Only recently did the Mercedes-Benz A 45 AMG’s arrival in Malaysia make news that another model from Mercedes-Benz-the CLA-class was spotted on the NKVE by a Paultan.org reader. Its sighting has raised questions of whether it will soon be seen in Malaysian dealerships by the end of the year.
The picture made available is not of much for descriptive purposes. All that can be clearly gleaned is that they are upsized 18-inch bi-colour twin-spoke alloy wheels with full-LED rear lamps (optional in some markets) and Mercedes’ Urban equipment line, which adds the exposed exhaust pipes and black diffuser-like bumper cut-out. Also visible is the Night Package gloss black window frames.
Since the model badge is not visible, we can assume that this is the base CLA 200 variant. Following the pattern set by the local A 200 and A 250 Sport pair, the higher-powered CLA 250 should be fully kitted out with the AMG Sport exterior package.
Like the A-Class it’s based on, the CLA 200 is powered by a turbocharged 1.6-litre engine with 154 bhp and 250Nm, while the CLA 250 gets a more serious 2.0-litre turbo four that makes 208bhp and 350Nm.
The CLA-Class has an advanced electromechanical power steering system which uses ESP control unit data to facilitate various steering assistance functions such as counter-steering in the event of oversteer, corrective steering when braking on road surfaces with differing levels of grip (split-friction braking), minimisation of torque steer and compensation for crosswinds and road gradients. Other safety features include attention assist drowsiness detection and radar-based collision prevention assist with adaptive Brake Assist.
The Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class made its world premiere at the Detroit 2013 show in January this year. In India the CLA joins the B-Class and the A-Class as the third car in Mercedes Benz’s five model sub Rs 25 lakh range which it plans to launch here by 2015.
