Second-generation of Mercedes’ smallest four-door launches in 1.3-litre CLA 200 form, yours from S$182,888

SINGAPORE

The first member of the new baby Benz family, the A-Class hatch, may have debuted here more than half a year ago, but it’s this, the CLA, that will probably become more ubiquitous on our roads.

Despite it being marketed as a coupe, the first-gen CLA’s four doors and decidedly un-Coupe-like shape made it a small sedan in all but name, which found it plenty of favour here thanks to Singaporean car buyers’ penchant for three-box-shaped cars.

And so the story continues with this second-generation model. This time round, a slightly more upright A-Class Sedan also exists, which sources say should be similarly priced, but the swoopier CLA has beaten that to our shores. Chief editor Derryn has already had a preview drive of the car at its international launch in April, and you can read that review here and watch a video walkthrough below.

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15jxNjcii7M[/embedyt]

For now, the CLA is available in Singapore only as a CLA 200, and costs S$182,888 with Certificate of Entitlement. This gets a 1.33-litre turbo engine with 163hp and 250Nm of torque, hooked up to a seven-speed dual clutch transmission; 0-100km/h is done in 8.2 seconds, and it has a top speed of 229km/h.

It also features cylinder shutoff technology, allowing it to run in two-cylinder mode in low-demand situations, allowing it to hit a claimed fuel economy rating of 5.7L/100km, and a VES B rating (neutral).

A CLA 250 is also available on an indent basis, and features a 2.0-litre engine with 224hp and 350Nm of torque, which Derryn says makes for a more pleasurable driving experience.

The highlight of the CLA’s standard features is probably MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User eXperience), which is a Siri-like onboard assistant, which can understand complex spoken questions. Check out our CLA preview article to see what else it can do.

The rest of the interior is pretty much identical to the A-Class, with the same tiered dashboard and twin-10.25-inch screen setup that’s been a Mercedes-Benz staple since its debut in the S-Class.

Other standard equipment includes LED head and taillights, interior ambient lighting, self-parking assist, electrically-adjustable sports seats, reverse camera, six airbags, and autonomous emergency braking.

The CLA 200 comes default in Progressive trim, which is the yellow car you see in these pictures. The more aggressive AMG Line trim – the grey car – is a $6,200 option, and comes with a different bodykit, different wheel design (but the same 18-inches in size), different interior trim, and a flat-bottomed steering wheel.

Of course, being a premium German luxury brand, Mercedes has an extensive menu of optional extras that you can spend on. Highlights include two-tone leather ($4,800), ventilated front seats ($3,700), adaptive suspension ($4,100, or $2,900 with AMG Line), head-up display ($4,100), navigation ($2,300), and a bevy of active safety features like a Lane Tracking package ($3,300), and a Driving Assistance package ($7.900).

Additionally, an Edition 1 package is also available for the CLA in its first year of production, a $19,000 option. For this, you get 19-inch wheels, gloss black detailing, orange highlights on the bumpers, wheels and interior stitching, and “Edition 1” lettering on various trim elements:

Further down the line, speed junkies can look forward to AMG-fied versions of the CLA: a spicy version called the CLA 35 with 306hp (we sampled this package late last year in the Merc-AMG A 35), and a nuclear option in the form of the CLA 45 S, which features the world’s most powerful four-cylinder production engine. These are estimated to arrive by the end of the year or early 2020, but no specifics have been confirmed yet.

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