CLUBHOUSE | DRIVING RANGE
Brave New World
The Mercedes-Benz CLA, an innovative four-door coupe which is set to go on sale later this year, has the potential to attract a new, younger demographic to the German auto maker, writes Ben Oliver.
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his year’s Detroit auto show saw the launch of the latest versions of two genuinely iconic American vehicles: the new Chevy Corvette, and a concept version of the new Ford F-series pick-up truck, comfortably America’s biggest-selling vehicle and as important to the modern American male as his horse once was to a cowboy. But neither will have a major impact outside America: their fuel consumption alone will see to that. Instead, the Detroit debutante that will have the greatest impact in the rest of the world is the new Mercedes-Benz CLA. It wasn’t actually at the show: not wishing to distract attention from its important, revised E-class model, Mercedes showed the CLA only to a select group at an event the night before the auto show opened. Needless to say, HK Golfer was on the invite list. So what’s so special about the CLA? As the name suggests, it shares its concept with the elegant, critically well-received and much bigger CLS. It’s a four-door coupe, with the low, tapered profile of the CLS, and a sports car’s frameless doors. But there are four of them, rather than two, and with space in the rear seats for two adults. The four-door coupe idea simply hasn’t been tried before at this size and pricepoint, but has proven popular in luxury cars like the CLS and Audi’s A5 and A7. The CLA a fraction longer than Mercedes’ standard C-class compact saloon. The idea was first mooted by Mercedes with the Concept Style Coupe it revealed at the Auto China show in Beijing last year, indicating that Mercedes expects China to be an important market for the CLA. 26
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It’s based on the firm’s entry-level front-wheel drive A-class hatchback, and these underpinnings make it cheaper to build and to run. Prices haven’t been confirmed, but expect this stunning-looking Mercedes saloon to cost only around 15 per cent more than the equivalent A-class. A few Mercedes traditionalists will splutter at the thought of a Mercedes saloon without rear-wheel drive: fourwheel drive will be an option in some markets. But most buyers won’t care: as well as being cheaper to build, front-drive makes a car lighter and thus more economical, and creates more space in the cabin. Engine options are likely to run from a 122hp, 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol CLA180 to a fire-breathing, 350hp turbocharged CLA45 version developed by Mercedes’ performance wing AMG and featuring the four-wheel drive system as standard. But the real significance lies in who might buy this car. Older, downsizing ‘empty nesters’ whose kids have moved on and who no longer need HKGOLFER.COM
SCORECARD Mercedes-Benz CLA180 How much?
TBA
Engine:
1595cc 122hp @ 5000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed manual or 7-speed automated twin-clutch manual Performance: 126g/km CO2 Dimensions: 4,630 (L) x 1,777 (W) x 1,437 (H) mm
a big E-class, for example, are a key target. But more importantly, the CLA opens a new, younger demographic for Mercedes: young couples, for instance, who don’t need the practicality of the A- and B-class, and like the idea of a desirable look and badge for a price close to what you’d pay for something standard from one of the mainstream brands. We predict the CLA will sell like hot dogs at a Detroit Red Wings game. HKGOLFER.COM
As its name suggests, the CLA shares its concept with the elegant and critically well-received CLS
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