Niche-Of-A-Niche Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake Returns For Second Outing

Believe it or not, there are now effectively four different ways to experience the Mercedes A-Class. There’s the A-Class hatchback, the A-Class saloon, the A-Class-based [CLA]https://www.carthrottle.com/post/the-new-mercedes-cla-is-a-big-screened-saloon-that-thinks-its-a-coupe/, and now the CLA Shooting Brake.

Yep, the niche-of-a-niche is back, and if you’ve read anything about the regular CLA, it’ll all sound very familiar. It’s longer than the old one, roomier, and has significantly wider tracks. You’re looking at a 63mm increase at the front and 55mm at the front, improving handling while also giving the car a more aggressive stance. On the subject of the suspension, adaptive dampers will be available optionally.

In the cabin you’ll find the now familiar MBUX infotainment system, based around two large, wide screens - one that makes up the instrument cluster, and the other to display navigation, media and climate information. As with the other compact Mercs, it’ll be possible to spec the CLA Shooting Brake with a clever augmented reality navigation system.

Unlike the four-door CLA, which has lost 10 litres of boot space relative to its predecessor, the Shooting Brake has more luggage space than the old one - it’s grown by 10 litres. You now have 505 litres to play with, compared to 460 in the SB’s less practical cousin. The opening is bigger than before, too.

Another benefit of going for the Shooting Brake is the aero side of the equation: it’s a slipperier shape than the four-door, with a cd value of 0.26 compared to 0.23. Probably best you don’t use this geeky factoid as a social ice breaker, though.

The only derivative being mentioned so far is the front-wheel drive, 221bhp CLA 250, However, a full range of diesel and petrol and diesel versions will be available by the time the car’s September market launch, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see CLA35 and CLA45 AMG models eventually. No prizes for guessing which one we’re looking forward to driving most…