Mercedes-Benz CLA250 Debuts, $299/Month Lease Deals To Follow
July 19th, 2013 8:14 PM
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Just in case you need further proof that luxury has been democratized, Mercedes-Benz has blessed us with the CLA250. It’s got front-drive, a 208 horsepower turbocharged 4-banger, and it looks like a pastiche of every M-B design and “lug-zhu-ree” styling cue in existence. Yech.
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If I look up really quickly whilst scrolling, this looks just like a Sentra. No good. And the wheels are tiny. And the rear fender could have come from a Genesis. And I hate black wheels on anything.
As a Benz, I don't care for it. M-B has a good reputation for making a luxry driver's car in this category. To me this car seems diluted and a poseur. I'm sure it'll be an OK product, but if it becomes popular, will cause M-B to lose some of it's identity and credibility.
When it is all said and done, this is just another piece of brand extension for MB. It might succeed or fail but at least it is *new*. Something going forward. All of you have to remember the mindset of the exec suites of the German marques. There must be serious fear there. They are shouldering the complete EU. Seriously, should any one of these guys falter the rest of Europe's economy comes crashing down from sheer uncertainty. It also means that they have to keep pushing, extending their reach, moving into new niches, new segments because that's how you get growth in a nonperforming market. They can't rely on the US to pick up slack and they quickly max out their foreign markets for the luxury/premium goods. So you get this, and the 1 series and up!. Scary times.
The rational behind this model is quite simple, our customers are getting older and we must reach a younger demographic before our sales start to fall like Cadillac's did. I wish we would offer a stick in something other than the SLK250. The CLA looks very good, handles well and will give us a price point between the Smart and the C-Class. Oh, and the all wheel drive CLA45 will rock.