Following the official debut of the stunning Mercedes-Benz S-Class in Malaysia and the ASEAN reveal of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class at the Bangkok International Motor Show last week, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has taken the wraps off the new CLA 200 coupé with a price tag of RM235,888.
“The CLA is a car that does not confuse mid range with mediocrity. Its powerful design underscores the sporty side of the Mercedes-Benz brand,” says Kai Schlickum, Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Passenger Cars at the new CLA-Class launch event.
The rebellious looking coupé has a closed four-door body, blurring the lines between a coupé and a sedan. Beneath the hood of the CLA 200 awaits a 1.6-litre turbo, in-line 4-cylinder engine that outputs 156hp and 250Nm of torque mated with 7G-DCT dual clutch automatic transmission. As a result, the CLA 200 will pull 100 km/h in 8.5 seconds and return 5.2-5.5 l/100km into the bargain.
The chassis of the CLA features a McPherson front axle and an independent multilink rear suspension, featuring three control arms and one trailing arm per wheel. This means that longitudinal and lateral dynamics are virtually independent of one another. A CLA-specific feature is the flexible decoupling of the rear axle carrier, which benefits ride comfort. Wheel carriers and spring links are made of aluminium, in order to reduce unsprung masses. Two chassis and suspension set-ups are available: the comfort suspension and the optional sports suspension for sporty yet comfortable handling. The latter entails lowering of the body by 15 mm (front) and 10 mm (rear).
Irrespective of the selected chassis, all CLA variants come with the Direct Steer system. This electromechanical power steering offers improved feedback to the driver in comparison to conventional systems and makes an important contribution towards overall efficiency, as the steering assist function only requires energy when the steering wheel is actually turned. Additionally it enables various steering assistance functions which are activated by the ESP control unit. These include counter-steering in case of over-steering, corrective steering when braking on road surfaces offering different levels of grip (split-friction braking), mitigation of the extent to which the front-wheel drive influences the steering and compensation for crosswind and road gradients.
The vehicle’s striking features include the bonnet embedded in the front end with power domes and the black pins radiator grille. The light modules and LED daytime running lights behind the headlamp cover glass have been arranged in such a way as to create the characteristic “flare effect” for the daytime driving lights and indicators.
The exterior’s progressive, sporty appearance is continued inside the vehicle. The interior feature high-quality materials and the instrument panel incorporates five round vents. The outer rings of the round vents have a high-quality electroplated finish while the airflow direction is governed by a galvanised insert that reveals a meticulous attention to detail. The free-standing display screen features a black piano-lacquer-look front panel.
There are numerous driving assistance systems offered in the CLA 200 to reduce the driver’s workload. Standard-fit features for the coupé include Attention Assist drowsiness detection and radar-based Collision Prevention Assist with adaptive Brake Assist, which now helps to protect the CLA from collisions from a speed of only 7 km/h (previously: above 30 km/h). Apart from that, the CLA 200 comes with Active Parking Assist that enables automatic parking in lengthways and crossways parking spaces.
