2016 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG Shooting Brake Review

And all 45 AMG models have already become more powerful. As you know, AMG was upset about the 2016 Audi RS3 Sport upstaging the A45 with the 367 PS delivered by its 2.5-liter 5-cylinder engine. So they upgraded the two-liter engine to 381 PS. The list of options has also gained hardware goodies such as adaptive dampers and an intelligent front differential.

The change has already been introduced in the configurator this month, but we didn’t get to drive the updated model yet.

You might be familiar with a picture making rounds on the Internet. The image shows a “only milk and juice come in 2 litres” message written right above the 6.3 badging on what is now an old-school AMG model. Well, the guy who pulled out the trick is obviously wrong. At a certain point during the track part of our review, a man with an E63 BMW M6 wanted to chat - You know, that F1-inspired V10 M6.

As it turned out, in the real world, you can have plenty of situations where a 2-liter can beat that 5-liter V10. In the end, the M6 was quicker, but it struggled really hard to pass the AMG.

We’ll start with the exhaust and things are simple - only buy the car with this option fitted. Whenever you go up a gear at heavy loads, the car sounds like it’s machine gunning everybody around.

As for the AMG Performance suspension, you’ll only need this if you intend to spend more miles on the track than on the road. Which brings us to the ride and handling chapter.

Thanks to the reinvented elastokinematics, the engineers have achieved a good balance between the two. Sure, you don’t receive the comfort in the GLA45 AMG, but you can live with the ride for everyday driving.

As for just how AWD this AMG feels like, you should know it’s much more WRX STI than Evo. Regardless, Mercedes’ take on this kind of car is delicious. The two JDM heroes were always limited by their poor interior finish and while the cabin of the 45 AMG isn’t up there with that of the C-Class, you can live with it even if you’re used to expensive cars.

There's another major difference between the STI/Evo pair and the 45 AMG family: when you’re done hammering the AMG, you’re left with the Mercedes-Benz serenity.

Some say you don’t get to feel the speed well enough in the GLA45 AMG Shooting Brake, but we feel the soundproofing is just right. Add the sure-footed attitude and you end up with long journeys that can be entirely relaxing.

Power goes to the front wheels alone as long as there’s enough grip. A multi-disc clutch in the rear diff sends up to 50 percent of the power to the rear axle when this is necessary.

You never get to feel it understeering, since it’s more of a neutral, reactive type of handling.

So can you have fun through the twists? Sure. This AMG is the kind of car you’ll need to throw at a corner in order to go fast and have fun, so forget about the slow-in-fast-out rule.

You can slide it, but you’ll have to be extremely persevering. Nevertheless, if you’re worried about keeping the gears through the corners, you should know the Manual mode allows you to ride the rev limiter.

In what has become the traditional AMG style, the steering is mildly rewarding in terms of feedback, but it does make for a precise instrument that perfectly fits the car.

All the tech elements mentioned above add up, with a sweet result - It's remarkably easy to drive this AMG fast.

The strong technical point of the vehicle lies in the brakes. First of all, you get surprising stopping power. Then there’s the fading resistance. We met a guy with an A45 AMG (there’s the social component again), who told us he had emptied a fuel tank on a track, with the mandatory cool-off laps, but never got to experience serious fading.

And speaking of the A45, Mercedes claims this and the CLA45 AMG S/B are pretty much identical in terms of the driving experience. We felt a slight drop in the driving intensity compared to the hatch, but given the added styling and space benefits, the trade-off can be worth it.

Our review came just one week after having gone on a 2,000-mile road trip in a GLA45 AMG and we have to say we are impressed with the fuel efficiency of the M133 engine. One of the benefits of having such a modern powerplant is that, when you step off the gas, you’ll be rewarded with sweet efficiency.

Inside the city, we managed to achieve an efficiency as low as high as 22.4 MPG (10.5 l/100 km), but a more reasonable value would sit around 18 mpg (13l/100 km). Out on the open road, decent driving will keep you in the 26 mpg area (9l/100 km), while an unapologetic right foot will bring the value to around 19.5 mpg (12l/100 km). The worst we got was 11.7 mpg (20l/100 km), but we don’t want to talk about the driving style that lead to that figure.

We still don't agree with the small gas tank, which means the autonomy sits at about 300 miles (500 km).

The entire concept of the Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG Shooting Brake is built around the car’s styling. To put it briefly, the appearance of this car is the hate-it-or-love-it kind.

Can it serve as a family car? Sort of. There’s enough space in the boot (17.5 cu. ft./496L) and decent space inside while the powertrain is refined. As for the safety, the CLA Shooting Brake is one of the safest cars ever tested by the Euro NCAP. Nevertheless, the ride and the limited city maneuvrability don’t recommend it as a car for hauling your loved ones.

If the “standard” A45 AMG doesn’t float your boat, the rational choice is obviously the GLA45 AMG. Extravagant characters might seek thrills in the CLA45 AMG, but since its rear seats are not that spacious and its newcomer element has started to fade out, the Shooting Brake version we recently drove comes to steal the thunder.

The worst side of this car has to be its pricing. But we can’t talk about the CLA Shooting Brake’s financial side without mentioning the pricing of the other 45 AMG incarnations. In ascending price order, we have the A45 (EUR51,051), the GLA45 (EUR56,168), the CLA45 (EUR56,673), with the Shooting Brake derivative and topping the range at EUR57,268 - these prices include 19 percent VAT (German market). Nevertheless, you should be prepared to inject at least 20 grand in options.

Sadly, the US market doesn’t get the A45 and the CLA45 S/B we tested here.

Yes, the A45 family has a ridiculous price. But why is it so expensive?

It’s because you can use it on any occasion. If you’re the effervescent type, you can unleash yourself and you won’t crash. Rain? All for the better.

Showing up in one of these at a reception makes for a respectable choice. And you never have to be guilty about it - after all, you are driving a car with a pint-sized engine, right?

Especially for this kind of money, there are faster cars out there and there are also more comfortable proposals. However, what makes this AMG special is the melange between these assets.

Those looking to tune the car should follow a simple path. With a CLA45 AMG S/B, you either keep it stock to enjoy its well-executed balance, or turn it into a 500+ hp monster. Go in between and you'll ruin it.

Normally, AMG ships US driving flavor to Europe with its effortlessly fast line-up. Heck, the SLS was the closest you could get to a muscle car without actually buying one.

This time around, Affalterbach introduces America to the European way of building cars.