Docto

Autogefuehl has a pretty good review of the CLA 250 shooting brake. According to him the +2019 Gen has roomy back seats which are possibly more conformable than the current C-Class and that tall dude was able to sit there with no problems. So I guess my prejudice was wrong and the CLA shooting brake isn't tight at all compared to my old C.

W205C43PFL

That is the X118 gen though (which I think you are aware), I thought you were looking at the X117 gen. Like forum member superswiss mentioned as well, we can't stress enough the importance of test driving.

Docto

Yes I am aware of that,
​but the rear seat seems to be not even remotely as problematic as I thought even in the 117 Gen. Unfortunately I found out that the dealer close by which had the CLA 45 shooting brake doesn't do test drives (which is imo ridiculous for a used car dealer) so I probably need to go a bit further but that's fine.

W205C43PFL

I see. Ya that does sounds like they don't want you as a customer. I wonder if it has to do with the restrictions because of what is going on right now? Either way, hopefully you also have a chance to test drive the C 43 wagon/estate/T-model depends on what you call it as well. Give yourself some options to choose from : )

W205C43PFL

Got a chance to test drive the vehicles yet? Would like to hear about your experience...

Docto

Hi, so it took a while but I was finally was able to test the AMG Cla45. The same dealer had a C43 unfortunately only until yesterday, so I couldn't test that, but better than nothing.

My impression of the CLA45: It was an early 2016 model and it just looks incredibly gorgeous from outside and also very decent from the inside. Even just turning on the engine releases an existing sound. Sitting on the front seat is very comfortable and I can definitely say I prefer the bucket seats over the normal ones in my 2010 C200. Sitting on the back seats is totally okay, the seats are less deep than in my C, however the knee and head room is more than enough for me with 176cm and certainly more than enough for my shorter family members. However I had the feeling that the angle of the back seat in the CLA was steeper than in my C so the gerenal feeling was not as comfortable as the C, but honestly totally fine if you don't drive very far away for l many hours. The trunk is not super huge, but the shooting brake design allows a decent amount of luggage and should be enough for me, in particular since there is still the option to fold down the back seats if I really need a lot of space.

But now to the most important part: The ride quality of the CLA45. After reading about many complaints, I was prepared for a hard ride, but was very very positively surprised. I even asked the dealer to drive once in stead of me, so I can try out the back seats as well, but the ride quality was in the comfort mode totally fine in the front and back. I would go so far to describe it as more comfortable than my 2010 C200. I have no doubt, that the CLA45 would lose against a 2022 C200, or even a 2016 C200, but compared to my old car it isn't any bumpier. If you change the drive mode to Sport+ the suspension changes. The ride becomes harder and the exhaust much louder, which is pretty cool. There is overall really a huge difference between the Comfort mode and Sports + mode, the sound, the suspension, the quickness of the car, everything becomes significantly sportier and the comfort mode is actually really decently comfortable.

Overall it was a really positive experience and the CLA45 would be definitely a good choice for me. I want to test out the C43 as well, but if the C43 has not a worse ride quality than the CLA45, it would be probably a good choice as well. In that case I would need to choose between the CLA45 which is more compact, powerful and cheaper or the C43, which is more practical, more comfortable rear seats but more expensive and a bit less powerful

W205C43PFL

Thanks for your update and your experience with the test drive. Sounds like you are already decided though, depending on if your dealership is willing to hold the vehicle for you so you have time to test drive the C 43 I would say go for it, if not then go right ahead and buy it.

Docto

I really wouldn't say I decided for my self, because I put practicality first and the larger trunk and better back seats are huge arguments for the C43, I just need to find out the ride quality of that one as well

W205C43PFL

Sounds good, good luck with your search : )

Motazbilah

Commenting as I have some experience with this:

I drive a 2019 C43 coupe, friend drives a 2015 CLA45, brother drives 2018 E43, and dad drives a 2019 E450 coupe. I've only driven the CLA45 briefly, but did not find the ride to be significantly worse than my car, the 2019 C43. The CLA45 feels more go-kart like, but a little harsher. My exhaust (with the AMG Performance Exhaust option) is louder than all of the cars. I changed my tires to non-runflat Michelin pilot sport AS4s, and the ride improved somewhat, though I didn't find the suspension and ride too troublesome to begin with. I generally don't notice harshness on a daily basis. My brother's E43 is more comfortable than my car, and there's a more discernable difference between comfort and sport+ than there is on my car. However, you'll still have some harshness over larger potholes and you'll hear the louder thunks. Dad's E450 is on a different level in terms of smoothness. Compared to all of the cars, it feels like a large cruiser. I briefly contemplated getting both the E450 or E43 when I was shopping, but as a young mid 20s guy, I'm glad I made the choice I made. I prefer the louder exhaust and theatrics more than the (marginally to noticeably for E43 and E450 respectively) improved comfort at this point in my life.

W205C43PFL

Appreciate you chiming in, very likely your experience will help OP : )

Docto

Thanks a lot for sharing your experience.
Considering that I found the ride quality of the CLA45 okay, I don't expect the C43 to be too bad either. I found a dealer not too far away from me which has a used C43 as well as E43, so I will try to drive both of them on Saturday.
I will share with you my experience.

Adi-Benz

C400's or E/CLS can come with airmatic.

With my CLS in comfort mode, suddenly the road no longer exists but mostly I keep it in sport.

Docto

Hi, today I was able to take a ride in the C43 Wagon and took a look in to the E43 Wagon.

Here are my thoughts to the C43: I didn't find the ride quality better at all compared to the CLA45, it didn't make much difference. If anything, I felt like the CLA45 was a bit better, but that was maybe just the different road quality. Unquestionably the back seats are better in the C than the CLA, which makes a long ride more conformable even if the suspension doesn't make the difference. The trunk of the C is not just the same size in numbers, but actually also appears to be not any larger than the CLA. It has the advantage, that the trunk door is wider, but that's pretty much the only thing which was significantly better in regard to the trunk. The interior is somewhat more luxurious than the CLA but it's not jaw droppingly better.
I must honestly say, I was a bit disappointed by the C43, I don't see the C43 doing anything significantly better than the CLA45 except having better back seats and I don't think the price difference for a used C43 to a CLA45 in my market is justified. The CLA is the faster and cooler looking car with a handcrafted AMG motor and the only real downside to a C43 is the worse back seats, which are still okay in the CLA, just not as good.

My thoughts to the E43: The E43 Wagon is a great luxury car. The trunk is really humongous and you will never worry about a lack of space anymore. The interior is very luxurious and modern even though I was in a 2018 model. The back seats are great and comfy and the car got every luxury function from 360° cam to separated air conditioning temperature in the back seats, it essentially got everything a normal person could possibly want from a car. The luxury difference to the C was surprisingly huge, bigger than the price difference on the used car market in my area would suggest.
I'd say if you have the money and are driving frequently with your family with 4 and sometimes 5 people, but still want some power under the hood (without going too crazy with the 63) ​​​​, the E43 is a dream car.
​​​​​
Here are my personal pros and cons for each of the cars I've tested (many of the points are very specific to my personal situation and are not applicable for others so please don't feel offended) (The numberings are arbitrary and have no meanings like imprta) :

X117 CLA45 shooting brake
Con:
1. The back seats are okay but rather tight not that comfortable
​​​​​​
2. The door of the trunk is tighter than necessary, so the loading can ​become difficult if you want to load large stuff like a suit case or furniture.

3. The infotainment system is outdated.
​​​
4. Lacks luxury features like head up display, cooled seats, heated back seats, 360° cam etc.

​​​​Pro:
1. Very cool and sporty looking

2. High performance with a handcrafted AMG engine (quicker than the C43 or E43)
​​​​
3. Good value for the price, you can easily find a car with low mileage for a good price and is at least 10k cheaper than the C43
​​​​​​
4. Decent practicality with decent trunk space

5. Fits very well in my parking spot and is generally good to drive through the extremely narrow roads in my area.

S205 C43 Wagon
Con:
1. Is significantly more expensive than the CLA45.

2. Outdated infotainment system (just slightly better than CLA45)

3. Doesn't do anything significantly better than the CLA45

4. Is not too large but still more difficult to park and drive in my area than the CLA

5. Doesn't look as cool as the CLA
​​​​​
6. Worse gasoline mileage than the CLA

Pro:

1. More spacious and more comfortable back seats

2. Larger trunk door for larger items

3. Somewhat more luxurious interior

4. Is the largest car which would fit into my parking on the market and is generally not too big
​​​​​
W213 E43 Wagon
Con:

1. The E43 doesn't fit in to the current parking spot, so I would need to rent a different place close by (2 minutes walk), which is possible but it creates higher running costs and is uncomfortable for loading and unloading stuff and I don't want to become wet on my way to the parking on rainy days.

2. Is generally a large car which makes it more difficult to drive in my area with narrow roads or parking at public places.
​
​​​​​​3. Relatively bad fuel economy

​​​​​​4. Is significantly more expensive than the CLA

5. The E-class has an old rich people's luxury car image. I don't like the message driving an E-class is sending out. Even though I could afford a 4~6 year old used E43, it feels way above my class and age, likely people will think I'm driving my dad's car (I'm 26).
​​​​​
Pro:
1. Very luxurious interior

2. Plenty of trunk space.

3. Very comfortable and spacious back and front seats

4. Modern looking infotainment system despite it's age.

5. All kinds of luxury goodies like cooled seats, head up display, 360° camera, heated rear seats and generally more than most people would expect even from a luxury car.

6. Comfortable ride quality.

7. In my market it does barely cost more than an used C43, which makes it significantly more expensive than a CLA, but a very good value for the luxury you get.
​​​​
​​
I will need to think about it for a while and consult with others, but here is my temporary ​​​​​conclusion for now:
I don't think a C43 is a good choice, it's too expensive for being only slightly more practical than the CLA and is in my opinion not as cool.

The E and CLA are very different cars with very different pros and cons. But while the E is a great car for the money, the fact, that it doesn't fit into the parking is a serious problem. What do I do with all the great luxury features if I have to transport my luggage through rain in a 2 minutes walk because the parking isn't in front of the house anymore? And driving a large expensive car through narrow roads is also stressful. On the other hand, If I choose the CLA, I will probably regret it every time when I get into the situation where I can not fit something in to the trunk and I will surely miss all the luxury features like cooled seats, head up display and a modern infotainment system. Nevertheless I think for now the CLA is the better choice because it has everything I need and is has a good price at the same time. I think the E will be a good choice sometimes in the future if I live somewhere with a bigger parking, but is not the appropriate choice for now.

​​​​​​
​​​​​
​​​​

Motazbilah

I was looking forward to hearing your thoughts, thanks for the update! You bring up some really interesting points. I'm in the US, so we have neither the C wagon or CLA shooting brake, and the E43 was only ever available as a sedan. The C sedan seems to be significantly larger than the CLA sedan, but I can see the wagon versions of both being closer in size. For the C class, I forgot to mention that the facelift version (2019+ in the US) feels like a much, much newer car with the new infotainment and digital gauges than the preface lift. The ride was also apparently softened in the midcycle refresh. While shopping for mine, I test drove a 2018 and completely ruled it out for those reasons. Had the pricing been more reasonable in your area, I'd have recommended 2019+ only. In your case though, the CLA seems like a smarter personal choice for all your reasons listed. An E43 also tends to have more expensive running costs. My brother's is at ~70k miles and had both front lower control arms replaced last year under his extended warranty, and some suspension sensor malfunctions lately.

As a note, you're spot on with this:
​​​​​​
"The E-class has an old rich people's luxury car image. I don't like the message driving an E-class is sending out. Even though I could afford a 4~6 year old used E43, it feels way above my class and age, likely people will think I'm driving my dad's car (I'm 26)."

My brother is 24 and had an older, insecure guy come up to his E43 a few weeks ago, lean over, and presumptively ask "dad's car?" After my brother said no, he responded "oh I have money too" lol. People tend to act really weirdly or rudely around younger guys with nice cars.
​

Docto

You Americans are missing out on a lot of cool and practical cars because no one wants to buy wagons

Length:
​​​​​​CLA 469.1 cm / 184.69 inches
C 471.7 cm / 185.71 inches

Width:
CLA 177.7 cm / 69.96 inches
C 181.0 cm / 71.26 inches

Height:
CLA 141.7 cm / 55.79 inches
C 144.0 cm / 56.69 inches

These are the measures of the 2016 Wagon/Shooting Brake, but as far as I am aware, the sedan versions are same in length and width. So as you can see, the C is larger in every dimension but only very slightly. Because of the design, the CLA looks smaller and the interior is also definetly smaller, but the difference is not as large as one might expect from an A-Class based model.

I agree that the 2019 C got good improvements, however the CLA got late 2019 an complete model refresh with many significant improvements, including MBUX, even faster engine, larger boot door and space, better suspension and other luxury goodies.
So if I'd compare the 2019 C43 and the late 2019 CLA45, I honestly don't think the C43 would have a chance against the CLA45 since every major issue, in particular the door of the boot space got more practical. And MBUX is also incredibly good, which the 2019 C again doesn't have (as far as I know).

Agree, stuff like an air suspension is nice for the ride but bad for the wallet over the long run.

In my country driving a Merc, no matter what class is already considered to be somewhat showing off, also a C but even moreso the E is definitely a 'show off your wealth' type of car and AMG is obviously even more showing off, which I really don't like. I'm just a guy who likes cool fast cars and I'm not interested in looking rich or showing off.
I really like that the X117 CLA45 is a sleeper, you can barely recognize it as an AMG by looks if you're not a car enthusiast and if it was up to me, I honestly would remove the AMG bagde to make it unrecognizable for non car-people. In that perspective I don't like the new CLA45, which is, with the Panamercana grill and muscular body much more obviously an AMG sports car (even though the grill in itself looks cool).



​​​​​​​