It is nothing new if we say that the days of Mercedes A-Class and B-Class are numbered. The German firm will carry out a complete overhaul of its range, which will follow the elimination of almost half of the access options for the star vehicles. Only the sedan coupé, the CLA and a little further up the price ladder, the GLB, will remain as the gateway to the Mercedes world. You can also choose electric versions of both.
Ola Källenius, CEO of Mercedes, states that “we believe that the models we focus on are the most successful in the world”.
The basis of the new models, as expected of the Vision EQXX, will be the modular platform of Mercedes, the so-called MMA, which is to accommodate electric versions and versions equipped with combustion engines. A double function, which Källenius briefly justified when he stated that “it is first electric, but it is not only electric”.
The new Mercedes CLA should arrive in 2025 and will initially be sold with electric motors, while a version with a mild hybrid device will arrive six months later, although it will be available on the market in some form. At the same time, it is likely that there will also be AMG versions, although this is not confirmed. He said the electric version, due to the MMA platform, supports an architecture of 800 volts and can charge powers up to 350 kilowatts, which would allow charges from 10 to 80% in 30 minutes in a direct run.
The skateboard-type construction is based around the new lithium iron phosphate -LFP- engine, which according to the brand has a greater efficiency than the lithium ion batteries used in its cars today. Mercedes is also planning a new silicon anode battery, developed in collaboration with Sila, which will be suitable for the long-term version of the upcoming Mercedes CLA. As they say, the first test showed a power consumption below 12 kilometers / hours per 100 kilometers. With a capacity of 100 kilometers / hours, similar to that presented by the Mercedes EQXX, it means that it can exceed 800 kilometers of autonomy.
It is expected that when the new Mercedes CLA goes into production, it will be available in different versions with a number of engines. The main ones will have a front engine and thus front-wheel drive, as well as versions with rear engines, which will convert the CLA into propulsion. Some motors that will be of the second generation permanent magnet synchronous type, whose internal name is eATS2.0. They will feature a newly developed silicone carb inverter and a double speed kick.
The internal combustion engine is a domestically developed brand in Germany, but will feature peripherals from Geely, which will also manufacture it at a newly established factory in China. “It’s a completely new engine, Euro 7 emission standards,” said Markus Schäfer, director of Mercedes R&D. There is not much information about it, but it is believed to retain some elements of the M254 engine, used in different models until now.
A mild hybrid will hit the market, never by itself. Nor will there be a plug in the hybrid version, Mercedes already once stated that it will not spend resources on the development of this type of technology, but also, according to a company source consulted by Autocar “in the future, the customer will be able to choose between gasoline, semi-hybridization or purely electric, always according to the market”.
