Quit your BM, Ride Mercedes Funk
Compromise often means a middle ground that while acceptable, often leaves both parties somewhat dissatisfied with the end result. On one side of the CLA spectrum, you’ve got the tamest trim – the 221 horsepower CLA 250. On the other side, you’ve got the CLA 45 AMG, pumping out 382 ponies. Right in the middle lies our tester – the CLA 35 AMG. Let’s see how it treads that path of compromise.
Save for some subtle badging, larger brake calipers and a small trunk spoiler, you’d be quite hard pressed to tell the three CLA’s apart. Mercedes-Benz tends to go the subtle route with its sportiness and despite its unignorable Sun Yellow paintjob, the CLA 35 hides its sportier side well, especially next to its tamer sibling. Mercedes insists on calling the car a coupe, despite its door count. This definition does gel depending on who you ask, admittedly. But it does bear the classic qualities of a coupe at least. A low, sloping roof-line, short back end and long hood evokes romanticized images of grand touring in a classic Benz.
But if cross-country travel is your cup of tea, you’d better hope your back passengers are on the shorter side. The CLA 35 stays true to its given designation with a rather cramped back seat area, thanks to that svelte roofline. But you will get a surprisingly roomy trunk, at least. The CLA’s interior can be as subdued or as garish as you want it to be. Adjustable LED lighting, complete with pre-set light themes and customizable colourful displays in the gauge cluster and centre console give a healthy degree of options for drivers and their guests. It’s an upscale looking cabin, but the hierarchy of the CLA among the Benz lineup becomes apparent with the company’s use of hard plastics and plain looking materials.
Navigating through both digital displays can be tricky for new owners. It will take some time for it to become second nature, but once that point is reached, it will feel far more intuitive than it looks. For those who don’t want to commit, you can still navigate via the centre console at least. From differing gauge styles to GPS directions, boost gauge, horsepower readout and more, you may be overwhelmed by choice, but it’s easy enough to swap out any portion of the display you don’t need. One curious omission is some kind of distance-controlled cruise control. This is a common enough feature across virtually any manufacturer. The CLA 35 even has distance sensors already, but it does nothing to adjust the vehicle’s speed when using cruise control.
The 35 gets its power from a 2.0L turbocharged engine good for 302 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. It’s all managed by a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, which can feel jerky during low-speed driving, but smooths out pleasantly and delivers power with your foot down. The metal paddle shifters fitted to the car feel sturdy and high quality, and add some engagement to the drive. The sprint to 100 takes a very respectable 4.9 seconds. Keep the car in comfort mode and in turn you get a quiet, pleasant, but stiff ride. It’s not exactly S-class levels of comfort, but there's far more pep in its step than that luxuriously lumbering sedan could ever manage.
Explore any of the sportier modes and things get livelier, but perhaps less livable. The seats on the CLA 35 are supremely supportive, but rather firm. Couple that with the already-stiff suspension and it can feel harsh for older drivers. It doesn’t help that there is little discernable difference in suspension feel between modes. But perhaps from the driver’s seat, you may be too consumed by thrill to care, or sufficiently relaxed from Mercedes’ Seat Kinetics - mild occasional automatic seat position adjustments that intend to relax drivers over the course of the commute.
A rowdy exhaust note with the occasional popping, flat, easy cornering and a pleasantly light steering keep the nose pointed where you want it to go without any fuss - unless you take the back streets and want it that way. The fuel economy’s not bad at all either. We averaged just below 10 L/100km after a week of driving, putting it right in line with Mercedes’ quoted figures of 8.2 L/100km on the highway, and 11 in the city.
Look at the three-point star; look how it shines for you. Especially in yellow. Chris Martin probably does not drive a CLA 35 AMG. But get behind the wheel, and you might just feel like a Cold Play(er). Starting at $52,900, the CLA 35 AMG does make a strong case for entry level performance and luxury. But optional extras like the $1,000 ‘Night Package,’ blacking out trim pieces and the exhaust, quickly add to the cost. But hey, at least the logo projectors are only $150. That’s like, 2 weeks of gas? We liked the CLA 35 AMG far more than BMW’s last-gen 2-series, and it certainly looks much nicer than its current iteration. While it’s common to see a Mercedes-Benz in all manner of monochromatic shades, we’d like to once again mention the Sun Yellow paint this tester was finished in. Please, prospective buyer, consider some colour. It works wonderfully on this car. Catch a glimpse of it at sunset and we’re near certain you’d agree.
