TAKE a close look at Lewis Hamilton's Formula 1 car and there's a symbol just behind the cockpit that's very important to Mercedes-Benz.

It's the logo of EQ - a sub-company created by Mercedes to spearhead the German car maker's electrification programme.

And it's technology that is making its way from the five time world champion's hybrid race car to everyday Mercedes' models.

EQ, apparently, stands for Electric Intelligence and is derived from the brand's values of emotion and intelligence.

It's a name that is going to be applied to every Mercedes car that uses battery-electric power and the EQ line up has already arrived in the UK in the shape of the latest CLS 450 and S 500 models which have EQ Boost mild hybrid powertrains.

We have just tried out the EQ system in the new CLS - and it's impressive.

The CLS 450 is powered by the latest Mercedes 3.0-litre straight six petrol engine hooked up to a 48-volt electrical system comprising a starter/generator and a lithium ion battery.

The electronic assist cuts in only when needed and does so unnoticeably under acceleration. It adds some 22 extra horsepower and gives the CLS 450 a total power output of 367hp resulting in a lively 0 to 60 acceleration time of 4.8 seconds and a top speed limited to 155mph.

Crucially, the electric assistance system adds a huge amount of extra torque - 250Nm to be precise and that doubles the pulling power, giving great mid-range operation.

The real benefit comes with fuel economy and the system is capable of ‘sailing' - that's running the car with the combustion engine idle when cruising.

Officially the CLS 450 is rated at 36.2mpg with emissions of 184g/km - a significant improvement over the other 3.0-litre petrol model in the range, the Mercedes-AMG CLS 53.

And that is no idle boast. On our run in the CLS 450 we managed to exceed the official figure and saw an average of 36.6 to the gallon recorded on the trip computer.

Externally, the CLS 450 is no different to the rest of the CLS line up and the only real tell-tale that it has EQ Boost is with the instrumentation where there is an EQ power gauge at the bottom of the rev counter and a slightly different readout on the trip computer.

Mercedes has just updated the CLS range which now starts from £57,510 for the diesel powered CLS 350 d. The CLS 450 comes in just above and is priced from £57,460.

All models come with the Mercedes 4MATIC all-wheel-drive system as well as a nine speed automatic transmission.

The CLS 450 we tried came in at £64,260 with extras fitted including a Premium Plus pack which added a Comand online system with 12.3-inch display panel, a surround sound system and a 360 degree camera system.

It also came with a Driving Assistance Plus package that included active blind spot and evasive steering assistance as well as a semi-autonomous lane keeping and changing system.

All UK models come in AMG Line trim which includes 19-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery and an active suspension system.

The petrol versions have a 17.5 gallon fuel tank which reduces boot space to 490 litres from the 520 litres available in the diesels which have a smaller tank at 14.5 gallons.

As such, the CLS 450 should have a range of more than 600 miles and it remains a supremely stylish coupe-cum-GT with powertrain technology that is sure to be seen on other Mercedes models.