Ride the Prototype: The 2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA EV is About to Right the Wrongs

I gripped the door handle of the CLA EV prototype in the blowing Austrian Alps. I heard a click and felt a firm sensation in my hand. A good impression was immediately secured.

I slipped into the camouflage-covered 2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA EV prototype and for the next 40 minutes met my handlers: Timo Stegmaier, Mercedes' senior manager for electric drive systems, and Tom Steller, the automaker's public relations Tom Steller, who is a spokesman for the automaker. 'I'm from Minnesota,' he said. And I said, 'I'm from Minnesota.'

After a night in a mountainside Mercedes-Benz Sprinter RV van and driving a 2025 Mercedes-Benz E 53 Hybrid from Stuttgart, Mercedes allowed me to sit in the right seat of a 2026 Mercedes CLA EV prototype for a long, revealing session. Here's what I learned.

My immediate impression of the CLA EV: This is solid. Despite being a prototype, i.e., despite being told that the specifications were similar to those of a mass-produced car, the doors closed with a solid thud. There was no rattling or squeaking in the covered interior. Despite the Michelin Alpin 5 winter tires, the interior was as quiet as a library. Not even a howl or growl could be heard in the cabin through the thick tread blocks of the tires. As we blasted down the slick road, I could faintly hear the wind whistle of the crazy storm swirling around us.

Stegmaier confirmed that the prototype rides on passive steel suspension, but did not comment on what the production car will have: the AMG model, and perhaps even the higher trim levels, will have adjustable dampers, and the AMG model will be equipped with a suspension system that will be adjustable from the top down to the bottom. AMG models, and perhaps even the higher trim levels, will be equipped with adjustable dampers. However, even with the passive steel suspension, the ride was controlled.

2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA EV Prototype

The prototype I drove was a dual-motor model with Mercedes' new EDU 2.0 (Electric Drive Units 2.0) with a silicon carbide inverter. The model was a 268-horsepower PS3. This model had a 268 hp PSM (Permanent Synchronous Motor) in the rear and a 107 hp motor in the front. Given the conditions, both motors were probably running at or near all times.

Mercedes has not set an official time, but a 0-60 mph time in the low 4.0s seems achievable.

On the straights and in the corners, despite Stegmaier's heavy foot, the CLA EV prototype was heading in the direction he needed to go. The new ECU and PCU all reacted instantly to the slick conditions. The winter tires showed no signs of losing traction, and the car was always pointed in the right direction during acceleration, even under momentary torque.

I did not feel the shifting of the new in-house designed two-speed automatic transmission. On the contrary, it was so seamless and transparent that I forgot the car had a two-speed transmission. There was a lot going on in the blizzard.

The CLA EV will be mounted on the automaker's new MMA EV-specific platform. With it will come a new electric architecture, a new ECU, new software, and a promised regenerative braking system far superior to the lackluster regenerative braking system in the EQE and EQS. And while rivals Audi and Porsche don't believe in one-pedal driving, Mercedes does.

The CLA EV's regenerative braking has the usual three settings, including D-, D, and D+, but a D Auto mode has also been added; D- provides one-pedal driving, and each step reduces regen from there until D Auto, where the system automatically adjusts to the situation. Mercedes engineers in Stuttgart said that unlike the current EQE and EQS EV lineup, the system will remember the last mode selected and maintain that mode even after repeated key cycles. The brake pedal also does not move unless the driver touches it, again unlike the EQE and EQS systems.

The new regenerative braking system can regenerate up to 200 kw before switching to friction braking.

This regenerative braking feeds energy back to the 85.0 kwh (usable) battery pack via a future-proof 800 volt electrical architecture. With charging speeds up to 320kw, Mercedes says the CLA EV can add 186 miles of range in 10 minutes on a fast charger (which translates to about 36kwh). According to Mercedes, a 10-80% charge takes less than 22 minutes. An 11.0 kwh on-board charger is used for Level 2 charging, but charging times have not yet been disclosed.

According to Stegmaier, the CLA EV prototype was in D-mode with regenerative braking. He added that during our drive, the friction brakes were never activated. We had to take his word for it.

Despite the slick snowy roads, the system adapted to the conditions even in D-full regenerative one-pedal mode. I never once felt a loss of traction while braking. Except for Stegmaier's antics in a tight switchback corner, the car never turned sideways, nor did the stability control seem to activate.

2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA EV Prototype

The exterior of the CLA EV was covered in camouflage. However, my eyes knew what I saw, and it clearly resembles the concept car unveiled in 2023. The headlights and taillights even appear to have Mercedes stars in them. Shine on, CLA EV.

The Mercedes team covered most of the car's interior with black cloth. Here's what I can say: the shape of the dashboard is very different from the current Mercedes EVs, with a higher seating height, making it feel like you are staring out of the cockpit or piloting a boat. The shape and placement of the dashboard reminds me of the old Mercedes 190E and W126 days of the late 80s and early 90s, and the G-Class. The short dash nestles snugly against the windshield, making efficient use of space.

I did not drive the CLA EV, so all impressions come from my brief right-side seating experience. But even in camouflaged prototype form and limited exposure, it is clear that Mercedes is listening to feedback about the current EV; the CLA EV corrects several recent mistakes and puts Mercedes on a clear path toward an electric vehicle future.

Mercedes-Benz covered my travel and lodging expenses to bring you this test drive review.