The new Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake has been revealed at the Geneva International Motor Show, offering more space than the swoopy, second-generation sedan version unveiled at the start of 2019. Of course, it seems highly unlikely this stretched model will be offered here in South Africa, considering its forebear didn’t make it to local shores (and considering the SA buying public’s general lack of love for wagons).
Measuring 4 688 mm from nose to rump, the new version is some 48 mm longer than its predecessor, as well as a full 53 mm wider. The CLA Shooting Brake’s boot capacity, meanwhile, comes in at a claimed 505 litres (up from the previous model’s 495 litres).
As with the four-door version, the new CLA Shooting Brake will be offered with a turbocharged 2,0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine (with this model badged “CLA250”) churning out 165 kW and 350 N.m, and driving the front wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.
The Stuttgart-based firm promises “a wide range of diesel and petrol engines” will later be offered, along with a manual gearbox for some variants and the option of all-wheel drive. An adaptive damping system will furthermore be optionally available, while alloy wheel sizes will range from 16 to 19 inches.
Inside, the CLA Shooting Brake logically shares much with its sedan sibling, including the brand’s clever MBUX (that’s Mercedes-Benz User Experience) system and widescreen display.
Like the original version, the new CLA Shooting Brake will be built at the firm’s Kecskemét plant in Hungary. The CLA saloon, meanwhile, is scheduled to launch in South Africa in the third quarter of 2019, slotting in above the A-Class Sedan.
