Mercedes has finally built its first fully electric estate car, and it’s not some boxy E-Class wagon either. This is the CLA Shooting Brake, reimagined for the EV age, and it’s aiming squarely at young drivers who want style, practicality, and plenty of poke without going full dad-wagon. Part of Merc’s next-gen “Entry Luxury” line-up, the electric CLA Shooting Brake takes everything good about the current petrol version — slinky looks, coupe-like roofline, decent boot — and wraps it around a brand-new EV platform with some proper performance credentials.
Sleek design with aero tricks to stretch your range
Mercedes hasn’t messed too much with the formula here, and that’s a good thing. The new CLA Shooting Brake keeps its distinctive long roof and rakish rear end, but now wears a much sharper face inspired by the EQXX concept. There’s a low, wide grille blanked out in black with a big three-pointed star, surrounded by a pattern of illuminated stars on higher trims. Slim LED headlights frame the front, while the rear gets horizontal tail-lights that stretch across the boot, making the back look even wider.
The bodywork itself has been smoothed and shaped for maximum slipperiness – Mercedes claims an impressive drag coefficient of just 0.25, which helps deliver over 350 miles of range on the WLTP cycle (with the biggest battery). Despite the focus on aerodynamics, you still get muscular haunches and a sporty stance, plus the practicality of an estate – though this is more about weekend trips and ski gear than dog cages and flat-pack furniture.
Built on Merc’s new EV platform – and it shows
Underneath, the CLA Shooting Brake sits on Merc’s brand-new MMA (Mercedes Modular Architecture) platform designed for compact EVs and plug-in hybrids. There’ll be several versions, but the headline act – for now – is the rear-wheel-drive 349bhp variant. Yep, rear-drive. Which means this isn’t just about sensible family motoring. That power figure comes from a single permanently excited synchronous motor on the rear axle, producing 349bhp and a healthy 568Nm of torque.
Performance figures haven’t been confirmed yet, but expect a 0–62mph time well under 5 seconds, with a top speed limited to 130mph. Mercedes is also promising a lower-powered, more affordable version with around 200bhp, as well as an all-wheel-drive dual-motor option for those who want maximum grip.
Proper EV range and clever charging tech
Battery options haven’t been finalised either, but you’ll get a choice of two different sizes. The biggest pack will reportedly deliver more than 350 miles on a charge, and thanks to 800-volt architecture, the CLA Shooting Brake can rapid charge at up to 250kW. That means you can top up 200 miles of range in about 15 minutes if you find a suitably beefy charger.
Mercedes has also fitted the car with a neat “bidirectional charging” feature – so you can use it to power your house in a blackout or even sell electricity back to the grid. Whether or not UK customers will actually be able to use that function depends on the energy companies catching up, but the hardware’s already there.
More boot space than a hatch, but still a coupe vibe
The CLA Shooting Brake’s party piece has always been offering a bigger boot and better headroom than the coupe, without looking like a taxi. And that remains true here. Mercedes hasn’t published exact numbers yet, but the petrol version offers 505 litres of boot space, so expect something similar here – more than a regular hatchback but not quite a full-fat estate like the E-Class.
Inside, it’s the same futuristic cabin you get in the upcoming electric CLA coupe concept. That means a full-width glass MBUX Superscreen with three high-res displays, a smaller squared-off steering wheel, and lots of ambient lighting to give it that sci-fi lounge feel. Material quality has been given a bump, and there’s plenty of USB-C ports and wireless charging to keep your gadgets happy.
A new era of Mercedes estates?
This is just the start for Mercedes. The CLA Shooting Brake EV will launch alongside an electric CLA coupe, and the same platform will also spawn replacements for the A-Class hatch and GLA crossover – all with plug-in hybrid or full EV power.
For now though, the Shooting Brake stands out as the most interesting of the lot. It’s a rare thing these days: a small(ish), stylish estate car with a proper boot, plenty of power, and a clear nod to driving enthusiasts thanks to its rear-wheel-drive set-up.
Prices haven’t been announced yet, but expect it to land somewhere north of £45,000 when it arrives in UK showrooms in late 2025. For anyone who thinks EVs are all about crossovers and SUVs, this is a welcome curveball – and proof that estates can still be cool, even when they’re electric.
