Interior and Features (in details):
The CLA Class shares its immaculately built cabin with the A and B class to a large extent. The turbine shaped five air-con vents on the dashboard, steering wheel, the door panels, the space between the seats – almost everything is shared between the three models.
There’s a very clearly perceptible solidity about the Mercedes-Benz cabins, and the perception has only strengthened with the newer models.
The quality of materials used among other things is where mainstream Mercedes cars really stand out, and the CLA is no different.
So while most bits on the dash of the CLA are shared with its smaller A and B class siblings, the infotainment system, what Mercedes-Benz likes calling NTG-5 version is an upgrade over the NTG version 4.5 that the older cars ran.
The freestanding central screen is now bigger at 17.8 cm, more hi-resolution and boasts a bunch of new features.
To start with, it supports two USB slots now, and also has an SD card slot which powers the maps for the upgraded Garmin sat-nav.
The new maps feature more than 10.3 million points of interest and are superior to the previous gen system in many ways.
The new screen also allows for showing photos, and playing them in a slideshow. You can now use the screen to browse the internet using your phone’s internet connection via Bluetooth.
A couple of new Mercedes-Benz apps have also been added to the interface, though these require a strong and constant internet connectivity to function properly.
The sporty front seats the pronounced side bolstering look great. A satin silver accent highlighting the gap between the backrest and headrest offers contrast and character to the black ‘Artico’ leather seats.
Overall, the front seats are quite comfortable and offer great lateral support, though a bit more of thigh support would have been nice.
Panoramic sunroof is offered standard, and features rain sensors for an auto-shut function on detecting water.
Our test cars came with all black interiors with textured wavy silver inserts on the dashboard, which looked and felt great to touch. There were a few test cars with a beige interior too, but we hear those cars will not be available to the customers upon launch.
Harman Kardon Logic 7 surround sound system comes as standard with the CLA, and as you would assume, sounds fantastic.
Twin-pod, SLS AMG inspired, instrument cluster looks neat, and is carried over from the A Class.
The car also features ambient lighting which can be controlled via the infotainment system.
Illuminated Mercedes-Benz branding on the door sills further ups the cool quotient in dark.
The space at the backseat, thanks to the stylish roof-line, has taken a hit. The headroom is a bit of an issue and the six footers would find their heads constantly brushing with the CLA’s roof.
The backseats also don’t get adjustable headrests, though, interestingly, the central headrest is adjustable.
Legroom, though manageable is not generous. Rear seats like their frontal counterparts, are sportily designed in a bucket shape and along with a lack of width mean that the CLA can seat only two in the backseat.
The CLA class doesn’t have a rear A/C vent, nor does it have a dual zone climate control.
The AC by itself is quite powerful though and did a good job of cooling the cabin quickly enough on an unusually hot Goa day in January.
We also realized that the grab handles above the front doors are missing.
The door panels have space for a full sized water bottle and plenty more.
The relatively lack of space in the backseat aside, there is no dearth of cubbyholes and small storage spaces in the CLA.
The armrest between the front seats contains a reasonably large storage area with two cup-holders ahead of it.
Decent sized glove-box isn’t illuminated from the inside.
But what takes the cake really is the 470 liters of boot space, which is unmatched in the class. Unfortunately a big percentage of that space is taken up by the space saver spare which sits atop the boot floor.
Verdict
The CLA class will be imported to India via the CBU route for the first couple of months, so don’t expect A3 bashing prices. M-B India will start assembling the car locally by April 2015, but the prices are not expected to go down significantly even then. We’ll reserve the final word till 22nd January, which is the launch date of the car.
What we can say conclusively for now, though, is that the CLA has style, quality and features as its strong USPs. For the style and image conscious, the CLA doesn’t quite have a match, and if the premium segment is all about image, the CLA should tower above all its rivals.
Mercedes-Benz CLA 200 CDI Technical Specifications
| CYLINDERS | 4 |
| DISPLACEMENT | 1796 cc |
| POWER | 100 KW @ 3600-4400 RPM 136 HP @ 3600-4400 RPM 134 BHP @ 3600-4400 RPM |
| TORQUE | 221 lb-ft @ 1600-3000 RPM 300 Nm @ 1600-3000 RPM |
| FUEL SYSTEM | Common-rail Direct Injection |
| FUEL | Diesel |
| CO2 EMISSIONS | 107 g/km |
| TOP SPEED | 220 km/h |
| ACCELERATION 0-62 MPH (0-100 km/h) | 9.9 seconds |
| FUEL EFFICIENCY | 17.9 kmpl (ARAI certified) |
| DRIVE TYPE | Front Wheel Drive |
| TRANSMISSION | 7G-DCT dual-clutch automatic transmission |
| FRONT brakes | Ventilated Discs |
| REAR brakes | Solid Discs |
| TIRE SIZE | 205/55 R 16 |
| LENGTH | 4630 mm |
| WIDTH | 1778 mm |
| HEIGHT | 1438 mm |
| FRONT/REAR TRACK | 1,549/1,547 mm |
| WHEELBASE | 2700 mm |
| GROUND CLEARANCE | 94 mm |
| CARGO VOLUME | 470 L |
| CD | 0.25 |
| UNLADEN WEIGHT | 1505 kg |
| GROSS WEIGHT LIMIT | 1985 kg |
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