2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA EV Sets a New Standard for Small Luxury EVs

• Mercedes' smallest sedan, the CLA, is fully redesigned.
• It debuts as an EV for 2026, followed by a gas-powered hybrid in 2027.
• We've driven the new CLA a few times now and are very impressed with what it has to offer.

To date, we have driven the new CLA three times, beginning in Copenhagen for the first media drive. Then we took the CLA EV on an exclusive Edmunds EV Range Test, where the entry-level CLA 250+ traveled 434 miles on a single charge, effortlessly beating the EPA's estimate of 374 miles. We also just got our first spin in the gas-powered CLA 220 hybrid (it bows for the 2027 model year). But we jumped at the chance to get back into the CLA EV during the U.S. press launch in San Francisco. It gave us the opportunity to talk shop with Mercedes product experts, who shed new light on all aspects of the small sedan, including the new MB.Drive Assist Pro suite of driving aids.

The mean streets of San Francisco

The drive route was simple: Start at my hotel within walking distance of the Ferry Building, travel north across the Golden Gate Bridge, hook east across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge once I hit San Quentin, and head south until I crossed the Bay Bridge and returned. All in all, it was a shortish one-hour loop that nevertheless revealed a lot about the car. 

Full disclosure: It's been over a decade, but I remember everything about the first-generation CLA that Edmunds bought. The memory of a stiff ride — a combination of the sporty suspension tune and low-profile tires — loomed large enough that when I crossed into a Pacific Heights construction zone in the new CLA, I braced for impact.

There was no need. The CLA EV traversed the torn-up pavement effortlessly. I felt the suspension working below me and the body jostling slightly, but the sharp punches to the spine that I expected were absent. On regular roads and highways, the CLA absolutely glides over small imperfections. After two generations of refinement, the CLA now exhibits the comfortable, controlled ride characteristic of other, more expensive Mercedes models. It's also quiet. Aside from some buffeting during a particularly windy crossing over the Golden Gate, the serene interior illustrated how well insulated the CLA EV is from road noise.

I was also impressed by the CLA EV's acceleration around town and at moderate highway speeds. The 268-horsepower single-motor CLA 250+ is the less powerful of two CLA EV models available at launch (the other is the 349-hp CLA 350 with all-wheel drive), but it never felt strained or sluggish on my drive. I played around with the Sport mode, which noticeably increased the volume of the synthetic "engine" noise coming from the speakers while accelerating. But the acceleration felt just as natural and rapid as the standard Comfort mode.

I also liked how airy the cabin feels. The standard panoramic glass roof was high enough that my hair didn't brush it — no easy feat, as I'm 6-foot-4 and the CLA EV is quite small — and the large windows let in a lot of light. There's good natural visibility, too, and that's before you add in a multitude of high-definition cameras that make it easy to guide this little sedan out of a parking spot. Alas, while I could find a comfortable seating position up front, I didn't fit into the back at all. The downward-sloping roof means you'll have to scrunch up to enter the rear, and the lack of toe room under the front seat will pinch your shoes. Then there's the lack of rear legroom that's inherent in a car this size. But I also realize I'm a giant, and it would be silly for me to complain that a subcompact sedan doesn't fit me. I think that four average-sized adults would be just fine in here, provided the front seats weren't slammed to the floor. 

New to Mercedes: MB.Drive Assist Pro

The CLA is the first Mercedes to feature the MB.Drive Assist Pro suite, which the Mercedes folks unofficially referred to as a "Level 2 plus plus" system. While engineers might not love the comparison, for ease of understanding, think of it as Merc's answer to Tesla's Full Self-Driving. At low speeds (such as tooling around the city), the system can identify stop signs and red lights, pedestrians, vehicles and more. It then combines that with adaptive cruise control, automated steering and other systems to drive with minimal driver intervention. I went on a 45-minute loop with one of the system's developers at the wheel, and I walked away ... actually, I can't tell you just yet. Fire up the Edmunds Car News page in a couple of weeks for a detailed explanation of the system and impressions from the road.

What I can say is that the new CLA is a step up from its predecessor, which is a pretty big compliment given that the second-gen CLA had to right a lot of the first CLA's problems. I think the price is right, too. The base price of the CLA 250+ is right around $50,000, with well-equipped models ringing in at just over $60,000. It's a far cry from the original CLA — famously introduced to the U.S. public via a Willem Dafoe-starring Super Bowl commercial advertising a sub-$30,000 entry point — but having driven the old and new ones, I know that the CLA EV is worth the asking price.