Mercedes-Benz CLA enters series production
Back in April, Mercedes-Benz commented on the alleged start of series production by stating it was currently in ‘ramp-up phase’ – which typically refers to the period in which pilot production is scaled from low volume up to series production. Order books opened at the end of April, with the new CLA available to order in Germany from a starting price of approx. €56,000.
Mercedes-Benz has now officially confirmed series production of the new all-electric CLA at the Rastatt plant, a site into which the Group has reportedly invested hundreds of millions of Euros. CEO Ola Källenius said: “Mercedes-Benz is ushering in a new era with the CLA. It is also a statement: we are convinced of the long-term success of electromobility. The best argument for this are top products like the CLA. To ensure that these are also ‘made in Germany’ in the future, we as a company are investing in the location, but we also need framework conditions that are competitive.”
The Rastatt plant is supplied with components from several other Mercedes production facilities in Germany. Electric drive units and axles hail from the Stuttgart-Untertürkheim plant, while body shell components, structural and body parts come from Kuppenheim. The batteries come from Kamenz.
Mercedes has since stated that production in Rastatt heralds “the next stage of automobile production”. In practice, this means all kinds of digital technology is now being used at the plant. In a press release, the company clarified: “With the integration of artificial intelligence, the digital twin and, for the first time, the Mercedes-Benz Operating System (MB.OS) into the MO360 digital production ecosystem, the company is consistently implementing its ‘Digital First’ approach.”
The start of production of the CLA in Rastatt was preceded by the extensive conversion of an existing assembly hall ‘in record time’, according to Mercedes-Benz. In preparation for the production of the first model of the new product generation, the plant virtually mapped the conversion of the hall in advance for the first time before putting it into operation. Within weeks, a new production line was configured and optimised in Hall 4.0 with the help of high-precision digital simulation techniques, allowing considerable potential to be realised in terms of construction time and costs.
Rastatt will not remain the only site where the CLA is manufactured: Following the gradual ramp-up, Beijing Benz Automotive Co. (BBAC) will in future build the CLA, including the batteries and electric drive units, for the Chinese market. Plus, as part of the production network featuring the Hungarian Mercedes-Benz plant in Kecskemét, further models of the new vehicle family will follow after the start of CLA production. The batteries for production in Kecskemét come from the company’s own battery factory. The electric drive units come from the subsidiary plant in Sebes, Romania.
The new CLA is the first model based on the new MMA platform. Mercedes-Benz presented the series version of the CLA in mid-March. Initially, only the rear-wheel drive version CLA 250+ is available, which has a WLTP range of almost 800 kilometers. It has a 200-kW drive on the rear axle and an 85-kWh battery with a charging capacity of up to 320 kW. Thanks to the switch to 800 volts, a charging time of 22 minutes from ten to 80 percent is possible. The 260 kW all-wheel-drive version, the CLA 350 4MATIC, is due to follow shortly afterwards.
Incidentally, Mercedes-Benz claims to work particularly sustainably in logistics: Finished CLAs from Rastatt are transported in electric trucks by partner company Galliker over a distance of 600 km from Rastatt to Zeebrugge in Belgium, where one of the most important ports for international car transportation is located. Galliker has already been using electric car transporters for some time, has been transporting Mercedes vehicles to Switzerland with an electric car transporter since 2024 and supports Porsche’s plant logistics with electric trucks.
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