Mercedes Benz CLA sedan gains power and features for 2015

Mercedes Benz India is all set to introduce the CLA sedan in early 2015. Internationally, the affordable luxury sedan has received a bunch of changes for the 2015 model year. While the 2.2 liter turbo diesel engine of the car has been tweaked for added output and lower emissions, the interiors and exteriors of the CLA sedan see minor changes, along with additional safety equipment.

Here’s a quick round up of the changes on the 2015 Mercedes Benz CLA luxury sedan,

• Collision prevention assist plus, which adds the autonomous partial braking feature.
• Upgraded attention assist system with a wider operating range between 60 Kph and 200 Kph.
• Keyless-Go system offered as an option.
• Larger, 8 inch infotainment display.
• Satin finish, poplar wood theme option for the dashboard
• 12 colour schemes for ambient lighting.
• AMG 19 inch alloy wheels with high sheen black finish.
• 2.2 liter turbo diesel engine with 177 Bhp-350 Nm outputs. Power goes up by 6.7 Bhp while torque remains constant. Claimed fuel efficiency goes up to 25 Kmpl.

Mercedes Benz will assemble the CLA sedan in India, at its Chakan assembly facility off Pune. The CKD kits imported from Germany are likely to feature the changes seen on the 2015 version of the car. The CLA sedan is Mercedes Benz’s answer to Audi’s A3 sedan. Based on the Modular Front Architecture (MFA), the CLA sedan sold in India is likely to command a starting price tag of a little under 30 lakh rupees.

Mercedes Benz India is clear about positioning its cars as more luxurious offerings than those offered by Audi in the affordable luxury segment. In this light, Mercedes Benz’s MFA based offerings will be priced higher than Audi’s MQB platform underpinned luxury cars. Mercedes Benz also offers a high performance version of the CLA sedan, in the form of the CLA 45 AMG that comes with a 360 Bhp-450 Nm output.