After debuting with the large 85 kWh Li-Ion battery, the Mercedes CLA EV will be available for order starting in September 2025 with a base LFP battery of 58 kWh for a price of €46,500.
The Mercedes CLA EV can already be ordered with the large 85 kWh Li-Ion battery (NMC chemistry) in two versions:
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Single rear motor producing 200 kW (272 PS) with a range of 792 km, starting at €55,858.60
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Dual-motor all-wheel drive version with 260 kW (354 PS) and a range of 770 km, starting at €60,380.60
To compete with the base Tesla Model 3, which uses a 60 kWh LFP battery, Mercedes is offering a similar solution: a 58 kWh LFP battery providing a WLTP range of 520 km at a price of €46,500. Is it a good deal?
By comparison, the Tesla Model 3 with the 60 kWh LFP battery has:
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A rear motor producing 208 kW (283 PS)
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WLTP range of 513 km (average consumption: 13.2 kWh/100 km)
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Curb weight: 1,836 kg
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Excellent drag coefficient: 0.22
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Acceleration 0–100 kph in 6.1 seconds
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Top speed 201 kph
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Base price: €40,970
Offering a similar range—520 km vs. Tesla’s 513 km—the Mercedes CLA EV 58 kWh is €5,530 more expensive. It also has rear-wheel drive and a motor with a similar output of 200 kW (272 PS), which is only 11 PS less than Tesla.
Mercedes has not yet released details about acceleration, top speed, or the weight of the base model.
For context, the Mercedes CLA 250 EV with a rear motor and 85 kWh battery has a curb weight of 2,055 kg, which is 245 kg more than the Tesla Model 3 Long Range with a 75 kWh battery. As a result, the Model 3 Long Range is clearly quicker, accelerating from 0 to 100 kph in 5.2 seconds, compared to 6.7 seconds for the CLA 250+. Given that Mercedes has a 10 kWh larger battery, the 245 kg weight difference in case of bigger batteries is understandable but not entirely justified.
For the base versions, considering that the Mercedes LFP battery has a 2 kWh lower capacity than the base Tesla (58 vs. 60 kWh), we can expect the weight difference to be smaller, and therefore, the 0–100 kph acceleration differences to also be less pronounced.