Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG vs BMW M235i Speedometer Battle

Even though they are not true Motorsport Technik models, the BMW M135i and now the BMW M235i are probably the closest to a competitor that the aforementioned AMG models will get, at least until the Audi RS3 and RS3 Sedan from the 8V generation come to light in the next few months.

With that being said, the following speedometer acceleration battle video is actually a versus between a Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG and a BMW M235i, with neither car using the launch control system.

Actually, the “grandpa launch” on both cars is quite possibly the reason for their speedometer needles to move at pretty much the same speed if you look closely.

In a perfect world – meaning that both cars had used launch control – the CLA 45 AMG would have most likely obliterated the M235i from a line, courtesy of a couple of rather important differences.

First of all, the M133 in the CLA 45 AMG has no less than 360 hp and 450 Nm (332 lb ft) of torque from a turbocharged four-cylinder, while the N55HP in the BMW M235i has only 326 hp and 450 Nm (332 lb ft) of torque from a turbocharged inline six.

Even though they have a similar weight, the AMG is also helped by the fact that it features 4Matic all-wheel drive, while the BMW is only rear-wheel drive, meaning that official acceleration figures for the two are obviously in favor of the Mercedes-Benz. Without launch control though, this is what happens: