Mercedes CLA electric – crown jewel

IT may come as a surprise given the popularity and prestige of the brand, but Mercedes-Benz doesn’t win many car of the year accolades.

In fact only once in the European Car of the Year award’s 62-year history has a Merc taken home the trophy – and that was more than a half century ago.

So when the new CLA electric secured the 2026 crown by a landslide — more than 100 points clear of the second-placed Skoda Elroq — it was a seriously big deal.

Low-slung, sleek and distinctly premium, the new CLA’s illuminated grille and flowing coupe-like profile give it real road presence, and there’s some impressive engineering beneath that stylish exterior.

The CLA 200 Electric uses a 58kWh battery and rear-mounted electric motor producing 221bhp and 335Nm of torque. It will sprint from 0-62mph in 7.5 seconds and reach 130mph, which is more than enough performance for everyday driving.

But it’s the car’s efficiency rather than outright speed that really impresses.

Mercedes quotes a driving range of up to 330 miles and DC rapid charging from 10 to 80 per cent can take around 20 minutes, assuming you have access to a sufficiently powerful charger.

In real-world motoring, of course, you are unlikely to see the full official range much of the time, particularly on motorways in cold weather. Nonetheless, the CLA 200 performs like a very capable long-distance electric car.

Out on the road it is quiet, refined and surprisingly agile, the rear-wheel-drive layout giving it a natural balance, while the steering is accurate enough to make a winding road enjoyable – it may not be a sports car but there’s enough punch for effortless overtaking.

On the downside, the ride can be a little firm over poorer UK roads however, and the CLA’s sloping roofline means rear-seat passengers don’t get quite the airy feeling they might expect from a car of this size.

Kicking off the line-up is the CLA 200 Electric Sport model at £39,150, undercutting rivals such as the BMW i4 by a considerable margin.

Our tested Sport Executive trim at £42,865 sits one rung higher, adding smarter multi-spoke wheels, flush-fitting door handles, privacy glass and keyless entry — the kind of kit that makes a car feel like it costs more than it actually does.

And this becomes instantly evident when you step inside the cabin, where everything feels bang up to date without disappearing up its own touchscreen courtesy of a fresh interior that combines two screens covering about two feet of dash space and incorporates ChatGPT and Google Gemini voice assistants.

Sport Executive models also get heated front seats, wireless phone charging, navigation, smartphone integration, a reversing camera and front and rear parking sensors, so there’s plenty of kit for the cash.

Go for the ivory upholstery in ARTICO man-made leather for some added opulence, play with the 64-colour ambient lighting, enjoy the glass panoramic sunroof and flick between the Eco, Comfort and Sport driving modes and the CLA is clearly an agreeable place to be.

Space up front is ample and while it can be a squeeze for three adults in rear the CLA remains a practical enough proposition for a couple or small family.

And if there’s one area where the CLA leaves no room for argument, it’s with regard to safety, Euro NCAP naming the Electric its outright Best Performer of 2025 — the single highest-scoring car of any type tested last year.

It posted a five-star rating with standout marks for adult occupant protection, child occupant protection, vulnerable road user protection and safety-assist technology.

For families cross-shopping this against a Tesla Model 3 or a Polestar 2, that’s a genuinely persuasive trump card.