talk about Mercedes-Benz CLA and not to speak of style is to ignore the essence of your being—it is largely because of your style that your commercial success is due; over 700,000 CLA were produced during its first generation.
I confess, I was never a fan of first generation design. Despite the “stage presence”, the imbalances in its volumes, the visual excesses of some parts, and the general lack of… finesse were evident — (fortunately) the second generation corrected all these points.
More achieved proportions — greater balance between front and rear, and width and height —, more refined surfaces and greater cohesion between the parts and the whole, ended up generating a more harmonious, fluid and elegant design.
Mercedes calls it the Coupé, although it is not, but it has a style that refers to that typology, especially for the pronounced arch that defines the volume of the cabin.
Still, the rear is still hard to accept due to the shape of its optics and how they are integrated (a problem inherited from the CLS), but overall, we are in the presence of a visually superior and much more appealing car — the epithet of mini -CLS is more deserved than ever.
To really understand the evolution that is the design of the new CLA, put it, in “live and in color”, alongside its predecessor — it's as if the first CLA started to suffer from premature aging.
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As usual, and as has happened in so many tests — Kia Proceed, BMW X2, Mazda3, etc. — the speech is repeated. When styling is so dominant, it's the practical aspects that suffer — the Mercedes-Benz CLA is no different… Accessibility and available space in the rear are lacking, as does visibility:
Access to the rear seats is poor (be careful with your head); and space at the back in height is not plentiful — people who are 1.80 m and correctly seated, already have their heads touching the ceiling. Seat for a third passenger? It's better to forget, it's not worth it…
Moving on to the front seats, space is not lacking, but nothing distinguishes it from the other Class A from which it derives. However, this interior, debuted in 2018 in Class A, was the proverbial “rock in the pond”. It embraced digital as we had never seen a “conventional” builder do, leaving behind “old” paradigms, resulting in a new and distinct design.
It remains unique in the segment, although its exuberance, provided by expressive ventilation outlets or even ambient lighting, may not be to everyone's taste.
It contrasts a lot with the exterior, lacking some elegance, fluidity and even class, in the options taken — more cyberpunk than neo-classical; especially at night when we explore the possibilities for ambient lighting.
Another aspect that, at first, can be intimidating is the interaction with the very complete MBUX system, requiring some time until we are aware of how to do it effectively or the possibilities that it allows:
Two screens, numerous configuration and customization possibilities can be intimidating at first. Where is the information I need, or how I get there, is not as immediate as it should be.
The overall quality — materials and assembly — is at a good level, but not a benchmark. The optional panoramic roof (1150 euros) that equipped our unit proved to be a source of parasitic noise on more degraded floors, for example.
At the wheel
The tested Mercedes-Benz CLA 180 d will most likely be the best-selling version of the new generation. And as usual in the Stuttgart manufacturer, we are provided with numerous configuration/customization options, which can give rise to many different CLA 180 d, not only in terms of appearance, but even in terms of the driving experience.
The unit we tested had more than 8000 euros in options, but the highlights were the AMG Line (3700 euros), which in addition to enhancing the slender and dynamic lines it has, adds a lowered suspension and 18″ wheels wrapped in rubber to the CLA 225/45, which ended up determining a lot of his dynamic attitude as well.
The AMG Line comes with these sports seats, with integrated headrests. They proved to be excellent in lateral support, but they are not the most comfortable. They are firm, and the headrest is not very good for… resting the head (it is supported in a point in the center, without great stability).
It's easy to point fingers at the low-slung suspension and low-profile tires for the comfort level on board, which isn't the best, and the sports seats don't help either. The damping turns out to be somewhat dry, with “this” Mercedes-Benz CLA not being able to relax properly on the asphalt, even when driving on an IC or highway, transmitting too much of the road's imperfections to the passenger compartment — it's as if it were constantly jumping. And the rolling noise is also quite high.
Overall, there is some lack of refinement in the way the Mercedes-Benz CLA circulates, and we believe it has to do a lot with the particular specification of the model in question — it would be interesting to compare it with another CLA, without the AMG Line.
The panoramic roof is an option for 1150 euros, which lets in lots of light inside. On the degraded floor, we heard some complaints from him.
Curve on rails, but…
When it comes to exploring the chassis more fully, the lowered suspension and generous wheels make more sense. The suspension's dryness and the low profile of the tires translate into dynamic precision and an effective control of body movements, with an almost absence of rolling.
The front axle responds readily to our action on the not-quite round and somewhat thick steering wheel, with the CLA heroically resisting understeer — the chassis proves to be very effective. However, despite appearing to bend over rails, the experience itself turns out to be unsatisfactory, mainly due to its immovable and inert rear axle.
Also, truth be told, this CLA 180 d isn't a sports car, far from it — it's not a mini-CLA 35. With just 116 hp, the 1.5 Diesel block guarantees modest performance, more than enough for everyday use. Despite the illusory urgency it seems to have when starting the throttle, it's not an engine that reveals great aptitude for more enthusiastic paces.
It prefers stabilized speeds, on the open road, which are better suited to the somewhat narrow traffic lane it presents — it's not much use exploring the higher engine speeds, medium speeds are enough for a fast march.
It's accompanied by a good and fast seven-speed dual-clutch (7G-DCT) gear — we rarely “catch” it wrong — despite the lack of some of the assertiveness that characterizes it on the open road in the city. Our CLA 180 d had (small) paddles behind the steering wheel (and they turn with this one), but we quickly forgot about them, not inviting their use.
In the end, with more civilized rhythms, the engine revealed a moderate appetite, making consumption in the home of the 5.0-5.5 l/100 km . In town, with a lot of stop-and-go, he was around six, six low; and even considering the most enthusiastic abuses to the engine/chassis during the test, consumption barely rose beyond seven liters.
Is the car right for me?
Like the first Mercedes-Benz CLA, the second generation bets heavily on style and remains one of the main arguments in its favor — a more captivating alternative to the A-Class Limousine, the other three-volume saloon based on the MFA II, which although it treats the occupants of the second row better, it has a smaller trunk.
However, this particular CLA 180 d, due to its specification, seems somewhat lost on what it wants to be. The options that equip it not only enhance the sporty appearance, such as the dynamic capabilities (and limits) of the chassis, but underneath the bonnet there is an engine that doesn't want to know anything about "running around", feeling more at ease in rhythms. moderate and stabilized.
Maybe with another configuration it makes more sense and can even be more accessible — in this configuration it is more than 50 thousand euros, a high price.