The New, All-Electrical CLA Places Mercedes Again On The EV Map

I did not thoughts Mercedes‘ EQ line of electrical fashions. The EQS, the EQE, and the SUVs that put on the identical title. All of them had fantastic qualities that had me having fun with them whereas I had them in my possession for evaluations. However additionally they by no means felt nice. Sport-changing. Revolutionary. They positively did not really feel like The Finest or Nothing.

Looking back, every Mercedes electrical car (EV) I reviewed had me severely questioning the place my cash went. The automobiles supplied good vary, however the week after driving them, I might hop inside, say, a Hyundai Ioniq 5, or a Kia EV6, and I might shatter the Merc’s vary figures. These automobiles may additionally cost quicker on DC quick chargers. And neglect evaluating the EQ fashions with different costly EVs. Tesla Mannequin S, Lucid Air, and the Rivians. All of them supplied far more vary, charging functionality, and simply plain higher total effectivity. None of that was excellent news for Mercedes.

Base Trim Engine

EV

Base Trim Transmission

Computerized

Base Trim Drivetrain

Rear-Wheel Drive

Base Trim Horsepower

268 HP

Base Trim Torque

247 lb.-ft.

And that was all too dangerous, as a result of whereas Mercedes was struggling to get its level throughout by means of the EV-scape, to say nothing of the poor gross sales figures and – ahem – steep depreciation of its EQ fashions, BMW and Porsche had been busy releasing industry-competitive EVs, with strong gross sales figures too.

Mercedes needed to make a transfer, and quick. Quick-forward to as we speak, and the oldest automaker on Earth is again within the EV race, however not with an costly flagship akin to an S-Class. However relatively with the entry-level CLA. Gone is the EQ nomenclature, at the least for naming automobiles. Say hiya to the 2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA with EQ expertise. And it is nice!

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10 Issues Mercedes Received Proper With The 2026 CLA’s New Platform

Fuel or electrical? The 2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA will provide each — and it’s constructed on a complete new platform. Right here’s what it’s worthwhile to know.

The Comeback Story

The third-generation Mercedes CLA has been in gestation for nearly two years now, nevertheless it’s lastly right here, as a full EV, constructed on an all-new structure and bringing with it the form of expertise we anticipate from a Benz. Even a child, entry-level one.

It is apparent that Mercedes discovered a factor or two from the BMW EV playbook by ditching pricey devoted EV platforms. Of their place can be multi-energy architectures able to supporting each electrical propulsion and inner combustion engines (ICE).

The 2026 CLA is due to this fact the primary automobile at Mercedes to experience on the all-new MMA platform, which stands for Mercedes-Benz Modular Structure. It is the modular half that is a very powerful right here, because it provides the CLA, and different automobiles that’ll observe it, much more flexibility to adapt to client demand, but in addition quickly altering markets. It also needs to assist Mercedes decrease manufacturing prices, one thing it has been chasing for some time now.

A number of figures ought to be sufficient to have you ever agreeing with me that the brand new CLA is not messing round. It comes off the manufacturing facility ground fitted with a North American Charging Normal (NACS) cost port, making it immediately appropriate with Tesla’s Supercharger community of DC quick chargers.

The automobile additionally rides on an 800-volt charging structure, permitting it to fast-charge at a most pace of 320 kW. Final time I checked, that quantity was solely reserved for costly Lucids and Porsches. Keep in mind, that is the CLA we’re speaking about right here, a considerably reasonably priced Mercedes geared toward attracting a youthful, much less well-off demographic.

2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA Technical Specs

Vary figures haven’t but been introduced for our market, however Mercedes does communicate of some variations able to reaching north of 550 kilometers (or 342 miles) as soon as the EPA will get its hand on it. That is aggressive, even towards a equally priced Tesla Mannequin 3.

Loaded With Anticipated German Engineering

However, get all of the EV stuff out of the best way, and the CLA is definitely a improbable small Mercedes. There are some things in regards to the automobile that do get on my nerves, although, like a sedan that appears nowhere close to pretty much as good because the station wagon, a variant we clearly will not get right here. The sedan additionally seems to be somewhat bizarre, too slim and upright, carrying a set of wheels which are both too small or not very fairly. The automobile’s face additionally jogs my memory of a fish for some cause.

However the automobile itself is actually good, the form of good we used to affiliate the Mercedes emblem with. If you do not know your automobiles, or your Benzes, you’d swear that is simply one other CLA. However the redesign is sleeker, and far more aerodynamic, resulting in a drag coefficient of solely 0.21. That is similar to a Tesla Mannequin 3 and a Hyundai Ioniq 6.

Then there’s the true, geeky technical stuff I like listening to from a German automaker, the form of deep, over-complicated engineering mumbo jumbo. The CLA, just like the Porsche Taycan, is provided with a two-speed transmission on its rear electrical motor. The purpose of this setup was to provide the automobile a extra pure, natural really feel, a bit extra like an ICE when accelerating, and fewer like a neck-snapping EV. It additionally ensures higher high-speed efficiency, as a result of Autobahn.

And you’ll actually really feel all that from behind the wheel. The CLA feels each bit as strong, nimble, and well-dialed-in as any gasoline-powered Mercedes. That is a trait, by the best way, that I had hassle discovering within the EQ automobiles. These all largely felt clumsy, heavy, and never notably well-engineered. However the CLA. Oh, my. That is nice.

Accelerations are linear and constant, even within the base, two-wheel-drive 250+ mannequin. Go for the dual-motor CLA 350, and you will have greater than sufficient energy on faucet to constantly speed up arduous and get just a few giggles out of it. There’s pumped-in audio to make all of it really feel just like the automobile has soul. And it sounds fairly good, too. The gearbox does its factor someplace at excessive pace, giving the automobile a strong, deeply mechanical really feel you usually do not get from EVs.

However the CLA really goes even deeper than that. It is loaded with the form of tech that exhibits how centered Mercedes was when creating this factor. As an illustration, whereas the automaker had already pioneered good voice instructions with its “Hey Mercedes” voice immediate, its newest iteration of the MBUX system is now AI-powered, and continually linked to each ChatGPT and Google Gemini.

Now, I solely spent just a few hours on the wheel of the brand new CLA, so I did not fairly get a possibility to discover all of its nooks and crannies. There’s rather a lot to unpack right here. However that AI assistant is definitely fairly darn cool. If none of this feels very revolutionary as a result of, nicely, we have all gotten accustomed to chatting with AI chatbots at this level, the truth that that is now in a automobile is definitely fairly a giant deal.

You’ll be able to chat together with your CLA such as you would with some other chatbot. Mercedes goes so far as claiming that the automobile may even simulate feelings that can assist you together with your temper, though I did not get an opportunity to check the system to such an extent.

However, if Mercedes’ declare is true, then we may very well be on the verge of witnessing automotive companions. Buddy automobiles that adapt to their homeowners, sense their environments with the purpose of turning into safer and easily remaining related for an extended time period. This, in follow, may have the potential of mitigating Mercedes’ infamous depreciation curve, each technologically and financially.

After all, I am getting a bit too excited right here, one thing any auto journalist must be cautious of after driving a brand new automobile. I am going to must dwell with the brand new CLA a bit longer in my neck of the woods to actually grasp it, and we’ll must let it do its factor in the marketplace earlier than praising it. However think about me impressed right here. The CLA feels just like the stuff Mercedes used to promote. Sport-changing. Modern. Nicely put collectively. And understated, in a cultured, elegant type of means. Mercedes is so again within the EV race, and I am unable to wait to see what’s coming subsequent.