Test Drive Today
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MBWorld Fanatic!
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From: Cincinnati
2010 E350 4Matic
Test Drive Today
Test drove a CLA 250+ EV today.
Exterior:
I'm thinking I will drive a used 2024 model 3 for comparison.
Exterior:
- It was ok, not bad not great. Could be because it was in white maybe in another color it would look better.
- Not a fan of frameless doors as they fail the reassuring solidity that the Mercedes thunk test provides which I have become accustomed to
- I liked the way the seats looked and felt.
- I prefer small cars but the interior space felt tight, likely aerodynamics driven.
- Rear legroom for the seat positioned for me (5" 9") was adequate.
- The screens were ok.
- Overall other than the seats it felt kind of cheap for what they want for the car.
- Plenty of power, No complaints here
- Quiet at low speeds but did hear some tire noise on the highway. I drove our KIA EV immediately after and the CLA was definitely quieter on the highway and if you have the radio on in the CLA you probably wouldn't notice the tire noise much.
- Didn't push it but no reason to think it wouldn't handle well. It actually felt light for an EV.
- Ride wasn't plush but acceptable.
- Most notable thing is the strong regent is strong. With time I suppose I could get used to it. I have become a pretty gentle driver and probably due to me age I had a hard time modulating the deceleration. I don't remember that being an issue with Model 3's I have driven.
- Reported range was outstanding at 411 with 96% battery charge. For reference this clobbers our KIA Niro EV which on it's best days would be lucky to report 300 mile without any HVAC. The reported efficiency during the test drive was 4 mi / kWh. For reference I drove our KIA 50 miles today taking my wife to the airport and going to the gym and home and returned with an average efficiency of 4.8 mi / kWh.
- Hopping back in the Kia Niro EV actually felt more comfortable partly being the more upright seating position and less slopey windshield.
I'm thinking I will drive a used 2024 model 3 for comparison.
Last edited by MBNUT1; May 12, 2026 at 06:32 PM.
MBWorld God!
Joined: Dec 2019
Posts: 33,099
Likes: 6,559
Test drove a CLA 250+ EV today.
Exterior:
I'm thinking I will drive a used 2024 model 3 for comparison.
Exterior:
- It was ok, not bad not great. Could be because it was in white maybe in another color it would look better.
- Not a fan of frameless doors as they fail the reassuring solidity that the Mercedes thunk test provides which I have become accustomed to
- I liked the way the seats looked and felt.
- I prefer small cars but the interior space felt tight, likely aerodynamics driven.
- Rear legroom for the seat positioned for me (5" 9") was adequate.
- The screens were ok.
- Overall other than the seats it felt kind of cheap for what they want for the car.
- Plenty of power, No complaints here
- Quiet at low speeds but did hear some tire noise on the highway. I drove our KIA EV immediately after and the CLA was definitely quieter on the highway and if you have the radio on in the CLA you probably wouldn't notice the tire noise much.
- Didn't push it but no reason to think it wouldn't handle well. It actually felt light for an EV.
- Ride wasn't plush but acceptable.
- Most notable thing is the strong regent is strong. With time I suppose I could get used to it. I have become a pretty gentle driver and probably due to me age I had a hard time modulating the deceleration. I don't remember that being an issue with Model 3's I have driven.
- Reported range was outstanding at 411 with 96% battery charge. For reference this clobbers our KIA Niro EV which on it's best days would be lucky to report 300 mile without any HVAC. The reported efficiency during the test drive was 4 mi / kWh. For reference I drove our KIA 50 miles today taking my wife to the airport and going to the gym and home and returned with an average efficiency of 4.8 mi / kWh.
- Hopping back in the Kia Niro EV actually felt more comfortable partly being the more upright seating position and less slopey windshield.
I'm thinking I will drive a used 2024 model 3 for comparison.
Thread Starter
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 4,990
Likes: 1,350
From: Cincinnati
2010 E350 4Matic
Hard to answer that question It's not like they were noisey tires (I know the difference). I mentioned it to the sales representative and he made the comment that the tire noise is more apparent due to the absence of the engine noise. I would say that the engine noise on my E Class is barely present on the highway. What I would say is that I think that the car is quiet for it's class but it is not quieter than upper class Mercedes. Similar to a C isn't as quiet as an E and an E isn't as quiet as an S.
Last edited by MBNUT1; May 13, 2026 at 03:05 PM.
MBWorld God!
Joined: Dec 2019
Posts: 33,099
Likes: 6,559
Hard to answer that question It's not like they were noisey tires (I know the difference). I mentioned it to the sales representative and he made the comment that the tire noise is more apparent due to the absence of the engine noise. I would say that the engine noise on my E Class is barely present on the highway. What I would say is that I think that the car is quiet for it's class but it is not quieter than upper class Mercedes. Similar to a C isn't as quiet as an E and an E isn't as quiet as an S.
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Joined: Jun 2026
Posts: 22
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From: WA, USA
Mercedes GLC 2018
- The "Thunk" and Frameless Doors: You hit the nail on the head regarding the solidness of the doors. Because the CLA is built as an entry-level EV on the new MMA platform, it lacks the heavy, vault-like acoustic insulation of the larger C, E, or S-Class models. Frameless doors just don't have that reassuring mass and acoustic seal.
- Regenerative Braking Modulation: If the regen felt too strong or abrupt, the car was likely set to D-Auto or D-Strong (one-pedal driving). Mercedes EVs let you control this on the fly using the paddle shifters behind the steering wheel—pulling the left paddle increases regen, while the right paddle backs it off to let the car coast smoothly like a gas car. Given your gentle driving habits, setting it to "D-Standard" or "D-Off" (coasting) would likely make it much easier to modulate.
- Efficiency & Range: Getting 4 mi/kWh in real-world testing is impressive for a brand-new platform, though coming from a Kia Niro EV, you are already used to excellent efficiency. That said, 400+ miles of real-world range is a massive plus for road-tripping.
- Interior Space vs. Kia: The sloping aerodynamic roofline definitely eats into the rear headroom and airy feeling of the cabin compared to the upright, crossover-style packaging of the Niro.
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Thanks OP again for starting this thread. Ok so sharing my Canadian market experience from last week.
Thomas (the German auto reviewer on YouTube) mentioned the Burmester system with the Intensive sound profile with MB OS was better than the W223 S-Class pre-facelift base speakers? There might be some merits to it.
Since these vehicles had started showing up at local MB dealerships here in Canada, actual customer delivery ready vehicles (finally???) since I saw the training vehicle appear in Downtown Toronto back in March 2026 and this car was announced in March of year 2025 so more than a year ago.
Anyways so naturally the curiosity took over me and I checked it out for fun, I played with the speakers, it is a huge improvement to a lot of MB Burmester systems I heard, I wouldn't say it is better than the base W223 speakers though and especially nowhere close to the 4D system but this vehicle is less than half the price of an S-Class (if my math was right).
I mainly was intrigued and wanted to try MB OS. A few things with MB OS, massage is now an option in a CLA, only one program (classic massage) but still, looks like remote start might be free forever (until they shut down 4G of course like how MB sundown 3G) (which is interesting since servers are not free so not sure how sustainable with that for MB. MB used to offer 3 years of complimentary remote services, which at that time was called the Mercedes Me service before then it became only 1 year on newer model years, same with 3 year free updates became 1 so I am not sure how long they will keep this lifetime free remote services selling point. Sort of like google pixel 1 used to be about free unlimited cloud storage which later models did not include that type of thing, but that is a welcome change and the navigation trial is 7 years! That is much more than a typical lease or finance contract and best for those who keep their cars for a long time.
MB OS is very smooth, can't check out connectivity features as I didn't get to drive the vehicle for long but first time driving a pure EV, super smooth, took it for a test on the 407, the noise insolation is good, I think this will sell well as an entry level MB and especially with these fuel crisis right now, just not sure why MB Canada didn't bring it in sooner. I am not the target of market for this vehicle but I think MB is off to a good start for 2026, well middle of 2026 already.
I remember autotrader UK had a video that described the CLA EV "rides like a Rolls-Royce" obviously that reviewer exaggerated it but on Canadian bumpy roads.
Thomas (the German auto reviewer on YouTube) mentioned the Burmester system with the Intensive sound profile with MB OS was better than the W223 S-Class pre-facelift base speakers? There might be some merits to it.
Since these vehicles had started showing up at local MB dealerships here in Canada, actual customer delivery ready vehicles (finally???) since I saw the training vehicle appear in Downtown Toronto back in March 2026 and this car was announced in March of year 2025 so more than a year ago.
Anyways so naturally the curiosity took over me and I checked it out for fun, I played with the speakers, it is a huge improvement to a lot of MB Burmester systems I heard, I wouldn't say it is better than the base W223 speakers though and especially nowhere close to the 4D system but this vehicle is less than half the price of an S-Class (if my math was right).
I mainly was intrigued and wanted to try MB OS. A few things with MB OS, massage is now an option in a CLA, only one program (classic massage) but still, looks like remote start might be free forever (until they shut down 4G of course like how MB sundown 3G) (which is interesting since servers are not free so not sure how sustainable with that for MB. MB used to offer 3 years of complimentary remote services, which at that time was called the Mercedes Me service before then it became only 1 year on newer model years, same with 3 year free updates became 1 so I am not sure how long they will keep this lifetime free remote services selling point. Sort of like google pixel 1 used to be about free unlimited cloud storage which later models did not include that type of thing, but that is a welcome change and the navigation trial is 7 years! That is much more than a typical lease or finance contract and best for those who keep their cars for a long time.
MB OS is very smooth, can't check out connectivity features as I didn't get to drive the vehicle for long but first time driving a pure EV, super smooth, took it for a test on the 407, the noise insolation is good, I think this will sell well as an entry level MB and especially with these fuel crisis right now, just not sure why MB Canada didn't bring it in sooner. I am not the target of market for this vehicle but I think MB is off to a good start for 2026, well middle of 2026 already.
I remember autotrader UK had a video that described the CLA EV "rides like a Rolls-Royce" obviously that reviewer exaggerated it but on Canadian bumpy roads.
