AMG’s CLA 45 S ‘Edition 1’ Is A Curious Low Volume Special Edition
Mercedes will only make 25 of the ‘Edition 1’ CLA 45 S models for the US market, and we’re not sure why.
AMG models are typically low volume. Same with Maybach. This exclusivity is usually set aside for the models a little farther along in the alphabet. But this time, it’s the CLA’s time to shine. Mercedes has announced a CLA 45 S “Edition 1” – complete with the quotes, too.
It’s to celebrate the North American debut of the CLA 45 S. It’s worth celebrating, to be fair. Instead of the CLA 35 which is “AMG enhanced,” the CLA 45 S gets the full hand-crafted AMG treatment we all know. Beyond the regular “45” the M139 engine in the “S” continues to be a powerhouse with 416 horsepower and 369 lb/ft of torque. It’s good enough for a 4 second 0-60 time. That’s better than the “35” by 0.8 seconds.
The “Edition 1” is, simply put, an appearance package. You can actually spec a higher level of equipment for your CL 45 S. Though the special edition has a good amount standard. Orange accents are the biggest distinction between this car and your common place CLA 45 S. Exterior striping, and interior stitching are where the splashes of orange find their place. Mechanically, it’s identical.
Curious, we went on to the MB builder, and found ourselves with a clone of the “Edition 1” with red accents instead of orange. The price still was a bit eye watering at just shy of $80,000. The “Edition 1” will fetch a tiny bit more at $81,195. If we ticked all of the luxury and performance items, we could get a CLA 45 S up to $87,000.
One thing we’re still a bit confused about is the low volume. Just producing 25 seems odd. AMG enthusiasts are going to be drawn to the higher horsepower models. Special equipment isn’t the draw either. Appearance packages just don’t seem like something AMG would really do. We’d turn our aim at the accountants at this point, but again with just 25 being made, that doesn’t hold water either.
So AMG has a car that doesn’t really make much sense, except to celebrate a car that’s existed for a few years being sold in a new market… which also happens to be one of their biggest markets.
Photos: Mercedes
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