The CLA 250 Shooting Brake gives better rear seat headroom and access to wide and long load space compared to its clam-shaped ‘coupe’ cohort

SINGAPORE-There are a lot of ways to define a car. There are also many ways a car can cross over from one category to another, or, as is quite common nowadays, straddle two categories at once. The CLA 250 Shooting Brake is one good example of this symbiosis.

The people at Merc-HQ have given us the fifth off-shoot of the brand’s new compact vehicle range after the CLA-Class, A-Class, B-Class and GLA-Class, all based on Mercedes-Benz’s new Modular Front Architecture (MFA) platform — one of four different modular passenger car platforms which will cover Mercedes-Benz’s entire ever-expanding line up.

Like its big brother CLS, the CLA Shooting Brake stretches Mercedes-Benz ‘coupe’ definition to its limits. As a stylish sporty-looking wagon (or a Scirocco-like coupe but with more practicality), it’s arguably the most unforgettable IMHO of all the German marque’s MFA platform-based small cars. 
We drove the all-wheel drive CLA 250 Sport which features a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine. Though clearly a little less powered than its AMG-tuned relative, the CLA 250 Shooting Brake gives you 211hp and 350Nm of torque, more than enough to cope with the daily grind and provide an entertaining weekend dash in and out of  town. 

It also features the AMG Line option which includes Dinamica/Artico upholstery, dark aluminium trim, AMG body kitting and 18-inch AMG five-twin spoke light alloy wheels; which when sold separately, would cost you $10,000.
The CLA 250 Shooting Brake can shoot from nothing to a hundred in 6.9 seconds. Acceleration is a little sluggish at first, but once the needle goes above the 2,500rpm mark, the engine comes alive with power. If you dread drag, and have the means, the CLA 45 AMG Shooting Brake is the means for getting rid of it, but will cost you another $98,000 on top of the CLA 250’s not-inconsiderable price tag of $200,888 with COE.

The Shooting Brake’s feature  list is largely the same as its successful CLA sedan cousin. Except it has seating for five, four centimetres  of extra headroom and a 495-litre boot (25-litres more as compared to its four-door coupe cousin). This isn’t much, volume wise, but there’s a but coming if you read on…

On the exterior you’ll find in place of a banana-bent coupe’s silhouette a purposeful estate profile that eschews the four-door’s droopy bum for a very smart and sporty looking car. The second-row seat backs can be set at quite a few different angles to make room for luggage space. When folded completely flat, the space extends to about 1400-litres for additional storage.
Equipment levels are decent, although not outstanding given the price tag. Eco stop/start is standard on all CLA Shooting Brake models which ensures you stay frugal on petrol consumption (6.8L/100km). Collision Prevention Assist Plus, which is said to ‘cut the number of serious rear-end collisions by 30 per cent compared with a car without the autonomous braking system’, is also standard.

You also get the drowsiness detection Attention Assist, which uses a five-stage bar display to show your current attention level, and an electric tailgate.
It seems like every time you think there are no more additional niches for Mercedes-Benz to fill, it pleasantly surprises you with something like the Shooting Brake, which in our opinion is the icing on the cake for a company that has been on an compact automotive binge.

The CLA 250 Shooting Brake is every bit as spectacular as you’d anticipate and arguably more versatile than the coupe — especially if you wish to spend more time in the second row. The CLA Shooting Brake is a sensible addition to the Mercedes-Benz assemblage and is primed to reap the advantages of Singapore’s (and the world’s) current love affair with crossover conundrums.
More: Read our review of the Mercedes-Bens CLA 200, B 200 as well as the A-Class.

NEED TO KNOW
Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class 250 Sport Shooting Brake

Engine 1,998cc,16V, inline 4
Power 211bhp
Torque 350Nm at 1200-4000
Gearbox 7-speed automatic dual clutch
Top Speed 240km/h
0-100kmh  6.8 seconds
Fuel efficiency 6.8L/100km
CO2 158g/km
Price $200,888 with COE
Availability Now