The Mercedes CLK is a car that can reduce otherwise coherent people to a dreamy reverie. Like many other Mercedes models, it makes a good deal of sense, but it also factors in a massive dose of desirability. Even at the blunt end of the CLK hierarchy, the 'wow factor' is still served generously. The CLK 200K is a car that makes a BMW 3-Series Coupe look frumpy but which has more to offer than a neat set of togs.

Despite the '200' badge on the bootlid, the CLK200K is in fact powered by a mere four-cylinder 1.8-litre powerplant - but what a 1.8 it is. It utilises Mercedes' much vaunted Twinpulse technology to achieve the dual aims of better performance and lower fuel consumption. The 184bhp generated is even enough to give a vehicle as substantial as the CLK a deceptive turn of pace. Thanks to a specially developed Lanchester balancer shaft, refinement and acoustics are much closer to those of a six-cylinder engine than those of a four. Go for the badge-delete option, take your colleagues out and see if they can tell that you've gone for the four-cylinder model.

Another part of the Twinpulse recipe is an Electronic Control Unit that, through throttle pedal movements, recognises your driving style and adapts the drive characteristics of the engine Accordingly. If you're hard on the accelerator pedal, the ECU will do its best to accommodate you, sharpening up throttle response. If on the other hand, the computer detects a driver looking for comfort rather than speed, it harmonises the engine settings to suit, chamfering the edges off every rise and fall in revs.

"This Mercedes CLK feels a more grown up proposition..."

Thanks to the Kompressor supercharger fitted to the C200K, output is a hefty 184bhp - hardly enough to knock your socks off but respectable nevertheless. The performance is fair with rest to sixty attainable in 8.8 seconds on the way to 147mph. That's not quite as quick as the old-shape CLK 230K (which had 193bhp and made sixty in 8.3s) but it's not far off and in any case, the latest Twinpulse engine is much torquier. The only real drawback to original CLK 200K models used to be the thirst, but that's now been improved by some 12%. You'll now be able to average close to 33mpg.

The CLK200K Coupe is priced at £29,910 and the Cabriolet version is £33,510. The Mercedes feels a more grown up proposition than many of its direct rivals, however, lacking the brashness of the BMW 3-Series Coupe or the 'adultescent' feel of an Audi TT. That's not to say its future was always quite so assured. The CLK was in danger of being squeezed into irrelevance by Mercedes own product planning policies. The introduction of the C-Class Sports Coupe did for sales of entry-level CLK models like the one featured here, whilst the SLK and SL models made opting for upspec CLKs an act of intense soul searching.

The second generation CLK still has these issues to deal with but the arguments in its favour are a lot stronger given that it's a better car in every way than its predecessor. There are all kinds of reasons why but probably the most significant is the provision of a body that is a full 40% stiffer. We'll certainly see the advantages of that when the all-new Cabriolet version arrives in Summer 2003 (the old models with their old engines continue until then) but even in the Coupe, the benefits are impressive. Perhaps most significantly, the stouter platform has enabled the engineers to get rid of the centre pillar between the front and rear windows, a design cue that harks back to classic Mercedes coupe models of the Sixties.

Inside, the improvements are small but again, very significant. Where some of the trim in the original version felt a bit down-market, this car has much more in common with the larger S-class-based CL coupe and, like that car (but unlike the C-class Sports Coupe), can easily seat four adults in long distance comfort. The longer, wider and taller shape helps here, as does the decision to get rid of the central rear seat (instead there's a storage tray) and concentrate on pampering just two rear passengers properly. Even the entry-level CLK 200K is fitted with climate control for the air conditioning, automatic headlamps with washers, all-round electric windows, rain-sensing wipers, a height and reach-adjustable steering wheel, 'Speedtronic' cruise control, twin front, side and window airbags, Plus of course ABS with Brake Assist and the ESP stability control programme. There are three trim levels - Plush Elegance, sportier Avantgarde and the Sport - which is sportier still, as you may have guessed.

Although some may criticise its relatively pedestrian performance figures in what is a £30,000 coupe, the Mercedes CLK 200K offers a restrained and mature style with a surprising dash of practicality. No, it can't outsprint many cheaper rivals from the traffic lights, but it engenders such a feeling of security and quality that you won't care. This is a coupe for those who don't have anything to prove, a more cerebral choice that gets better the longer you spend with it. And how often can you say that of something this pretty?