Mercedes-Benz CLA Facelift: New Design & Tech

[Nairrk]

Last year we saw the Mercedes A-Class receive a facelift and now it's the turn of Mercedes’ compact four-door coupe - the CLA. The revisions extend beyond design tweaks to the exterior with new equipment levels, uprated technology and fresh powertrain offerings.

The CLA will continue as a rival to the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe, but Mercedes offers a more practical estate version of its car in the shape of the CLA Shooting Brake - which gets the same facelift treatment for 2023. Alongside the standard CLA, the AMG-tuned performance versions - the CLA 45 and CLA 35 have also been given a refresh.

In terms of exterior design, it’s a fairly restrained update for the CLA and the Shooting Brake model. The facelifted CLA retains the svelte profile of the outgoing car, with an arcing roofline, sinewy bonnet bulges and a single crease along the flanks. There’s a newly reshaped front bumper and radiator grille, while the rear diffuser has been changed as well. Mercedes has also given the CLA ‘modernised graphics’ within the LED headlight cluster, plus a new signature for the rear lights. 17-inch wheels come as standard but you can spec rims up to 19-inches.

The CLA benefits from similar interior changes to the ones the A-Class hatchback received in 2022. A seven-inch and 10.25-inch screen setup is standard, however, you can select dual 10.25-inch screens as an option. The infotainment system features the latest generation of the MBUX software, with new display styles of “Classic”, “Sporty” and “Discreet” - each offering different amounts and types of driver information. The USB ports are all now illuminated but if plugging-in isn’t your thing, Mercedes has allowed for wireless smartphone charging on some models, along with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Not much has changed design-wise inside, although the Mercedes-AMG Performance steering wheel is now standard - featuring a double-spoke design and extra buttons. In AMG Line specification, there are sports seats’ made from the brand’s Artico recycled materials. AMG models get the Performance seats with extra bolstering and a unique selection of colours.

Although Mercedes hasn’t revealed pricing, it has given us powertrain details for the updated CLA. Mild-hybrid power comes to every petrol version of the CLA with a 48-volt motor that adds an extra 13bhp on start-up. Mercedes claims the belt-driven starter generation “noticeably improves customer comfort and experience. For example, it enables low-vibration and low-noise engine starting as well as coasting with the combustion engine switched off.” Seven-speed and eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions are standard.

The range opens with the CLA 180, which offers 134bhp and 230Nm of torque from its mild-hybrid, 1.3-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine. Acceleration stands at 9.4 seconds for 0-62mph (0.2 slower than the hatch) and the top speed is 134mph. Next up is the CLA 200, which uses the same engine as the CLA 180 but tuned to 161bhp and 270Nm of torque. 0-62mph is dealt with in 8.4 seconds and it’ll top out at 142mph.

The CLA 220 continues with an all-wheel drive 4MATIC drivetrain, utilising a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder engine pumping out 188bhp and 300Nm of torque. That’s enough for a 7.3-second 0-62mph time and 147mph top speed. The 221bhp CLA 250 goes from 0-62mph in 6.4 seconds and on to a 155mph top speed.

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[Nairrk]

New Mercedes GLA facelift unveiled with electrified power across the range

The second-generation Mercedes GLA was only launched back in 2020, but the German brand has already brought out the small SUV’s mid-life facelift. For the update, the GLA gains an exterior redesign, but big changes have come to the powertrain options - which are now electrified through the range.

In terms of design, the revised GLA is a modest update over the old car. There’s a new headlight signature, the reshaped lower bumper has more body colour and the wheelarches are also finished in body colour. The rear is unchanged, aside from a new rear light display. As standard the GLA comes on 17-inch wheels, but 18 and 20-inch rims are optionally available.

The interior layout hasn’t changed all that much. Standard models get a seven-inch instrument cluster and 10.25-inch display for the central touchscreen with the twin 10.25-inch screens an option. The latest Mercedes steering wheel now features with touch controls buttons. The infotainment system uses the latest MBUX software with the updated versions of the “Classic”, “Discreet” and “Sporty” menu configurations.

Sitting on the MFA2 platform, the GLA now benefits from electrification features through the updated engine range, which continues to offer seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions. Kicking off the petrol choices is the GLA 180 which uses the same 1.3-litre four-cylinder unit as before, but now it’s mated to a 48-volt mild-hybrid system, providing an extra 13bhp during brief moments and allowing for engine-off coasting. In the 180 there’s a total of 134bhp, the 200 gets the same powertrain but offers 161bhp.

The GLA 220 and 250 are both badged as ‘4MATIC’, which is Mercedes’ four-wheel drive system. Both come with a 2.0-litre, turbocharged four-cylinder which results in 188bhp and 300Nm of torque for the 220 and 221bhp and 350nm of torque for the 250 version.

All diesel models get the same mild-hybrid system with a 2.0-litre, turbocharged four-cylinder. This ranges from the 114bhp 180 d up to the 188bhp 220d 4MATIC.

As before there’s one plug-in hybrid model - the 250 e. It uses a 1.3-litre, turbocharged petrol unit combined with a 11.5kWh battery. That’s slightly bigger than the old car and as a result electric only range has increased from 37 to 43 miles. Despite more power coming from the battery, total power for the 250 e stays the same at 215bhp and 450Nm of torque. The plug-in hybrid GLA’s charging is unchanged with up to 11kW of charging speed available.

The outgoing GLA costs from £37,645 for the entry-level 200 Sport Executive. Mercedes hasn’t revealed pricing for the facelifted model yet, but as the firm looks to cement its position as a premium car manufacturer, we could see the standard GLA top the £40k mark with more equipment as standard.

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