Today, we were at the launch of the Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG, where Eberhard Kern, Managing Director of the company announced that the regular model of the CLA will be brought to India within the next six months. It will then compete head to head with the upcoming Audi A3 sedan that will be launched on August 7.
The Mercedes-Benz CLA is based on the A-Class and borrows most of the styling clues from the hatchback. The fascia of the CLA sports the floating dots grille, massively sculpted air intakes and the chin spoiler. It also boasts of a coupe-like profile and frameless doors as well.. The vehicle gets clean sculpted lines on the sides and the rear bumper, with a sharp looking boot lid.
The company has bragged about the car's drag co-efficient of 0.23, which is the lowest among any series production car. Coming to the architecture, the vehicle is underpinned by the MFA (Mercedes Front-wheel drive Architecture) platform which is shared with the A- and B-Class cars. The interior of the CLA is identical to the A-Class as well.
The CLA might be powered by the same set of engines the A-Class in India is powered with. This means, the petrol version of the CLA will be powered by a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine that churns out 120bhp of power and 200Nm of torque. The oil-burner should be a 2.2-litre four-cylinder mill that produces 107bhp of power and 250Nm of torque. Both the variants will be mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission with power sent to the front wheels only.
The CLA, the four-door sedan derivative of the A-Class, will be assembled in India at the automaker's facility at Chakan, in Pune. To be priced between Rs 25 lakh to Rs 30 lakh, the CLA will compete with the Audi A3 in the entry-level luxury sedan segment.
