With its new third-generation CLA, Mercedes-Benz is pushing the electric vehicle (EV) boat way out from the shore (at least in terms of range and charging) and yet also hedging its bets ever so slightly with the promise of a hybrid version of the all-new small sedan to placate the plug-phobes.
The design is proving a touch divisive (at least judging by social media responses). The overall shape is familiar enough, but the detailing at the front is vastly different, with a huge star-studded grille and new lights both front and rear, and not everyone seems to love it. It’s certainly less conventionally handsome than the current CLA.
But it’s refreshing to see an automaker using a new EV platform (called MMA, and sharing hardly anything with the old NGCC front-wheel-drive CLA platform) and some critical new technology (most of all the adaptable MB.OS software that controls pretty much all aspects of the car) in a compact sedan.
Why not an SUV, given that replacements for the current Mercedes EQB and EQA are on the way too? Well, it probably has something to do with efficiency.
The CLA isn’t really a coupe, despite Mercedes-Benz’s naming strategy and its frameless door glass. It’s a compact, sleek four-door sedan and that gives Merc’s aerodynamicists the chance to flex their wind-tunnel muscles, trimming the CLA’s wind resistance figure to an impressive 0.21Cd.
That allows Mercedes to then make the most of its new 85kWh lithium-ion battery, which uses silicon-oxide anodes for a 20 per cent boost in energy density – and some significant trimming of the car’s overall carbon footprint, says Mercedes-Benz.
All of that, combined with some knowledge gleaned from the ultra-long range Mercedes-Benz EQXX concept car, results in a new electric sedan from the three-pointed star brand that can travel for close to 800km on one charge.
Can it though? We went to Copenhagen to find out…
How much does the Mercedes-Benz CLA cost?
We simply don’t know yet.
The outgoing and entirely combustion-powered CLA (well, aside from the plug-in hybrid version) has a starting price in Australia of just over $75,000, so it’s likely that with all the expensive new tech, the new electric CLA will have a higher price tag than that.
Of course, mild-hybrid combustion powered versions will be cheaper than the EV, and the recently revealed Shooting Brake wagon version of the new CLA could return to Australia for the first time since the first generation.
We won’t know for certain until closer to the new CLA’s arrival date in the second half of 2026.
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What is the Mercedes-Benz CLA like on the inside?
In a tech-sense, the new CLA is really impressive inside. There’s a cliff-faced digital dashboard, which – if you get the optional passenger-side display – has essentially wall-to-wall screens and is clearly an evolution of the ‘stretched iPad’ dashboard layout of the current CLA.
Sadly, Mercedes-Benz – as with most automakers – has decided to throw most of the physical buttons and controls into a skip bin, but on the upside the new MB.OS software does seem to be on the ball, with fast responses to on-screen presses and swipes, and nice big icons for each menu item that mean you can generally catch them on the first stab when driving.
The optional three-spoke AMG steering wheel still uses hateful touch-sensitive controls, but an update with some proper buttons is on the way for that particular part, we’re told.
MB.OS allows you to do all sorts of things, such as downloading streaming services including Disney+ and YouTube to watch movies, along with games such as Angry Birds and Fortnite, and you can even connect your own PlayStation or Xbox controller to while away any time spent charging.
The digital voice assistant (and you can choose between Google Assistant, Microsoft and Mercedes-Benz’s own ‘Hey, Mercedes’ setup) seems a bit less stupid than many others. Meanwhile, the navigation – based on Google Maps, but with Mercedes-Benz’s own overlays on top – is very impressive.
Mercedes claims that MB.OS doesn’t just allow it to update the software over the air, it will in theory allow it to tweak and improve all of the CLA’s systems, from battery management to electronic driver aids, as the car ages.
On a physical level, the front of the cabin is nice, with high-backed bucket seats which are wonderfully comfortable, and lots of storage space in the doors and the centre console. The driving position feels a bit perched-up though, because of course the battery under the floor means that it can’t drop down all that much, but you do get used to it.
In the back, legroom is surprisingly good, but headroom is tight for anyone over 1.8 metres tall, plus the angle of the seat, and the high-set rear floor, means that your knees are way up in the air, and the backs of your legs left unsupported. The CLA might not really be a coupe, but it’s a bit coupe-like in the back.
There’s better news in the boot, where there’s 405 litres of relatively shallow luggage space, and another 101L in the very handy ‘frunk’ storage area in the nose. If you need more than that, wait for the new CLA Shooting Brake.
| Dimensions | Mercedes-Benz CLA |
|---|---|
| Length | 4723mm |
| Width | 2021mm |
| Height | 1468mm |
| Wheelbase | 2790mm |
| Cargo capacity | 405L (boot space) 101L (under-bonnet storage) |
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What’s under the bonnet?
The electric CLAs come with a choice of rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive powertrains. Here, we’re concentrating on the rear-drive CLA 250+, because that’s the one with the headline-grabbing range figure.
| Specifications | Mercedes-Benz CLA250+ with EQ Technology |
|---|---|
| Drivetrain | Single-motor electric |
| Battery | 85kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) |
| Power | 200kW |
| Torque | 335Nm |
| Drive type | Rear-wheel drive |
| Weight | 2055kg |
| 0-100km/h (claimed) | 6.7 seconds |
| Energy consumption (claimed) | 12.2-14.1kWh/100kmn |
| Energy consumption (as tested) | 14.4kWh/100km |
| Claimed range | 792km |
| Max AC charge rate | 11kW |
| Max DC charge rate | 320kW |
With 200kW of power and 335Nm of torque, the 250+ motor is right in the middle of the electric motor world, neither exceptionally powerful nor notably weak.
Mercedes-Benz has equipped the CLA with a two-speed transmission, instead of the more common single-speed reduction gear, which is meant to give the car better low-down sprinting capability and still allow it to cruise effortlessly at higher speeds.
That does partially work – and the transmission lives up to Mercedes-Benz’s promise of it being impossible to tell when the shifts occur – but an initial shove off the line gives way to fairly relaxed acceleration in the CLA 250+. It’s brisk, but you’d never call it very fast with a 6.7-second claimed 0-100km/h time.
Obviously, the two-motor, all-wheel drive CLA 350+ 4Matic is a touch more emphatic, hitting 100km/h from rest in a claimed 4.9 seconds, and feeling much punchier overall. Given that it loses out on only 20km of official range compared to the rear-drive 250+, the 350+ might just be the CLA of choice.
However, it is the 250+ that’s the range champion here, and Mercedes-Benz quotes an official figure of 792km on the WLTP test. That’s truly exceptional and way ahead of anything Tesla or BYD can claim. Does it stack up in the real world, though?
Well, yes, but with a couple of caveats. The biggest is that we were driving the CLA on roads around Copenhagen in Denmark, where the speed limits are low and heavily enforced. The lack of any big mountain ranges over which to climb also plays into the CLA battery’s hands when it comes to efficiency.
But assuming you’re not driving the backside off the car all the time, then yes that range is genuinely realistic. Certainly, based on our experience, you should be able to get at least 600-650km out of one charge, and 700km would be far from difficult.
That’s genuinely exceptional real-world range (and the 350+ isn’t all that far behind).
Mercedes-Benz says the CLA 250+ consumes between 12.2 and 14.1kWh/100km and that’s more or less what we managed, recording 14.4kWh/100km on our test drive.
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How does the Mercedes-Benz CLA drive?
Given that the CLA is at least sold and marketed as a coupe and equally given that it will also compete with BMW’s incoming ‘Neue Klasse’ electric 3 Series soon, it has a surprisingly soft setup.
It’s almost pillow-like at the top of the suspension travel, and while the weight (just over two tonnes for the 250+) means that it will drop a wheel quite hard into potholes, the CLA’s ride quality is really good, especially when it comes to ironing out city roads and their speed bumps.
Combine that with particularly good refinement and noise insulation when cruising, and you have a car that’s capable of making great use of its lengthy one-charge range. Stretch all the way to the far end of that 792km leash, and you should be able to step out pretty unruffled, thanks in part to the impressive front seats.
What the CLA isn’t is much fun to drive. Even in a 350+ version, in AMG-Line trim, and with Sport mode selected, the steering remains pretty mute, although the weighting of the power assistance feels good.
Danish roads are both slow and have long, slightly dull corners most of the time, so a full dynamic assessment of the CLA might have to wait until we get it on more familiar roads and put it to more of a challenge, but on this drive both versions felt tidy, well-sorted, but ultimately a bit inert.
On the few corners through which we could build up a bit of excitement, the limitation seems to be the weight of the battery pushing the CLA into understeer, which is exacerbated by that soft suspension allowing a bit more roll than you’d expect.
We’ll have to give the CLA a certain amount of the benefit of the doubt for now, on the dynamic front, but from what we’ve seen here the CLA feels a bit too remote to be much fun, but it’s certainly comfortable and a terrific long-haul cruiser.
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What do you get?
Full specifications for local versions of the new CLA will become available closer to launch, which is still at least a year away.
2025 Mercedes-Benz CLA equipment highlights:
- 14-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Wireless smartphone mirroring
- LED headlights and tail-lights
- 17-to-19-inch alloy wheels
- 10.25-inch digital instrument panel
- Advanced heat-pump
- Dual-zone climate control
- Adaptive cruise control
- Automated lane changing
- Multiple AI voice assistants
- Panoramic glass roof
To see how the Mercedes-Benz CLA stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool
Is the Mercedes-Benz CLA safe?
The new Mercedes CLA has not yet been independently assessed by Euro NCAP nor ANCAP, but we’d be pretty surprised if it turned out to be anything less than very safe indeed.
Dr Christian Goggler, who supervised the car’s safety design, told us that “safety is baked into the DNA of Mercedes” before going on to describe the new car’s gruelling safety testing regime, which included an astonishing 150 full physical crash tests, and many tens of thousands of computer simulation loops.
Beyond that, Mercedes still sends out investigators to inspect the scenes of real-life accidents involving its cars and does so in Europe, the US and India, garnering a huge archive of real-world safety data from which to draw.
As well as the expected electronic safety systems – adaptive cruise, lane-keeping steering with a new automated lane change, blind-spot monitoring, etc – the CLA also gets a new central front airbag to prevent head-to-head impact injuries between the two front-seat occupants, and a dedicated crush structure designed to protect the battery in the event of a crash.
There’s also a QR code just inside the charging flap, which gives emergency services instant access to the car’s safety sheet, including how to isolate the battery in the event of an emergency.
Standard safety equipment includes:
- Forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking
- Speed limit warning
- Lane centring
- Automated lane change
- Traffic sign recognition
- Rear parking sensors and camera
- Driver attention monitoring
- Adaptive cruise control with stop-go
To see how the Mercedes-Benz CLA stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool
How much does the Mercedes-Benz CLA cost to run?
Mercedes has a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty in Australia and the CLA’s battery will likely be warrantied for eight years or 160,000km.
Main dealer servicing will, of course, be fairly pricey as you’d expect with a premium brand. Mercedes-Benz offers three-, four-, or five-year inclusive servicing plans, which cost between $2000 and $3600 for compact electric models, although it hasn’t announced anything specific for the CLA yet.
As far as charging goes, as long as you’re doing most of your charging at home, and you have a decent electricity supply cost of around 16c per kWh, then you could do a full charge of the CLA’s 85kWh battery for just over $13.
That’s quite reasonable, but if the CLA’s massive one-charge range is realistic – and we think it is – then you’ll hardly need to charge up again for ages. In fact, given that the average Australian covers 33km per day in their car, and even taking a fairly realistic 700km real-world range, you wouldn’t need to charge up again for three full weeks.
That, helpfully, insulates you from public charging, which is just as well as there are still problems with that.
In order to give the CLA a massive 320kW DC fast-charging speed – able to give it back 310km of range in just 10 minutes if you can find a sufficiently powerful charger – Mercedes-Benz has given the car an 800-volt charging system. Which is fine – Audi, Porsche, Kia and Hyundai all use one of those too for fast-charging.
However, in the case of the CLA, its charger is only compatible with 800-volt charging points, which tend to be the newer and more powerful ones. It’s not compatible – unlike those other brands – with older 400-volt chargers, which rather limits your options when you’re out and about.
A fix for this is coming, so hopefully that arrives before the first cars land in Australia, or you’re going to struggle at times to find a charging point that will physically work with the car.
To see how the Mercedes-Benz CLA stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool
CarExpert’s Take on the Mercedes-Benz CLA
We must confess to being a touch disappointed with the CLA’s dynamics, at least from this limited assessment. For a supposedly sporty four-door coupe, it’s a bit ordinary to drive.
That said, the CLA’s winning hand is most definitely its exceptionally long range, which translates from official
test to real-world with surprising fidelity.
The looks are a touch divisive, but the cabin’s a good place to be, and the CLA is very refined indeed.
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