Due to go on sale in 2025 as a 2026 model, the CLA is a sporty-looking coupe-sedan and the first of a family of cars and crossovers built around a new electrified MMA platform. Though the car CEO Ola Källenius drives in the video is an EV, the former AMG chief confirms that hybrid versions will also be available. We’ve run spy shot stories on the CLA before, but the ‘official’ spy video and images released with it today give us our best look yet at the production version of the 2023 CLA Concept. And Källenius even pulls off some of the headlamp disguise to reveal the star-shaped DRLs in the front headlights, which look like white versions of the rear LEDs on the E-Class.
Though the video feels like it was made
for an audience of seven-year-olds and is frustratingly light on details, we
can glean some meaningful info on the CLA. The doors, for instance, feature
frameless glass to give a coupe feel, and the huge panoramic roof bathes the darkly upholstered cabin in light. We don’t get to see
the dashboard, but Källenius shows us the automaker’s new AI voice assistant
tech. It comes with the MB.OS software that makes its debut on the CLA and
helps you control the car’s functions to save you from getting distracted with
touchscreen menus.
He also reveals that the electric CLA’s
two-speed transmission is the secret to some incredible efficiency figures,
though stops short of telling us the motor and battery stats or giving us a
range figure. But based on what Mercedes told us about the CLA concept we can
expect 800-volt electrics and 250 kW charging speeds that will enable the sedan
to gain 400 km of range within just 15 minutes of a plug being
attached.
The concept was powered by a lightweight
235 hp electric motor and delivered an overall driving range
exceeding 750 km, though no doubt Mercedes will offer multiple
power levels. We also recently learned that the hybrid version of the CLA will
get a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four built by China’s Geely.
