Mercedes-Benz CLA review

The electric Mercedes-Benz CLA, offering next-generation of everything, from batteries to MB-OS supercomputer specs and artificial intelligence lurking behind the dash. Actually it’s lurking in the Mercedes-Benz ‘intelligent cloud’, but you get the idea.

It’s apparently the cleverest car Mercedes has ever made, but more practically it’s an electric Mercedes that offers monster range and conveniently rapid charging from a new NMC battery, and doesn’t look like a bar of lightly-used soap.

We’re talking 484 miles of WLTP range from 85kWh of usable cells, excellent efficiency across the board, a two-speed gearbox (more on that later) and the ability to ferret out the closest hipster coffee shop that serves matcha-latte but also allows dogs. This we will explain when we get to the Interior section.

It just looks… like a slightly swoopier CLA. 

Which is kind of the point. This is Mercedes delivering change while not spooking the conservative horses. A mid-sized, four-door saloon with decent proportions and a slight obsession with… er… stars. Yep, this is the most starry Merc ever.

Look closely and they’re absolutely everywhere; the optional multibeam LED headlights have star-shaped running lights (standard ones have a chrome bit in a star shape), and the taillights are also starry, while the electric car’s nose features 142 individually animated stars for that Dubai-nighttime feel.

The combustion-engined hybrid has a more trad grille, but it still has a star. The interior has lots of stars – there’ll be a star-studded electrochromic glass roof in the forthcoming CLA Shooting Brake – and there’s the general feeling that maybe Merc got a bit carried away.

But still, it’s handsome enough in a slightly anonymous way. Offence would be hard to come by, but desire might also be a bit of an overstatement.

What about the electric bit?

We’ll be getting the hybrid CLA (and the estate/Shooting Brake version) a bit later, but for now, we get the pure electric one in two different formats: the 250+ with rear-wheel drive and the 350+ 4Matic with all-wheel drive. Although the higher-powered one arrives slightly later.

The 250 comes with a single 268bhp rear-mounted motor and the biggest efficiency scores, the 350 adds a front motor to give around 350bhp. Both use the same 85kWh (usable) NMC battery, and the 250 manages those impressive figures: if you option the right wheels and drive like a laboratory technician, some 484 miles of WLTP range is available. A smaller 58kWh LFP battery will be offered later for those with more urban-centric needs.

That’s getting close to ICE range – how’s it doing that?

With the application of marginal gains. The battery is 20 per cent more energy dense than a battery with purely graphite nodes – this one has silicon-oxide/graphite – so you’ve got more energy to use.

The rear-motor has a two-speed ‘box, but unlike something like a Porsche Taycan or Audi e-tron GT, it’s not necessarily for off-the-line speed – more an overdrive to keep the motors spinning at their most efficient rpm when on a motorway.

The multi-source heat pump is air-to-air and uses about a third of the energy of a traditional auxiliary heater, and the underfloor is completely flat, too. Even the rear suspension has aero-shrouding to manage airflow.

It’s also very parsimonious when it comes to energy recuperation from the braking system. It’s an integrated efficiency buffet that all contributes to a car that uses every last erg of energy to max effect. Pretty much what you would hope all electric cars do, but don’t.

What’s the experience like?

Solid. The CLA is an easy car to get good range from. Add to that 320kW of charging ability and you’re looking at 201 miles of range in ten minutes, 10-80 per cent charge in 22. That’s very good.

The downside of the gestalt is a car that’s a bit vanilla to drive. It’s fast enough, rides well, does everything you expect it to, but lacks much character, even for an EV.

In fact, the experience is definitely canted towards the on-board electronics, featuring as it does artificial intelligence from Google and Microsoft in the new MB-OS, something that operates in a way that allows for complex interrogation of the Virtual Assistant. Which apparently can sense moods and actually has a short-term memory.

Sounds a bit like it might end up taking over the world and eliminating its inefficient human masters, but in practice it works well.

Any stiff competition?

Small segment this, because SUVs and crossovers have been hogging the limelight on Planet Electric. The CLA’s closest rivals are the Tesla Model 3 and BMW i4, which are similar sizes but bookend the Merc on price: the former is cheaper, the latter dearer. Neither gets close on range.

Then you’ve got the Polestar 2 and Hyundai Ioniq 6 to think about. The VW ID.7 is bigger, and priced accordingly.

The CLA 250+ is £45,615 but you can push that over £50k if you ascend the trim ladder. Pricing for the 350+ remains TBC, and the same goes for the Shooting Brake and hybrids that will follow.

A hugely sensible and technologically interesting car from Mercedes-Benz, but one that lacks the sparkle to make it a no-brainer. The driving is perfectly acceptable, but ‘fine’ is a lacklustre epithet.

The AI and tech works very well, and it’s a handsome enough saloon, but the thing that stands out is the sheer convenience. Moderate performance but big range and fast-charging will make all the difference when it comes to living with this thing, and it’ll be an absolute beast at numbing those boring journeys.

The estate also looks nicer, but gets all the same kit, so that will be worth waiting for.