For a compact-sized performance car with a fairly reasonable price (€56,673 in Germany, from $47,450 without delivery and taxes/VAT in the States) that won’t leave you gasping for breath, the Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG delivers plenty of goods.
It’s far from perfect, but the ferocious 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four that churns out 355-horses to all four wheels through a dual-clutch 7-speed automatic transmission makes up for some of its shortcomings.
To see just how fast it is, the folks over at GTBoard staged an amateur drag race in the rain against a true sports car, the Audi R8 with a mid-mounted V8 engine paired to a six-speed manual gearbox.
The CLA 45 AMG in Edition 1-specification didn’t win, but it sure as heck put up a good fight.
By John Halas
VIDEO