With sales of the 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class Coupe set to commence later this summer, production of the odd-looking, coupe-like SUV kicked off this week. Introduced at the 2015 North American International Auto Show->ke222, the first customer-ready versions of the GLE Coupe started rolling off the assembly line at Mercedes-Benz->ke187’s Tuscaloosa, AL plant, which just happens to be a five-hour drive from the Greer, SC assembly plant where the GLE Coupe’s main rival, the BMW X6, is built.

Love it or hate it, the 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class Coupe will be an interesting addition to the luxury SUV landscape when it hits dealerships, but Mercedes has yet to reveal final pricing or fuel economy ratings. Look for the GLE-Class Coupe to start somewhere in the mid-$60,000 range, considering that this model is a more style-driven version of the GLE-Class – the recently introduced replacement for the M-Class, which started at $48,300 for the 2015 model year.

The GLE Coupe will be assembled alongside the C-Class->ke1593 sedan as well as the GLE-Class->ke4971 and GLS-Class->ke3886 SUVs. Mercedes-Benz is referring to this year as its “year of the SUV->ke145,” and the sales numbers back that up as its SUV sales are already up about 32 percent through the first quarter of 2015.

Continue reading to learn more about the new Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe.

Why it matters

When it finally hits dealers, the 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class Coupe will initially launch as the 362-horsepower GLE450 AMG 4MATIC Coupe, which will be the first of the mid-range AMG Sport lineup, or the 577-horsepower Mercedes-AMG GLE63 Coupe.

Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe

Read our full review of the 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class Coupe here.