2025 Mercedes CLA Electric could set several new benchmarks [Update]

Update: ‘Design’ and ‘Interior’ sections updated.

Mercedes-Benz has started testing a new pure-electric compact car that would be more efficient, range-focused, and perhaps cheaper than the EQA SUV. Spy shots and videos suggest that it is something like a Mercedes CLA Electric, and it could set several benchmarks in the segment when it hits dealers next year. Here’s what we know:

Mercedes could drop EQ branding in future launches

Future EV models from Mercedes-Benz, starting in 2024, may not feature the ‘EQ’ branding, as per a Handelsblatt story, filed on January 12, 2023. EQ stands for “Electric intelligence” and the brand values of “emotion and intelligence,” introduced in the market with the Mercedes EQC in 2019. The German automaker plans to go all-electric where market conditions permit by 2030. By moving away from the combustion engine, a separate electric brand is no longer necessary, adds the German newspaper report.

Sticking with one nomenclature for all its cars in the future, including the CLA, would also avoid confusion.

Design

According to a report from Automotive News on May 23, 2023, Mercedes-Benz unveiled the design of the CLA Electric to North American dealers in mid-May. Sources cited by Automotive News suggest that Mercedes’ future electric vehicle will boast of a larger size compared to the gas-powered CLA, but with a sleeker profile.

Recent spy pictures and videos from Europe have shown Mercedes-Benz testing a new low-roof compact EV, and from the design of its roofline and greenhouse, it’s clear that we’re looking at an electric successor or an electric alternative to the CLA. The clip below, courtesy of YouTube channel walkoARTvideos, reveals several interesting design details despite the heavy camouflage on the test mule.

Video Source: YouTube/walkoARTvideos

The electric successor to the CLA appears to have flush-fitted door handles, a feature no longer limited to luxury cars. The car’s greenhouse is sleek and is reminiscent of a bow, just like on the CLA. Similarly, the beltline starts with a curve. However, upon closer inspection, it does not steeply curve downwards as it does on the gasoline model. Instead, it is comparatively straighter, which should lend the EV a more sedan-like appearance.

The rear windows look slightly bigger than on the current CLA, so passengers in the back will be able to enjoy a little more of the scenery. EVs based on dedicated EV platforms, especially the ones with a coupe body style, typically have short overhangs. That won’t be the case with this Merc. The rear overhang particularly looks long, but that could be a good thing for practicality, giving the car decent boot space. The CLA has a forward-leaning tail section, while this EV is upright at the back, which could translate to extra cargo space.

A concept version of the new entry-level EV will premiere in 2023, Ola Källenius, CEO, Mercedes-Benz Group, hinted at the end of the 2022 Annual Results Conference on February 17, 2023. Below is what he said when asked about the future of compact models at the company:

We will focus on the models that we believe are the most successful on a worldwide basis and moving the portfolio from today about seven positions to about four positions. And we might later this year even tease what that new future would look like.

Ola Källenius, CEO, Mercedes-Benz Group (Annual Results Conference on February 17, 2023)

The mini four-door coupe should feature a deep black surface in place of a traditional radiator grille, or “Black Panel,” as Mercedes-Benz calls it, with a three-dimensional star pattern on it. It may have sleek headlamps with Digital Light technology and a narrow light band connecting them.

According to a report JESMB published on March 25, 2023, the CLA Electric and CLA Shooting Brake Electric, as well as the successors to the EQA and EQB, will feature an illuminated black panel grille with the signature star pattern. While specific details are not yet available, it’s possible the stars embedded in the grille will glow, perhaps with softly changing brightness for realism, when the car is stationary.

Video Source: YouTube/CarSpyMedia

Interior

‘Curved Ultrawide Display’ with new tech features

Automotive News’ sources suggest the cockpit area of the Mercedes CLA Electric’s interior will be highly digital, as seen in most recent Mercedes-Benz models, especially in EVs.

All future MMA-based models from Mercedes are to feature a full-width display that stretches from one A-pillar to the other, JESMB reported on January 17, 2023, citing confirmation by Mercedes-Benz. The CLA Electric is to be the first of these models to feature the display, says the German publication while identifying Continental as the supplier. Further, JESMB mentioned that the system used in the EQXX will reach MMA models.

Comparing the specifications of the “one-piece” display (as Mercedes calls it) in the Vision EQXX and the “pillar-to-pillar” display manufactured by Continental, we found striking similarities. Both are 47.5-inch TFT panels with a curved design, measure 1.29 meters (4.2 feet) in width, have a circumference of 4,200 mm (165.3 inches) with a resolution of 7680×660 pixels, and comprise 3,000 individual LEDs arranged in a matrix pattern that can be turned on or off automatically to conserve energy.

Mercedes says that the EQXX features a 3D moving map, which uses satellite data to display a high-definition render of the world outside. It can auto zoom in/zoom out based on the requirement, with the lowest height setting being 10 meters (32.8 feet). There’s also an all-new “Hey Mercedes” voice assistant who’s accompanied by the “Mercedes Jelinek” virtual guide for the screens! It’s not clear whether the standard CLA Electric will get the massive display and its raft of features, though it could be offered as an optional extra.

The electronics of the CLA Electric, both system and in-cabin, would run on the Mercedes-Benz Operating System (MB.OS). Developed in-house, the new software “will perfectly link the vehicles with thee cloud and the IoT, and comprise four central domains: Powertrain, Autonomous Driving, Infotainment, and Body & Comfort Systems,” Dr. Michael Hafner, Vice President MB.OS Base Layer & MBUX, Mercedes-Benz, said in an internal interview.

Specifications

The Mercedes CLA Electric will likely debut the company’s electric-first MMA platform and eATS 2.0 electric drive unit (EDU) with a radial motor. The inverter, a two-speed gearbox, and the power electronics will likely also be a part of the eATS 2.0 EDU, which may come from the Mercedes-Benz plant in Untertürkheim, Germany. All of them may feature silicon carbide (SiC) for high efficiency.

The Mercedes CLA EV could have a system voltage of 800 volts, even though it would be an entry-level model. In comparison to the current, 400-volt Mercedes-EQ EVs, this would mean lower energy losses, reduced cabling weight, and increased fast-charging capacity.

In addition to an entry-level front-wheel-drive, dual-motor all-wheel-drive models are also expected for the pure-electric CLA sedan. There’s no word on the battery pack capacity, but according to a report JESMB released on December 6, 2022, the Mercedes CLA Electric’s range (presumably WLTP) could be up to 850 km (528 miles). The maximum EPA-est. range could be over 400 miles in that case.

Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake Electric

Since the CLA’s inception early last decade, it has been a tradition for the line-up to include a Shooting Brake. The practical long-roof derivative will follow it in the third generation, securing its space in the three-pointed star’s shrinking compact car line-up. That’s according to a report Wards Auto released on March 10, 2023, which also claims that the redesigned, third-gen estate will be available as an EV.

The first-ever Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake Electric could start arriving in dealerships in 2026.

TopElectricSUV says

The Mercedes CLA Electric could be a four-door electric coupe offering a sleek and stylish design, high levels of aerodynamic and energy efficiency, and an impressive driving range that sends range anxiety into the history books! Expect prices to start at around USD 50,000 in the U.S.

Mercedes CLA Electric FAQs

Featured Image Source: Mercedes-Benz