Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake Review 2023
The Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake is a stylish and sporty estate car that appeals to those who want a blend of elegance and practicality. It features advanced technology, good performance, and generous boot space.
Rivals to the CLA Shooting Brake include the Skoda Octavia Estate, Audi A4 Avant, BMW 3 Series Touring, and Kia ProCeed Shooting Brake.
Our Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake review covers:
- Sporty exterior with big front grille and rounded rear end
- Premium interior with a dual-screen setup
- 485-litre boot
- Petrol, diesel, and plug-in hybrid engines are available
- Three trims: AMG Line Executive, AMG Line Premium, and AMG Line Premium Plus Night Edition
Pros:
- Brilliant interior
- Plenty of kit as standard
- Good range of engines
Cons:
- Rivals more engaging to drive
- Expensive
- Rear headroom is a bit tight for adults
The CLA Shooting Brake looks similar to the Mercedes A-Class Saloon; there's a big front grille, air intakes, and slick LED headlights. However, as you move towards the rear, things become much more like an estate car; it's much longer and more rounded.
Moving inside, the CLA Shooting Brake has plenty of space to accommodate a family. Up front, there's plenty of leg and headroom for two adults over six feet tall, and children or teenagers in the rear have adequate leg and headroom. It's worth noting that the rear space isn't ground-breaking, so if you have a tall family, look towards the roomier Skoda Octavia Estate.
Boot space comes in at 485 litres on the petrol and diesel versions but reduces to 445 litres in the plug-in hybrid. Both versions come with 40/20/40 split folding rear seats, which is handy for longer items or if you need extra cargo space.
The CLA Shooting Brake has a fantastic interior that's oriented around the driver. There's a range of premium materials dotted around the dashboard, which is well laid out and straightforward to use. The seats also come standard in beige man-made leather, which is comfortable, and there's plenty of adjustment available to suit your preferred driving position.
The interior quality is complemented by class-leading technology with two 10.3-inch HD displays, one for the infotainment system and the other for the digital instrument display. Both screens display razor-sharp graphics, and the menus are well laid out and easy to use while driving.
The infotainment system has features such as a DAB radio, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, Bluetooth, wireless charging, and intelligent voice recognition.
Three trims are available: AMG Line Executive, AMG Line Premium, and AMG Line Premium Plus Night Edition. If you opt for the plug-in hybrid, it's only available in AMG Line Premium or AMG Line Premium Plus Night Edition.
AMG Line Executive has 18-inch black alloy wheels, a diamond grille with pins in chrome, LED high-performance headlamps, heated front seats, a three-spoke multifunction sports steering wheel in Nappa leather, ambient lighting with 64 colours, active brake assist, lane keep assist, parking assist with 180-degree camera, front and rear parking sensors, and cruise control.
AMG Line Premium adds to this with door handles with chrome inserts, an easy-pack tailgate, hands-free access, keyless-go, a rear armrest with two cup holders, and a sound system.
AMG Line Premium Plus Night Edition has 19-inch multi-spoke black alloy wheels, multibeam LED headlamps with adaptive high beam assist, a panoramic sunroof, electrically adjustable driver and front passenger seats, and traffic sign assist.
Petrol, a diesel, and a plug-in hybrid make up the engine range for the CLE Shooting Brake. All units have four cylinders, and you either get a seven-speed or eight-speed automatic transmission.
The entry-level unit is the petrol CLA 180, but we'd recommend putting in a bit more cash and going for the mid-range CLA 200. It returns good performance, achieving 0-62mph in 8.4 seconds and having a top speed of 140mph.
If you want more power, two AMG petrol engines are available with a focus on performance. The most powerful CLA 45 S 4Matic+ Plus achieves 0-62mph in just four seconds, with a top speed of 168mph.
If you rack up the miles on the road, the diesel CLA 220d is the most economical of the combustion engine choices. It returns a fuel consumption of 51.4-55.4mpg, which is significantly more than its petrol counterparts. It also has sufficient performance, coming with 190hp and achieving 0-62mph in just over seven seconds.
For those who are keeping on top of their emissions, a plug-in hybrid CLA 250e is available. A four-cylinder petrol engine combines with a 10.6 kWh lithium-ion battery to return 218hp and accelerate from 0-62mph in 6.9 seconds. It gets a healthy electric range of 43 miles and can charge from 10-100% using a 7.4kW charger in an hour and 45 minutes.
Around town, the CLA Shooting Brake feels quite agile on the road, which is in part to its sharp steering that prevents you from having to turn the wheel too much. However, as you up the speed, the steering does seem a bit disconnected from the front tyres, making it fall short of the Audi A4 Avant and BMW 3 Series Touring.
All versions of the CLA Shooting Brake have 'lowered comfort suspension', which reduces the ride height for visual appeal. In reality, this hasn't made much of a difference and only equates to mediocre ride quality. It deals with bumps in the road easily, but on poorer road surfaces such as tracks, the car begins to bounce over bumps.
Prices for the new Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake start from £35,240.00 OTR* or to lease from Price On Request per month.
Looking to get behind the wheel of the Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake? Nationwide Vehicle Contracts is one of the UK's largest car leasing brokers and offers a range of leasing deals to suit your every need.
Leasing may be cheaper than an outright purchase, thanks to a low initial deposit and fixed monthly rentals.
*' On the road' price correct at time of publication and includes one year's road fund license, DVLA first registration fee and number plate fee. Prices are subject to change; always check with your nearest retailer.
