The first units of the third generation Mercedes-Benz CLS have rolled off the assembly lines at the automaker’s Sindelfingen facility near Stuttgart.

Supervising production and celebrating the assembly were the factory’s Site Manager, Michael Bauer (left), and Chairman of the Mercedes Sindelfingen Works Council Ergun Lümali (right), who posed with the first car that was manufactured.

“In 2003, with the CLS, Mercedes-Benz created a new vehicle segment that for the first time combined the elegance and dynamism of a coupe, with the comfort and functionality of a sedan”, the automaker said in a press release. “With the third generation of the CLS, Mercedes-Benz is now building more strongly than ever on the aura and unique character of this trendsetting model.”

The 2019 CLS is being put together on the same assembly line as the E-Class Sedan and Estate. The Sindelfingen facility, which is home to more than 25,000 employees, is where the S-Class Sedan, Coupe, and Cabriolet, Mercedes-Maybach, and AMG GT are also manufactured.

Unveiled at the end of last year, the third generation of the executive four-door coupe features a sleek styling and uses the latest E-Class’ platform and technologies.

Inside, the new CLS gets the optional wide-screen cockpit displays and borrows plenty of driving assistance systems from the larger S-Class, such as Active Steering, Brake, and Speed Limit Assists, Active Distance Control and others.

Powering the third-gen CLS are two diesel and two petrol engines, with outputs ranging between 286PS (282hp) in the 400d, and 463PS (456hp) in the AMG 53 range-topper.