New Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 revealed – baby AMG now has McLaren-baiting performance
It might be electric but the new CLA 45 has synthesised engine sounds and gears to maximise driver involvement in its fight against Hyundai's Ioniq 6 N
The Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 has finally been revealed and is a vote of emphatic confidence in electric power as the future for the AMG entry point, with no combustion equivalent planned. Yet Mercedes-AMG has not chosen to tack on any extra badges denoting it takes a plug and not a pump. There’s no ‘EQ Power’ or ‘E-Performance’ badge to be seen on its rump.
It’s the new CLA 45, nothing more, nothing less, albeit available in both saloon and shooting brake guises. Either way, if you didn’t know better, you’d have to ask in your dealer to be told it goes without the parping M133 turbocharged four-cylinder, or spy its lack of bulbous quad tailpipes or any breathable negative pace between the strakes in its Panamericana grille.
> Hyundai Ioniq 6 N review – has Hyundai beaten BMW M at its own game?
The ghost of the old four-pot lives on in the new car though, with fake engine sounds and fake gears, all here in spite of AMG’s insistence that the younger audience this car is aimed at is happy and ready to jump to electric power for its performance cars… Here’s everything you need to know about the new Mercedes-AMG CLA 45.
Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 – motors and performance
As you might have expected, being a performance EV, (some) brute force power is the order of the day. To that end, three compact axial flux electric motors – two on the back axle, one on the front – deliver a maximum output of 671bhp (in launch mode or with a paddle pulled for ‘boost’). Walking-around power is 604bhp. Torque is an interesting one, as we were only given ‘at the motors’ torque, which is a frankly obscene but slightly meaningless 1297lb ft.
The componentry is very similar to that found in the 1000bhp-plus AMG GT 4-Door, albeit with thinner electromagnets accounting for the reduction in power. The battery isn’t quite as trick either, with the CLA 45 not getting the AMG.EA-spec direct cooled pack with its cylindrical cells. It instead borrows the 94kWh (usable) item from the GLC Electric. It’s still a tech leader in terms of energy density, with silicon oxide/graphite anodes for a 20 per cent boost. Mercedes-AMG is open about the possibility of performance drops depending on battery level, claiming de-rating can be expected from around 25 per cent charge
Performance will be as you’d hope, spectacular. In launch mode the CLA 45 gets to 62mph from rest in just 3sec. That’s quicker than the old McLaren SLR and SLS, on the money with the very fastest of the new AMG GTs and just 0.1sec off a Mercedes-AMG One hypercar.
When not plumbing it for all its performance, the CLA 45 is claimed to be good for 416 miles of range in slippery saloon form, and 397 miles of range as a shooting brake. Those might be moderately ambitious WLTP figures but my experience in the standard CLA has me thinking this really could be a performance EV that endures a good kicking like none before it in terms of usable real world range.
Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 – handling, fake gears and sounds
Absolute power can corrupt absolutely, as we know from some poorly resolved ultra-powerful EVs. Happily, Mercedes-AMG has given the CLA 45 all the tools it needs to deploy its performance.
That starts with the powertrain itself, with the car predominantly rear-wheel drive most of the time. The two rear motors can deliver the full stated maximum output of 671bhp and indeed do when the car is in rear-drive ‘drift’ mode and the front axle is permanently disconnected. In normal driving, unless the car thinks more traction is needed, it’ll be rear-driven most of the time too, with the Disconnect Unit separating the front motor from the wheels in a fraction of a second, in aid of efficiency.
When not in drift mode but in Sport or AMG Force S+ (more on which shortly), AMG Performance 4Matic+ allows constant variance of power delivery between the axles and torque vectoring on the rear axle. Think of it as a limited-slip diff on steroids. There’s a standard Hankook tyre (245-section front, 265-section rear) or optional, sportier Continental Sport Contact 7s, spanning 255 section at the front, 275 at the rear. Braking is mostly by regeneration, AMG says, with five levels to choose from. There are 390mm discs at the front clamped by six-piston calipers, with 350mm rear discs, for more sudden and aggressive braking.
The characteristics of the whole car, from the damping stiffness to throttle response, steering effort and power distribution, are dictated via AMG Dynamic Select, switchable via a familiar rotary controller on the steering wheel. Comfort is as you’d expect, the CLA 45’s most relaxed state. Sport ups the ante, leaning the balance rearward, stiffening the AMG Ride Control dampers, upping the steering weight and sharpening the throttle response.
Then you have AMG Force S+, as first seen on the AMG 4-Door electric. Look to the driver’s display after a twist of the dial and you’ll note a rev counter, complete with a 7200rpm redline. Then your ears and buttocks will also be picking up incongruous internal combustion rumblings not unlike those of the M133 2-litre at idle. Poke the throttle and those rumblings rise and recede with an eight-bit crackle.
That’s because AMG went to painstaking lengths of capture the sounds and sensations of the M133, fitting an A45 S with 13 microphones, recording 1600 files at different revs, throttle applications and load profiles. It comes through the speakers and the seats too, which (whether standard or the optional sport items) feature shakers designed to emulate the vibrations and resonance of the combustion engine.
The show’s not just for you either, with this synthetic ghost of the M133 playing out for pedestrians via external speakers too. The paddle shifters behind the wheel, unlike on some EVs, aren’t just vestigial pieces used to control regen. In AMG Force S+ they also become shifters for the synthesised transmission, calibrated with seven speeds to feel like AMG’s Speedshift box.
Race mode ups the ante again, lowering the car, setting up the AWD system for maximum grip and giving the driver access to the adjustable traction, agility and response control. Unfortunately, the AMG GT 4-door’s swanky rotary controllers for these systems do not trickle down. Slippery sets the car up for low-grip conditions for maximum safety, Eco reduces power and sets it to permanent rear-drive and Individual allows you to customise the car’s parameters just so.
Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 – design, aero and interior
The CLA 45 isn’t perhaps as aggressively distended as you might expect for a car that’s 100bhp up on the last AMG GT R. There’s active aero, consisting of a large variably deployable active spoiler that aids stability – though no downforce figures are given – and radiator flaps (with eight opening phases, no less) for managing cooling and drag.
The CLA 45 is 24mm wider at the front wings than the standard car, with slightly engorged skirts and a rear diffuser, but the lower ‘vent’ element at the front is more ’35’ than ’45’ to my eyes. Better than the GT 4-Door? You be the judge…
Inside, both the standard and optional sports seats come with the acoustic shakers, so the fake A45 noises can be enjoyed (or otherwise) in both cases. The full AMG steering wheel – complete with paddles and rotary controllers for drive modes, aero, traction control and more – now has physical roller controls too. Praise be! Apart from these, some slightly cheap looking AMG hatching on the centre tunnel and the angrier ambient lighting (when in the right mode) it’s CLA business as usual, which is to say, heavy on the pixels…
Mercedes-AMG CLA 45: price and availability
We’ve no pricing for the CLA 45 yet, with deliveries not set to begin until next year. My hope is that it starts under the £80,000 mark. Indeed, Mercedes will need to be careful to not price out its still-loyal entry-level AMG customers. It’s a crowd that, while sceptical about electrification, could surely be seduced by this thing’s impressive performance and maybe even, its gimmickry.
Does no EQ badge, fake engine noises and gears make the CLA 45 apologetic in its electric power? Over 600bhp probably says otherwise. It also makes it the perfect foil for another silly electric saloon with supercar power and engine noise and gear fakery: the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N. There’s a fun twin test to look forward to.
