Words: Abhay Verma | Photography: Saidatta Naik
The Mercedes-Benz CLA is best remembered as a gorgeous-looking compact luxury sedan and the entry-point to the fascinating world of cars sporting the three-pointed star on their hood. Fast forward to 2026 and we have an all-new CLA that’s far from being ‘entry-level’. It’s also come to our shores as an EV this time, and the German luxury car maker is proudly calling it the most intelligent Mercedes-Benz yet. The car also boasts a claimed range of nearly 800km per charge, putting it right next its own elder siblings, the EQS SUV and sedan. Mercedes-Benz tells us there’s a lot more to the new CLA than just that staggering range though, and I spent a day behind its wheel to find out more.
Let’s talk about the design first, because the CLA was always devised to look good, and the new one takes that thought forward with its curvaceous design. It also boasts a drag coefficient of just 0.21, among the lowest, and made possible by its fully-covered underbody and suspension besides the design, including the closed-off grille, aero-optimised 18-inch wheels and flush door handles. There’s 142 ‘stars’ on the grille, illuminated individually, while the sleek-looking headlamps incorporate the three-pointed star prominently, besides being connected by an LED strip. The car looks even more arresting from the rear thanks to its coupe-esque roofline, pronounced ‘lip spoiler’, integration of the three-pointed star into the tail lamps, and frameless doors. It’s also the first Mercedes-Benz to be underpinned by the new MMA (Mercedes Modular Architecture, not the fighting league!), which is a skateboard platform and also will be used for future models.
Get inside and the upright dashboard grabs attention quickly. It’s almost like a vertical slab with lots of illuminated stars on the left, and two displays. We only drove the CLA 250+ which comes exclusively in the AMG Line trim and looks sporty with its all-black theme and brushed metal elements. There’s almost no physical buttons, but lots of touch panels, and the turbine-like vents look cool and classy. In fact, the entire cabin feels upmarket, and I really like the floating centre console too. Seats are comfortable and cabin space, especially at the rear, is impressive for a compact sedan. That said, the battery in the floor makes for a slightly ‘knees-up’ seating position, while the sloping roofline cuts into rear headroom. A large panoramic sunroof offers an airy feel, but lack of a sun shade will be a concern in summers. Besides the 405-litre boot you also get a 101-litre frunk, which is very impressive.
The new CLA’s biggest draw is the technology it packs in though. The car uses four supercomputers and is the first product to use the new MB.OS operating system. There’s an Nvidia processor too, and a new ‘MBUX Virtual Assistant’ that’s constantly monitoring the driver to learn about not just his driving but behaviour too! AI tools like Bing, Gemini and ChatGPT all are on standby as well for any and everything you may need on the go, right from the best cafes and restaurants around to how much charge you’ll need to get to a certain place and more. A new MB.Charge app lets you find chargers anywhere, with real-time availability, plan your trip and pay for charging. As for features, the 14-inch touchscreen lets you play games, both front seats are powered, heated and massaging, there’s dual-zone climate control, a Burmester 3D music system, a 360-degree parking camera and Level 2+ ADAS.
The CLA 250+ uses a rear-mounted motor juiced up by an 85.5kWh battery, and is good for 272PS and 335Nm. It is rear-wheel drive and claimed 0-100kmph time is just 6.7 seconds, but acceleration feels more progressive than aggressive. Sport mode is good fun and you also have the speakers play sounds to add to theatrics. There’s a 2-speed gearbox, but no, you cannot change gears! There’s a new, brake-by-wire system and brakes impressive with their progressiveness, though regen levels are now adjusted via the gear stalk, there are no paddle shifters here. The stalk also has the start/stop button now, which takes some getting used to. Acceleration and performance are impressive and the CLA feels quick, sporty and likeable as a driver’s car.
The throttle feels progressive and overall, there’s an engaging feel from behind the wheel. More importantly, the CLA boasts a claimed range of 792km and will do over 500km per charge in the real world, even with spirited driving. The 800V architecture helps you charge at speeds of up to 240kW and a range worth 400km is possible with just 20 minutes of charging. That said, 240kW chargers are still quite limited in the country! Mercedes-Benz has increased ground clearance and also tweaked the suspension for India, which means the CLA clears speed breakers easily and offers a good ride, which adds to its appeal.
Overall, there’s a lot to like about the new CLA and it feels like a quantum leap from the EQC, which was the first electric Mercedes in India, launched in 2020. Given the equipment levels, I’m expecting the CLA to retail at around ₹60 lakh ex-showroom onwards. That said, the features, range, performance and overall feel certainly have the new CLA feel very attractive, and I’m expecting it to click with young, tech-savvy buyers.
