Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake review

This is the latest Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake – but what exactly is a ‘shooting brake’, you might ask? It’s a good question, and the answer requires a bit of a trigger warning for vegetarians and vegans. The term predates the motorcar itself, stretching all the way back to the days of horsedrawn carriages designed to carry shooting parties, their weapons of choice, and the spoils of their hunting capers. 

If that all sounds a bit Victorian, don’t worry. These days, a shooting brake is less about the taste for blood and more for those with a taste for style. Basically, it’s an estate car that eschews all-out practicality for overtones of a rakish coupé. And, looking at the arguably handsome CLA Shooting Brake, it’s befitting of its name. 

The sleeker body means this version of the CLA (there’s also a CLA coupe) sits in its own niche without any direct price rivals. It’s also available as a petrol-hybrid and as an all-electric vehicle (EV), with the only cars offering a similar vibe being the Porsche Panamera and Porsche Taycan Sport Turismo. Both of those cars are in a far loftier price bracket, though. 

So it’s entirely feasible you could be considering anything from a BMW 3 Series Touring, Mercedes C-Class Estate or even a Tesla Model Y (if you’re after an EV with practicality). In time, there will be more EV estate rivals, including the forthcoming Audi A4 Avant e-tron and BMW i3 Touring. 

For now, we’re focusing on the all-electric versions of the Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake, but when the petrol-hybrid versions arrive we’ll add our thoughts on those, too. 

Read more: Complete the What Car? Reliability Survey now and you could win a prize

What’s new?

- April 2026: we drive the new Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake Electric at its international launch in Mallorca

- July 2025: third-generation Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake revealed

How fast is it and which motor is best?

The Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake will, eventually, be available with a range of petrol hybrid engines, but if you want the all-electric CLA Shooting Brake there are three motor options to pick from.

We haven’t tried the entry-level, rear-wheel-drive, single-motor 200 yet, but Mercedes claims a respectable 0-62mph time of 7.6sec – that matches a BMW 320i Touring. 

For now, our pick of the range is the 250+. It also has a single motor driving the rear wheels, and with 0-62mph taking less than seven seconds, it should have the legs on a Tesla Model Y Long Range while keeping close to a BMW 330e Touring in a drag race. 

As you’d expect, it feels very lively on the road but not spikey; there’s effortless performance available whether you’re scooting about town or firing off miles in the outside lane of the motorway.

For most people the extra speed delivered by the twin-motor 350 4Matic will be superfluous to requirements. Still, if you fancy a load-lugger with performance-car credentials you won’t be disappointed. The acceleration is rapid and accessible even in tricky conditions, thanks to the extra traction of four-wheel drive.

Is it agile and is the ride comfortable?

The CLA Shooting Brake follows the same, simple-but-effective suspension template offered by its four-door Mercedes CLA coupé cousin. You don’t have to worry about paying for an optional adaptive suspension set-up to get the best ride, like you would in a 3 Series Touring or VW ID 7, because it isn’t offered with the CLA. It comes with non-adaptive suspension instead, and it works really well.

The ride isn’t pillowy soft but it is nicely judged. The suspension soaks up the sting from all but the most vicious potholes and it’s less abrupt than a 3 Series Touring over scarred surfaces. And, because it’s not soft and wallowy, life onboard stays settled along heavily undulating country and rippled motorways alike – more so than a Mercedes C-Class Estate. 

That happy compromise works equally well when it comes to the CLA Shooting Brake’s handling. There’s plenty of grip and the taut suspension keeps the body control neat and tidy through corners. The steering is light and precise in its default Comfort mode; if you prefer a bit more heft, just pop it into Sport mode and it gains weight without it feeling artificially heavy. 

Yes, the BMW 3 Series Touring remains the estate of choice for those after the ultimate driving pleasure, but the CLA Shooting Brake is confidence-inspiring and engaging to drive – especially next to other electric cars. 

Is it quiet and how easy is it to drive smoothly?

You won’t be surprised to learn that the EV versions we’ve tried are super quiet when you put your foot down; the electric motor is virtually inaudible. If you want to hear some noise as you accelerate, you can do so by switching on one of a number of fake engine sounds, which range from a weird imitation of a cartoon spaceship to something vaguely resembling a petrol engine. These are, arguably, an acquired taste. 

Things remain relatively hushed up to motorway speeds, too. Wind noise is generally mild and muted, but there is some road roar from the tyres on coarser surfaces. That’s true in many of its rivals, though, including the bigger C-Class Estate.  

Despite the CLA Shooting Brake offering plenty of performance you can feed the power in gently so it never feels overwrought. And when you need to slow down, the combination of regenerative and regular friction brakes work really well together, so stopping feels progressive and easy to judge. 

On the subject of the regenerative brakes, there are four settings that you can change easily – either by pulling the gear selector stalk towards or away from you in Sport models, or by using paddles behind the steering wheel in the AMG Line trims. The settings range from effectively freewheeling to a much stronger braking effect when you lift off the accelerator. 

The final setting is an auto mode, where the car chooses how much it slows down when you lift off the accelerator, depending on whether there’s a bend or a junction coming up, or if the car in front has slowed down.  

What’s the range and efficiency like, and how quickly can it charge?

The CLA Shooting Brake Electric is rare, in that it has a two-speed automatic gearbox (most EVs have a single-speed gearbox) that drops into an ‘overdrive’ gear to help conserve energy at faster speeds. Its official combined efficiency of between 4.6 to 4.9mi/kWh is really impressive. 

As a guide to what you can expect in the real world, we tested a Mercedes CLA 250+ coupé alongside an equivalent Tesla Model 3 Long Range RWD on a 500-mile road trip. We calculated the CLA’s efficiency at 3.6mi/kWh; slightly down on the Model 3’s 3.8mi/kWh, but still impressive. And that was also on a chilly day using an AMG Line model fitted with bigger 19in wheels – Sport versions with smaller 18in wheels should be more efficient. 

In terms of range, the CLA 200 comes with a smaller 58kWh (usable) battery and an official range of around 330 miles, which is competitive. The 250+ and 350 4Matic have a bigger 85kWh battery, which extends the official range to over 450 miles – that is among the longest ranges for any EV at this price point. And even though you’re unlikely to emulate that official figure in the real world, the CLA Shooting Brake should still travel farther on a charge than most of its rivals. 

If you do need to charge up en route, the CLA uses 800-volt architecture that allows the 250+ and 350 4Matic to charge at up to 320kW (Teslas charge at 250kW). As such, a 10-80% boost takes less than 20 minutes on a powerful enough charger. The CLA 200 does charge at a slower rate of 200kW, though.

One thing to bear in mind: as standard, no CLA Shooting Brake will charge at 400-volt CCS chargers, which are more common in the UK than 800-volt chargers. You have to spend nearly £1000 for the optional ‘Direct current charging system’ to enable you to charge anywhere.  

“So much about the Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake’s efficiency, range and charging is impressive, but I think it’s a shame that you have to pay extra for the peace of mind of being able to charge up on 400-volt chargers.” – John Howell, Deputy Reviews Editor

What does the interior look like and is it well made?

Step into the Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake and, immediately, you’re met by a vertical dashboard that’s basically a slap of high-definition TFT. It’s made up of the standard 10.25in driver’s display and 14.0in infotainment screen next to it. This screen-fest effectively runs the entire width of the car if you add the optional 14.0in passenger screen – but more on the screens and how they work later. 

Alongside the visual glitz and glow of the screens, there are other jazzy elements. Many are illuminated by striking background ambient lighting – except in the entry-level Sport trim – including the round air vents at either end of the dashboard. It’s definitely a visual feast, but what about the quality? 

Well, there are pleasing soft-touch materials on many of the upper surfaces, but you don’t have to hunt too hard to find some less pleasing, scratchier plastics. That feels a little disappointing for a car in the CLA’s price range, as does the silver-sprayed plastic on the door interior handles – they look like they’ll scratch easily if you grab them while wearing rings. 

The main elements are pretty sturdy, but if you tap the trim on the centre console it makes a hollow sound, and those air vents we mentioned above have a cheap-feeling action when you adjust them. So the CLA’s a mixed bag, then, and if you want a car that's more consistently well-finished inside, we’d suggest checking out the BMW 3 Series Touring or Tesla Model Y. 

Is the driving position comfortable and is it easy to see out?

You should have few issues getting nicely settled behind the wheel of the CLA Shooting Brake. We haven’t tried the Sport and Sport Edition trims’ seats, which, contrary to the name, are the least sportily bolstered. But the sportier seats in AMG Line versions are supportive in all the right areas, whether that’s side support in corners or long-distance comfort on motorways. 

All versions have electric four-way lumbar adjustment (annoyingly, this is adjusted through the touchscreen instead of a simple switch) but the rest of the driver’s seat adjustments are implemented manually, until you get further up the range to AMG Line Premium when you get full-electric adjustment. The steering wheel is always adjusted manually, though, with enough range of up, down, and forward and back extension to keep most sizes and shapes satisfied. 

We’ve so far only driven left-hand-drive Shooting Brakes, but after testing right-hand-drive CLA coupés, some of our team noted that the offset pedals left their legs skewed to the right. It’s a minor and subjective niggle, and the same is true in many estate-car rivals. 

The 10.25in driver’s instrument display is high-definition, easy to see, and you can alter much of the information it shows to suit your needs. It’s twinned with a head-up display on the top AMG Line Premium Plus trim. 

Forward visibility is excellent and that continues to the sides, where your peripheral vision is good enough that you can place the CLA Shooting Brake on the tight roads with ease. Rear vision isn’t quite a match for a BMW 3 Series Touring – the Shooting Brake’s more scalloped rear end shallows the glass area compared with conventional estates – but it’s adequate. 

You’re rarely troubled when parking thanks to the standard array of front and rear parking sensors and rear-view camera. AMG Line Premium Plus gets a 360-degree camera and adaptive LED headlights, which can stay on main beams by shadowing any cars in front. The rest of the range makes do with standard LED headlights that switch the main beams on and off automatically.   

Are the dashboard and infotainment system easy to use?

As with many cars these days, there are very few physical buttons in the CLA Shooting brake. We always lament this philosophy. Having a simple button that you can find and operate by feel, rather than a screen icon that you can’t, means you spend more time looking at the road rather than the dashboard. 

You do get buttons on the steering wheel but they’re touch-sensitive and fiddly. You either hit them accidentally and change something unintentionally, or find they don’t always do what you’ve intentionally asked them to do. The row of touch-sensitive buttons below the infotainment screen are more successful and allow you to do some useful actions quickly, like turn off the more annoying ADAS systems. 

Another way to interact with the CLA Shooting Brakes is via its AI voice assistant that uses both Microsoft Bing and ChatGPT. In fairness, it’s good at comprehending your commands, albeit a little too eager to help, sometimes butting in with "How can I help?" when you’ve not asked for anything. 

The 14.0in infotainment screen is crisp-looking and responsive – and the same is true of the 14.0in passenger display that’s added from AMG Line Premium trim. The icons are big, too, making them easier to hit on the move than those in the 3 Series or Model Y. The 3 Series does have the advantage of a physical iDrive rotary controller to make selections, though. The CLA’s infotainment system has no physical interface, but, on the plus side, it comes with plenty of standard kit.  

There are four 100W USB-C slots, a wireless charging pad (except in the base Sport trim), DAB radio, Bluetooth, sat nav, and Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring. There are even things you might not expect, including a facial recognition camera that identifies you and automatically sets everything to your profile. You can also use the camera for taking selfies or attending video meetings (when parked up, of course).

Most versions come with an eight-speaker, 125-watt stereo, while the top trim has an 850-watt Burmester surround sound system with 16 speakers.

"While I’m sure some people will love being able to play games and watch films on the 14.0in passenger display, it’s odd that it doesn’t have a screen filter so the driver can see it, too." – John Howell, Deputy Reviews Editor

How much space does it have for people?

Are you over six-feet tall? Well, you’ve no need to worry about fitting in the front of a Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake: there’s plenty of head and leg room. It feels a little narrower than a BMW 3 Series Touring, but the difference is small so you’re not pinched.

That’s a good start then, and it continues with the oddment storage space. There’s plenty, including two cupholders, door bins big enough for a large bottle of water, a tray (or wireless charging pad from Sport Executive trim) on top of the centre console, a big storage area beneath the centre console and another underneath the centre armrest.

Things take a turn for the worse when it comes to rear passenger space, though. Firstly, if you’re larger than average it’s tighter than you’d expect getting in and out through the narrow door apertures. 

Once you’re in, rear leg room is suffice for anyone up to average height, but if you’re tall – and especially when you’re sat behind anyone tall up front – the outer rear seats are a proper squeeze. There’s not enough width to carry three adults abreast comfortably, either. On the plus side, there’s more rear head room compared with a CLA coupé, but you’ll still have more head space in the back of most rivals. 

If any of that sounds problematic, we’d suggest looking at bigger estates, like the 3 Series Touring or Volvo V60, or an SUV like the Tesla Model Y.

How much room does it have for luggage?

Open the tailgate (it’s power-operated with hands-free operation from AMG Line Premium trim) and you’ll find 455-litres of luggage capacity beneath the tonneau cover when the rear seats are up; or a maximum of 1290 litres with the rear seats down. That means the boot is smaller than not only the previous version of the CLA Shooting Brake, but most of its current rivals, too. 

A Volvo V60, for example, offers 519 litres behind its rear seats up to the tonneau cover. And the V60 has a squarer back end – compared with the CLA’s tapered tailgate – so it’ll fit more if you include the space above the tonneau cover. The Tesla Model Y is way more practical as well. 

That said, if you’re not after the ultimate load lugger, you’ll find the Shooting Brake’s rear boot practical enough for buggies and weekend family getaways (for longer trips you might need to invest in a roof box), and there is a front boot with an additional 101-litres of space – enough for a carry-on suitcase. 

A massive advantage of the Shooting Brake over the CLA coupé is it has a hatchback tailgate with a big opening, so it’s easier to get bulky items in or out. And if you need more space, the rear seats fold flat in a 40:40:40 configuration. 

“If a huge boot is important to you then there are better rivals, no doubt, but if you’re prepared to compromise ultimate practicality for style, then I reckon you’ll find the Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake’s combined carrying capacity is in the ball park.” – John Howell, Deputy Reviews Editor

How much does it cost and what equipment do you get?

The Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake isn’t much more expensive than the CLA coupé, which is good for those who value choice. And how it compares with the wider competition depends largely on what else you’re looking at – as we said earlier, it’s very much in its own niche. 

The electric Shooting Brake’s starting price is a little higher than the much more practical Skoda Superb Estate, but that’s missing a premium badge and, like so many estate-car rivals, isn’t offered as a fully electric car. Neither is the BMW 3 Series Touring, which comes from a similarly premium brand, is a little roomier, but its starting price is considerably higher. If you’re looking for a fully electric rival you might consider a Tesla Model Y, which is priced roughly in line with the CLA Shooting Brake. 

You get a good amount of standard kit; we’ve already mentioned some of it, including the comprehensive infotainment features, LED headlights, all-round parking sensors and rear-view camera. On top of that Sport trim has 18in alloy wheels, single-zone climate control, heated front seats, keyless go, auto lights and wipers, power-folding door mirrors, auto-dimming rear-view mirror, and faux-leather seats. 

On balance, Sport’s the pick of the range, but we wouldn’t discourage you from spending more on the higher trims if your budget allows. For example, Sport Executive adds rear privacy glass, rear centre armrest, ambient interior lighting, aluminium interior trims, and wireless phone charging. 

AMG Line Executive is mainly about styling tweaks inside and out, including sports front seats trimmed in faux-leather and suede, and a steering wheel wrapped in softer napper leather. It doesn’t add any meaningful equipment upgrades, though. So for features like 19in alloys, dual-zone climate control, electrically adjustable front seats, keyless entry, a powered hands-free tailgate, and 14.0in passenger display you need to pick AMG Line Premium. 

Top-spec AMG Line Premium Plus is pricey but adds a heated steering wheel, along with features we’ve mostly discussed, such as adaptive LED headlights, head-up display, and a 360-deg camera.

Is it reliable, and how long is the warranty?

The CLA Shooting Brake is too new to appear in our most recent What Car? Reliability Survey. Mercedes as a brand does, and placed 22nd out of the 31 manufacturers included, which obviously isn't brilliant. That means it’s way below BMW (sixth) and Tesla (seventh). 

As standard you get a three‑year unlimited-mileage manufacturer’s warranty, which is the minimum expected; many manufacturers offer superior cover, including BYD, Hyundai, Kia, Lexus, MG and Toyota.

How safe is it, and is it easy to steal?

The independent experts at Euro NCAP tested the CLA coupé rather than the Shooting Brake, and gave it five-stars overall with a best-in-class score. In terms of front and rear adult and child occupancy protection, there were no areas of great concern. Its weakest point is the front door in a side hit against a pole or tree; the risk of injury was considered ‘marginal’ rather than anything more serious. 

The CLA Shooting Brake also comes with plenty of standard safety equipment. That includes multiple airbags, a sophisticated automatic emergency braking (AEB), blind-spot monitoring, lane-keeping assist and an evasive steering function.

As far as security is concerned, you get an alarm (with visual support in the event of attempted break-ins) and immobiliser as standard.

"Mostly the options’ list includes different colours and interior trims, but I think it’s worth considering the 400-volt DC charger; without it, you can’t charge the Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake on the more common 400-volt rapid chargers. It’s expensive, though, and should be standard." – John Howell, Deputy Reviews Editor

Buy it if...

–You want an all-electric estate car, because there aren’t many
–You fancy a CLA coupé but need better practicality
–You want an EV with a really good range 

Don't it if...

–You need to regularly carry tall adults in the rear
–You want the most practical estate car for the money 
–You value interior material quality over glitz and glamour  

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