- The brand new Mercedes CLA compact sedan can drive as much as 792 kilometers, recharge practically half its battery in ten minutes, and comes with all of the creature comforts its well-heeled clientele have come to anticipate. It even has a frunk.
Mercedes-Benz took its boldest swing but at Elon Musk’s Tesla in a bid to as soon as extra set the benchmark for luxurious and innovation within the automotive business.
On Thursday, the German carmaker that invented the fashionable vehicle reinvented its compact sedan, holding the CLA nameplate and nothing else from the earlier two generations of the child Benz.
As an alternative, engineers began from a clear sheet of paper to develop essentially the most clever and energy-efficient automotive that has ever come out of its Stuttgart headquarters.
Out there later this 12 months in all main markets, together with the U.S., the absolutely electrical model is rated in Europe to drive as much as 792 kilometers—making it the longest-range EV on sale within the continent. Whereas its vary interprets to 492 miles, the extra conservative U.S. EPA has not but rated it.
Furthermore, it may well recharge practically half of its battery in a matter of minutes—all for a automotive that’s anticipated to value someplace within the neighborhood of a Tesla Mannequin 3.
“This CLA marks the beginning of the best collection of automotive launches ever for Mercedes-Benz,” CEO Ola Källenius advised company on the automotive’s premiere in Rome. He goals to deliver “dozens” of latest and refreshed fashions by 2027.
The previous 5 years have been difficult for Mercedes, which noticed its conventional position because the chief amongst premium manufacturers torn away by Tesla.
Nevertheless, Musk’s polarizing conduct has created a gap amid protests and boycotts to peel away clients seeking to make the change.
Mercedes seems to have discovered the teachings from its first devoted effort to construct a high-tech EV flagship.
Competing in a distinct segment section of largely chauffeur-driven govt limousines, the EQS failed to attach with a conservative buyer base that also prizes Merc’s combustion engine S-Class sibling as the top of luxurious.
This time nevertheless the CLA’s extra aggressive styling and emphasis on software program and digital intelligence suits hand-in-glove with the compact sedan’s a lot youthful audience.
That provides the corporate trigger for hope since Mercedes has poured numerous effort into the CLA and can’t afford one other mistake.
Blueprint for the know-how in each new Mercedes to return
For one, the CLA makes use of a brand new, in-house-designed working system, MB.OS, which can step by step be rolled out to all future Mercedes fashions.
It adopts Tesla’s strategy of frequently enhancing all features of the automotive over time by means of software program updates. Most carmakers nonetheless wrestle with that since varied subsystems sourced from suppliers wrestle to talk to 1 one other in the identical language.
This MMA (Mercedes Modular Structure) features a new electrical system that’s twice as succesful as the usual EV.
Meaning in a pinch, house owners can add 325 extra kilometers of vary in simply ten minutes at a freeway quick charging station earlier than persevering with on their manner.
For these fearful concerning the sturdiness and resilience of the battery, Mercedes says the automotive comes with a assure its battery will nonetheless retain a minimum of 80% of its unique cost after eight years or 160,000 km.
Lastly, alongside niceties like a frunk—a primary in a Mercedes EV—and a panoramic glass roof that comes customary, the automobile encompasses a premium infotainment system powered by a pc chip that may calculate 254 trillion operations per second. It’s so potent, it wants liquid cooling like a high-end PC gaming rig.
“The brand new CLA is the frontrunner and blueprint for the know-how we’re going to see in each new Mercedes any more,” Källenius continued.
With a lot using on the road, the chairman of the board himself took the bizarre step of personally attending the CLA premiere in Rome. Sometimes, non-executive administrators stay within the background in Germany, limiting their roles to oversight and governance.
“I’m satisfied that Mercedes-Benz is ushering in a brand new period of digitalization and e-mobility with the all-new CLA,” raved Mercedes chair Martin Brudermüller in a publish on LinkedIn.
This story was initially featured on Fortune.com
