Mercedes-Benz CLA 220 CDI Shooting Brake, motoring review
Jamie Merrill is on the hunt for a valid reason for this car to exist
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.PRICE: £32,825
ENGINE CAPACITY: 2.1-litre diesel
POWER OUTPUT (BHP @ RPM): 175 @ 3,600-3,800
TOP SPEED (MPH): 143
FUEL ECONOMY (MPG): 67.3
CO2 EMISSIONS (G/KM): 108
In the nine years that I've lived in London, I have never had to load a shotgun into the back of the car and drive off to slaughter an urban fox or a red deer that has strayed beyond the boundary of Richmond Park. If this suddenly became a necessity, then thanks to the distinct lack of forests, bogs and moorland in the capital, I'm sure that a Fiat 500 would be sufficient for my hunting and gathering needs.
Mercedes has other ideas, as evidenced by the launch of the new CLA Shooting Brake model, a car that is “Designed for Urban Hunting”. Shooting Brake is another term car makers use for estate (see wagon and tourer) and comes from an era when traditional coachbuilders made something longer-roofed from a sports car or coupe.
It was a 19th-century motor car that would take a brace of gentlemen on the hunt with plenty of room for firearms and dogs. It's the sort of thing that arrived in later series of Downton Abbey.
In the case of the CLA Shooting Brake, it's derived from the firm's A-Class coupe, which gets bigger in the form of the standard CLA and a little larger in the form of the CLA Shooting Brake, but still smaller than the much larger and more expensive CLS Shooting Brake. Got it? Me neither.
Essentially, it's a sleek estate car. A very, very pretty one. The longer roof over the CLA four-door coupe transforms the proportions into something rather refined. The only hitch is that, for an estate, it's not that much more spacious that a normal car. Its nearest rivals are the more conventionally shaped VW Golf Estate and the Honda Civic Tourer, which are both considerably cheaper and more spacious.
Mercedes claims that is has more boot space than a C-class estate, but that's only if you stop counting loadspace when you get to the gunwales (window line); that sloping roof might look pretty but it's not practical.
As for the passengers, they enjoy a fairly restricted existence in the back seats. Lord Downton would not feel particularly comfortable and there would certainly be no room for his late Labrador, Isis. That's the Shooting Brake all over: a nice idea, but despite the bold claims, not of any use in the city whatsoever.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments