I have been following this forum for a while now and am in the NYC area and finally had a chance to see the CLA45 in person at the motoexpo. Here were my acute observations:
Overall:
* didn't like the violet (it takes away from the class of this car) who the hell would pay 2.5k to get this option?
Details:
* Exterior its awesome in general. even though I wasn't a fan of the colour, the overall look is very young and sporty. the quad exhausts at the rear look sooo sexy!! and the front is without a doubt aggressive youngster
* Interior is awesome. I think it had the Leather Black seats (they were very comfortable) i have the new 3 series and I could tell the difference right away.
* I liked the little red accents over the steering wheel, the flat bottom. However, the paddle shifts are barely visible.
* The gear shifter on the automatic looks a little too little! Its tiny!!!
* No keyless. Even my parent's Venza has keyless start button stop.
* Panaromic roof was just OK. If you have seen the pano on a Evoque, you will know what I mean. While it is a single sheet of glass, it is not as big as i'd like it to be. Again, our Venza has a much bigger panoramic roof and these things make a ton of difference in day-2-day driving to me.
* rear seats - comfortable for what they are. has 3 seat belts (even though its classified as a coupe) and I am 5'7 so i was able to get in and out without any problems.
* rear seats - no center console (W*F!!! how can it be classified as a coupe and NOT have a center console/armrest????) - something feels missing there. is this a luxury brand or the Gen Y version Honda who cheaps out on things like this.
* I noticed a huge fat D pillar. Wonder if it will be hard to see the blind spot (will def have to get the driver assistance package) and test drive this thing. This could be a deal breaker.
* Navigation - I like the idea of centering the GPS unit. It looks like technology is really center stage on this car. If anything, I would have liked to see a 9-10 inch screen for AMG products and a better integration into the console.I feel like a kid would ready break the GPS unit with an ipod cable.
* Didn't like the Xenons at all in real life. They looked cheap and actually looked better in pictures. Not sure why.
*Everything else was Excellent!!! Really liked the feeling that you get once you sit inside. I think everything just flows well.
Concensus:
* In the end, I may still go for this car just because of the performance and the AMG badge.
* Yes, I did get the $500 coupon.
Overall:
* didn't like the violet (it takes away from the class of this car) who the hell would pay 2.5k to get this option?
Details:
* Exterior its awesome in general. even though I wasn't a fan of the colour, the overall look is very young and sporty. the quad exhausts at the rear look sooo sexy!! and the front is without a doubt aggressive youngster
* Interior is awesome. I think it had the Leather Black seats (they were very comfortable) i have the new 3 series and I could tell the difference right away.
* I liked the little red accents over the steering wheel, the flat bottom. However, the paddle shifts are barely visible.
* The gear shifter on the automatic looks a little too little! Its tiny!!!
* No keyless. Even my parent's Venza has keyless start button stop.
* Panaromic roof was just OK. If you have seen the pano on a Evoque, you will know what I mean. While it is a single sheet of glass, it is not as big as i'd like it to be. Again, our Venza has a much bigger panoramic roof and these things make a ton of difference in day-2-day driving to me.
* rear seats - comfortable for what they are. has 3 seat belts (even though its classified as a coupe) and I am 5'7 so i was able to get in and out without any problems.
* rear seats - no center console (W*F!!! how can it be classified as a coupe and NOT have a center console/armrest????) - something feels missing there. is this a luxury brand or the Gen Y version Honda who cheaps out on things like this.
* I noticed a huge fat D pillar. Wonder if it will be hard to see the blind spot (will def have to get the driver assistance package) and test drive this thing. This could be a deal breaker.
* Navigation - I like the idea of centering the GPS unit. It looks like technology is really center stage on this car. If anything, I would have liked to see a 9-10 inch screen for AMG products and a better integration into the console.I feel like a kid would ready break the GPS unit with an ipod cable.
* Didn't like the Xenons at all in real life. They looked cheap and actually looked better in pictures. Not sure why.
*Everything else was Excellent!!! Really liked the feeling that you get once you sit inside. I think everything just flows well.
Concensus:
* In the end, I may still go for this car just because of the performance and the AMG badge.
* Yes, I did get the $500 coupon.