671-HP Mercedes-AMG CLA45 EV Has Three Axial-Flux Motors And Simulated Shifts, Just Like The New GT 4-Door

The old Mercedes-AMG CLA45 was primarily known for having a hilarious amount of horsepower for a compact sedan, and the new generation of CLA is carrying on that mantra into the electric era. AMG unveiled the new CLA45 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and it uses three electric motors to deliver 671 horsepower. That’s a massive amount more than the 416 horses that already felt nuts in the outgoing four-cylinder model.

That results in a 0-to-62-mph sprint of 2.7 seconds — the Tesla Model 3 Performance does the same in 3.1 — and it’ll hit a top speed of 168 mph with the AMG Dynamic Plus package or 155 without it. Two electric motors power the rear axle while the third powers the front, and they are all of the axial flux variety. These motors are very slim and compact, and it’s the same technology found in AMG’s new 1,153-hp GT 4-Door. In regular driving you get rear-biased all-wheel drive with precise, instant torque vectoring between the rear motors, and the front motor (that has a peak of 360 hp) has a disconnect feature for better efficiency.

There’s a lot more stuff to talk about when it comes to AMG’s smallest offering, but sadly we have to couch it all with some disappointing news: Mercedes has said it won’t be bringing the CLA45 to the United States. Hopefully we’ll see this powertrain in the upcoming third-gen GLA, at least.

In addition to the huge power, AMG’s smallest EV is getting the same internal combustion–esque trickery as the GT-Door Engage the AMGFORCE S+ drive mode (that’s actually what it’s called), and it’ll emit the noises of an AMG four-cylinder for both the occupants and exterior passersby, complete with rowdy pops and bangs. It even has simulated gearshifts, a setup arguably pioneered by the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N and since adopted by the revised Porsche Taycan and the Lexus RZ, among other EVs.

“Authentic traction shift interruptions, active seat shakers, and a customized driver display,” complete the charade, and the specific vroom-vroom noises are not a synthetic creation, they recorded 1,600 audio files’ worth of noise from an actual AMG four-cylinder gas motor using 13 microphones, specifically one from an old A45 S. Those shakers in the front bucket seats vibrate to make you feel like you’re actually driving a gas car. The noises and shifts are turned off in all the other drive modes, including Race.

This being an EV, the CLA45 primarily slows itself down via regen (even when ABS is engaged), but the car’s standard 15.4-inch ventilated discs with six-piston calipers up front and 13.7-inch discs with single-piston calipers in the rear are used in emergency or track driving situations. AMG also gave the CLA45 a Predictive Performance Manager system that optimizes power delivery and energy flow based on the drive mode and where you are on track, to make sure lap times are consistent and there’s no loss of power.

As you’d expect, the AMG looks a lot punchier than the standard CLA. Up front there’s an illuminated Panamericana grille like on the GT 4-Door, a more aggressive bumper, power domes on the hood, and an optional light bar connecting the headlights. There are wider front fenders, new side skirts, a rear diffuser looks like it could accommodate four massive tailpipes, and you get 19-inch wheels as standard with the option of forged 20s.

Mercedes-AMG

It also borrows aero tech you’d usually only see in high-end sports cars and supercars, namely an active rear spoiler that adjusts accordingly to speed and drive mode. Mercedes has incorporated this active wing on the Shooting Brake wagon model as well, because yes, there’s a Shooting Brake wagon model in other markets. Additionally, the CLA45 has active grille shutters that open and close to optimize between aerodynamic and cooling needs, while AMG sport suspension uses adaptive dampers to oscillate between comfort and sportiness. 

As for the more boring side of the EV specs, Mercedes says the CLA45 sedan gets up to 416 miles of range on the WLTP cycle thanks to its 94-kWh lithium-ion battery, while the Shooting Brake makes do with 398 miles. A dual-motor non-AMG CLA350 has a WLTP range of 479 miles, so it’s not a huge penalty for the AMG. Its 800-volt architecture lets the CLA45 accept up to 330 kW of fast-charging power, with a claimed 10%-to-80% time of 22 minutes. Plugging in for just 10 minutes is said to add about 170 miles.

I happened to drive the 349-hp dual-motor CLA350 EV recently and found it to be a refreshingly competent daily driver that holds up on a backroad. Take those bones, nearly double the horsepower, and add a gas AMG–mimicking experience to the mix and the new CLA45 sounds like a riot, both literally and otherwise. It’s a shame we won’t see it on our shores.