehaveto surrender your hard-earned money, but you’ll also have to give up quite a bit of practicality.

That swooping roofline makes entry into the front seats a bit precarious for people of my height (191cm) trying to swing themselves into the cockpit without clocking their heads on the A-pillar.

The impracticality only gets worse with entry into the back seats, and legroom in there for me is tight, too.

I can only just sit behind my driving position thanks to the contoured seat backs. Headroom is also limited.

It’s worth pointing out that this time the CLS is a five-seater – the previous generation sat just four.

Storage isn’t bad, running to a deepcentreconsole bin with a split lid, there are two cupholders up front and another two in the rear fold-down armrest along with another covered drawer, and all doors have small bottle holders.

The CLS’sboot capacity is 520litres, and the rear seats fold 40/20/40 to provide extra space.

GWM’s pricing for the Cannon was already pretty sharp, and when it took the axe to its price list late last year, the most basic Cannon became a $35,490 drive-away proposition. An obvious move to clear stock that would soon have the wrong year on its build-plate, the policy sure created some interest in the Cannon range as a whole.

Value for money is a major selling point with a vehicle like this, so how does the upgraded Cannon stand up? Pretty darn well, actually, and with a starting price of $40,490 you can forget about astripped out specification or, indeed, having to pay more for a dual-cab layout or all-wheel drive.

Inside, you’ll find single-zone climate-control (with rear outlets), a wireless phone charger, power windows, the new 12.3 inch touchscreen,digital radio, voice command and artificial leather trim (seats and steering wheel), Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (which paired with my often recalcitrant phone seamlessly).

Eighteen-inch alloy wheels are standard, along with a chrome sports bar, auto LED headlights, auto high-beam, LED indicators and tail-lights, roof rails, power-folding exterior mirrors, side steps,damped tailgate,keyless entry and a spray-in bedliner.

The Ultra – and the version we’ve actually driven here - is next at $43,490 and adds leather-accented seats which are also heated and ventilated, a heated steering wheel, auto power windows, a six-way electrically adjustable driver’s seat (four-way for the passenger) ambient interior lighting and a light in the front footwells. Tinted rear windows are another Ultra addition, as is a tailgate step and, crucially, an electric sunroof.

Next step up is the Vanta at $45,490 which is fundamentally an Ultra with extra black bits. It’s identified by blacked-out alloy wheels, as well as a black sports bar, black side steps, and matt black wheel arches, exterior mirrors and door handles.

GWM tells us that the Ultra and Vanta are likely to be the big volume sellers.

The flagship Cannon is the XSR and $49,990 buys you a different grille, snorkel, stronger side-steps better able to tackle rocky tracks, and body-coloured mirrors and door handles.But a fair bit of the extra asking price goes towards an alternative driveline which we’ll cover in the under the bonnet section.

What’s missing? The lack of dual-zone air-con on any of the upper-spec models seems a bit strange, and a head-up display would be welcome.

Benz has dropped the 250d grade, which means you can no longer have your CLS with adiesel engine. That also means the new entry fee is higher with the CLS 350 kicking the line-up off at $136,900 (list price).

You’ll be rewarded with a decent amount of equipment for the outlay, though. Coming standard on the CLS 350 are those two 12.3-inch screens, a head-up display, a 13-speaker Burmester stereo,sat nav,Apple CarPlay and Android Auto,digital radio, surround view camera, leather upholstery, heated front seats, 'Brown Ash' wood trim on the centre console, wheel-mounted shifting paddles, AMG exterior and interior packages,auto-parking,20-inch AMG wheels, air suspension, proximity key and privacy glass.

The CLS 450 4Matic lists for $155,529 and adds air filtering in the cabin, power closing doors, a sports exhaust system andall-wheel drive.

At the top of the three-grade range is the Mercedes-AMG CLS 53 4Matic+ for $179,529. The extra money buys younappaleather upholstery, wireless charging, the ‘Night’ body kit, an AMG exhaust system, and of course, a lot more grunt which you can read about below.

The engine bay is the scene of perhaps the biggest improvements GWM has made to this vehicle. While the previous version’s eight-speed automatic was good enough, there was a feeling out there that the 2.0-litre turbocharged engine with its 120kW and 400Nm was seen as a bit marginal when fully loaded or hitched up to a decent-sized trailer.

So, the new 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel (lifted from the Cannon’s Alpha big brother) makes for 15kW extra (135kW) and a meaningful 80Nm boost to take torque to 480Nm. The eight-speed automatic is now a nine-speed unit.

The basic four-wheel-drive system of the Cannon is a permanent one which constantly drives all four wheels. (Unless, that is, you engage the Eco drive mode which disconnects the front axle to save fuel). The dual-range transfer-case gives low-range ratios for off-roading and there are multiple drive modes including Standard, Sport and Eco. An electronic rear differential lock is also standard.

But the flagship makes the move to a part-time all-wheel-drive set-up which, to some may seem like a backward step as it removes the option to use high-range four-wheel-drive on the bitumen, which is a huge plus when towing on a damp road, for instance. Instead, the XSR can select two or four-wheel drive as well as the same choice of high or low range.

Fundamentally, unless you’re on a slippery, off-road surface, the XSR must stay in rear-wheel-drive only. But you do what GWM calls All Terrain Response which includes Mud, Snow and Sand modes, as well as an extra drive called Expert, which allows the driver to tailor various responses. The off-road orientation of the XSR model also dictates a front differential lock.

Front suspension on all Cannons is independent by coil springs, while the solid rear axle is suspended by leaf springs.

If you’ve skipped straight to this bit you’ll have missed news that there’s no longer adiesel enginein the CLS line-up. Instead you have a choice of three petrol engines – one for each grade and all of them are new to the model.

The CLS 350 has a 2.0-litre four-cylinderturbo-petrolengine producing 220kW/400Nm. That grunt is delivered to therear wheelsvia anine-speed automatic.

The CLS 450 4Matic has a 270kW/500Nm 3.0-litre in-line six-cylinder engine with a twin-scroll turbo and like the Mercedes-AMG 53 above it has an integrated electric motor called an EQ Boost. While it’s a hybrid system of sorts the electric motor doesn’t drive the wheels, instead it recuperates kinetic energy and charges the battery.

The CLS 450 uses thenine-speed auto, as well, and isall-wheel drive.

The Mercedes-AMG CLS 53 4Matic has the same transmission and engine as the CLS450 but has been given a heftier twin-scrollturbo chargingsystem and tuned to produce even more grunt at 320kW/520Nm. The 'EQ Boost' performs the same function as in the CLS 450, but also provides power to an electric turbocharger.The Mercedes-AMG CLS 53 4Matic is also all-wheel drive and uses a nine-speed automatic.

Get this: Despite more power and torque, the official combined fuel economy figure has fallen a whole litre from 9.4 litres per 100km for the old car to 8.4 litres for the new version. That also means lower tailpipe emissions.

Speaking of which, the engine in the Cannon is Euro 5 compliant (rather than Euro 6) so it doesn’t require AdBlue. Taking into account the 78-litre fuel tank and the real-world fuel consumption figure of 10 litres per 100km, bank on a theoretical range of around 750km before you need to find a service station.

This is a good place to remind you (again) that only one CLS grade was available to drive at the Australian launch – the CLS 450, and we were only given the claimed fuel economy figures for that model.

After 197km through, on a route that bumper to bumpered its way out of Melbourne CBD and headed the long way to the airport via Woodend. our car’s trip computer was reporting close to anaverage of 10.0L/100km.

On the road, it doesn’t take long to appreciate the benefits of the new, torquier engine. Although there’s a little diesel clatter at idle and a slightly gruff soundtrack beyond that, it all soon smooths out above about 1200rpm. From there, it’s quite a rush as the engine is clearly tuned for bottom-end torque rather than top-end rush and, in this type of vehicle, that makes perfect sense.

If anything, the nine-speed transmission seems a little hesitant to set sail until there’s some boost for the taking, and this can feel a bit weird when you’re trying to merge into freeway traffic or jump into a space in traffic. The gearbox also reveals itself to be a bit too keen to hold on to the current gear when your throttle position and speed suggest a shift up would be logical. That said, when it does upshift, the shift quality is extremely good with a crispness that means the multiple gears never seem an overwhelming number.

The ride only starts to get rowdy on faster, really bumpy sections where the leaf-spring rear axle starts to run out of reaction time, but below that threshold, the Cannon rides remarkably sanely and corners relatively flatly into the bargain.

Our main gripe is with the steering, but only in terms of the driver-assistance dumbing down of the whole experience. With the lane-keeping assistance switched off, the steering reveals itself to be fairly neutral with a slight dead-spot at the straight-ahead (normal enough for off-road vehicles). But with lane-keeping active, the Cannon’s constant corrections and nudging at the tiller will drive you mad. It’s too sensitive, too aggressive and too insistent, and we suspect GWM knows it.

Certainly, the brand professes to be constantly refining these assistance packages but it’s also fair to say that some carmakers simply have a better grasp of this tech.

Off road, the Cannon is a pretty sure bet to take you anywhere 99 per cent of the population will want to go 99 per cent of the time. The limiting factor here will be the tyres, and with a pretty non-aggressive tread pattern on the standard hoops, the first thing most adventurous owners will do will be to fit a set of All Terrains and tick that box for that last one per cent of ability.

A reminder again, folks – Mercedes-Benz only had the CLS 450 available to drive. Okay? On with the review…

Nobody likes a traffic jam, apart from maybe taxi drivers. But sitting in a CLS deep in Melbourne’s CBD, stuck in road-work-infested roads, choked with cars going nowhere was as pleasant as the experience could be.

Plush seats, pretty lighting, air filtered and fragranced, air suspension cushioning the patchy tarmac underneath as we wriggled our way north towards Mount Macedon and country roads.

If you read another review calling out a large degree of wind noise filtering into the cabin, they’re right and wrong. See, the weather was apocalyptic as we hit the motorway. Trees doubled over kind of windy, and sure you could hear it rushing past the windows when we were at 110km/h, but you could also hear it clearly when we were at 30km/h.

I like gadgets and so it was about 15 seconds into the motorway stint that I tested out the active cruise control, and automatic lane changing, which works near perfectly.

As the roads became more winding, I switched drive modes to 'Sport', firming up the suspension and steering, at the same time prompting the transmission to kick back into a lower gear.

This is a stable-feeling car, well balanced and effortless to steer. Smoothness is a word for everything it does, including covering the ground quickly.

While that acceleration is rapid, it’s not quite exhilarating, and the engine note under load is a little high pitched for a thug like this.

CLSs of the past were known for being a bit more aggressive and feistier, but this one seems to have mellowed in its third generation. I don’t see any issues with this. There are other angrier Benzs if that’s your thing.

Now, here’s an odd situation. Normally, paying more for a higher-grade model means getting more of everything including safety. In the new Cannon, that isn't necessarily so. But we’ll get to that.

Meantime, the cheaper versions of the Cannon are fairly bristling with modern safety gear, starting with the centre airbag that so many manufacturers are still waiting to fit. That takes the airbag total to seven with side-curtain airbags for every outboard passenger.

There’s also a reversing camera, rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, trailer-sway mitigation, hill ascent and descent, traffic sign recognition, rear collision warning and a driver-fatigue monitoring system.

The entry-level Cannon (and the next two grades) also get the latest driver assistance aids, too, starting with autonomous emergency braking (AEB), blind-spot monitoring, traffic-jam assist, lane-keeping assistance, rear cross-traffic warning and braking and junction-assist braking. There’s also a program called 'smart dodge' which moves the car away from vehicles changing lanes on top of it. It’s also worth mentioning that the AEB works at all speeds and is capable of recognising both pedestrians and cyclists.

Both the Ultra and Vanta include a 360-degree camera rather than the simpler reverse camera of the Lux, an auto-dimming interior mirror and front parking sensors.

So what about the XSR, then. Well, according to GWM, the layout of the XSR precludes the fitment of some driver aid technology. So it LOSES emergency lane keeping, rear collision warning, blind-spot detection, lane-change assist, smart dodge, and rear cross-traffic alert and braking.

So come on GWM, what’s that about? Apparently, it’s all to do with the shape of the rear bumper of the XSR which is designed to offer improved departure angles when off-road. Okay, but that doesn’t change that you’re paying more for less. And when that less is safety, that’s really hard to fathom.

This version of the Cannon hasn’t been ANCAP tested, but the previous model has, and scored the full five stars. GWM, meanwhile, isn’t obliged to re-test this version, and has no plans to do so, confident instead that the previous model’s results and the documentation it has provided will convince the test authorities to extend those five stars to this car.

The second generation CLS was never crash tested and this new one has yet to be as well. So, while it hasn’t been given anANCAP star rating, given it shares so much with the five-star rated E-Class we’d expect it to score nothing less than that, too.

Along with nine airbags, ABS, andtraction and stability controlthe level of advanced safety equipment onboard the new CLS is seriously impressive. There’s the 'Driving Assistance package Plus' which bringsAEBwith cross traffic function, evasive steering,blind spot warningwith an active function and lane keeping assistance.

For child seats you’ll findtwo ISOFIX mountsand three top ether anchor points.

The Cannon ute comes with GWM’s standard factory warranty of seven years/unlimited kilometres. That’s not quite industry-leading any longer, but it’s still a heck of a lot ofpeace of mind. You also get five years of roadside assistance that applies anywhere in Australia.

GWM also offers capped-price servicing for the first five years with major and minor services included. There’s no word on the cost of that yet, but GWM told CarsGuide that the price would not be dramatically different from the previous model’s capped-price scheduled maintenance. That suggests somewhere around the $360 per service mark.

There’s a first service due at six months or 5000km, and then regular services every 12 months or 10,000km after that.

The CLS is covered by Mercedes-Benz’sthree-year/unlimited kilometre warranty. Servicing is recommended every 12months/25,000km for the CLS 350 and CLS 450, while the CLS 53, like all AMGs needs to visit at 12month/20,000km intervals.

Mercedes-Benz says a capped price servicing plan will be available, but has yet to release the prices. We’ll update this as soon as the costs have been announced.