We normally expect big surprises in new tech at the CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas, but over the past few years, high-end car companies have been using CES as a launchpad for new concepts.
First glance may suggest it’s been mildly facelifted, but you need to dig deeper to find that it offers all the new features announced recently on the hatch, and the styling revisions are both tasteful and extremely refined.
My first drive of a CL A sedan was five years ago (DRIVING & LIFE, November 28, 2014), and I reckoned it would be a winner, but the one thing I couldn’t get happy about was the rear end design, which looked like it had been backed into a pair of vice grips, which were then squeezed.
Design of the original car was by young Englishman, Mark Fetherstone (above), and the rear end on the new car shows what happens when you take an existing design style and tweak it ever-so-gently. You end up with a much more sleek, and cohesive result.
Inside, the CL A shows off Mercedes-Benz's new MBUX dash and visual display system, and the ‘Edition’ decal signifies that the first production run will feature a bagful of additional equipment included in the price.
No news on the launch, but my best buddy in Germany Georg Kacher reckons we’ll see it in the third quarter.
Just as the new hatch version has taken off like a rocket, I think the paltry few sedan buyers left in the SUV-dominated market will jump on this four-door hardtop pretty quickly.
It’s a snappy dresser!
It’s a snappy dresser!
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