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2020 Mercedes-Benz CLA 250 Experience

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2020 Mercedes-Benz CLA 250 Experience https://youtu.be/Qho9c--NaNs

The 2020 Mercedes-Benz CLA250 Finally Blossoms into a Real Luxury Car
Mercedes-Benz's downmarket experiment with the first-generation CLA-class sedan may have been a commercial success for the company, but the car's compact size, brittle ride, and chintzy cabin bits all kept it from feeling like a proper Benz. Fast forward to the 2020 CLA250, though, and the second-gen model has been granted enough freedom to finally express itself as a real luxury car.

The new CLA, which arrives at dealers in late 2019, benefits from moving up to a sophomore position in Mercedes's lineup, thanks to the introduction of the also new 2019 A220 sedan with which it shares its platform. The CLA's updated turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four now generates 221 horses versus the previous engine's 208, and its swoopy form has been smoothed and softened to portray that of a baby CLS-class, although, to our eyes, the demure styling language works even better on the CLA's smaller canvas. Dimensionally, its wheelbase grows about an inch, while length and width are up roughly two inches. Track width increases by 2.5 inches in the front and 2.2 at the rear. More important, there's noticeably more suspension travel—a weakness of the outgoing CLA—and optional adaptive dampers, which lend improved composure at speed and greater ride comfort over rough pavement, even on its optional 19-inch wheels (18s are standard).
Mercedes tuned the CLA's engine for good low-end responsiveness, accompanied by a throaty yet refined sound for a four-banger. Front-wheel drive remains standard, but all of the cars we drove in Germany had 4Matic all-wheel drive, which should add about $2000 to the window sticker. An updated seven-speed dual-clutch automatic handles shifting duties and rarely calls attention to itself, save for the occasional clunky downshift and its somewhat sluggish full-throttle upshifts for a dual-clutch 'box. While not overtly sporty—the equally new 302-hp Mercedes-AMG CLA35 will be far more entertaining to operate—the CLA250 should still eclipse 60 mph in a touch over six seconds.
Refinement Realized
The CLA moves with greater precision and refinement from behind the wheel, thanks to a firm brake pedal, nicely weighted steering, and well-managed body motions when tackling corners. There's less variability among the various drive modes (Eco, Comfort, Sport, and Individual) than in some other Mercedes products, but the overall balance and quiet isolation proffered by the CLA's base tuning, even at triple-digit speeds, never had us wishing we could drastically alter its settings.
Category
Car Tech
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