2027 Mercedes-AMG CLA Just Set a Nürburgring Class Record
Mercedes-Benz has another record breaker on its hands.
The German luxury marque has announced that the new AMG CLA circled the notorious Nürburgring Nordschleife in 7:32.07 minutes. Yes, we live in an era where production cars are now regularly circling the punishing circuit in under seven minutes, but that still makes the EV the fastest car in its segment.
Driver Kevin Berger was behind the wheel of the 2027 CLA 45 4Matic as it maneuvered through the 73 officially recognized turns of the 12.94-mile track sometimes called the “Green Hell.” The four-door beat the previous subcompact production record of 7:33.12 minutes that was set by the Audi RS3 in 2024. There aren’t many performance options in the segment—especially with fully electric powertrains—but the time is still fast. Road & Track points out that the AMG CLA time is just seven seconds slower than the range-topping BMW M2 CS, which is a true sports car.
The driver Kevin Berger and the rest of the Mercedes-AMG CLA team
Mercedes-Benz
It shouldn’t surprise anyone to find out that the AMG CLA is fast. The EV features a tri-motor powertrain—one positioned up front, two in the rear—which makes 680 hp and 1,297 ft lbs of torque. Thanks to all that grunt the sedan can rocket from zero to 60 mph in just 2.7 seconds and reach a top speed of 168 mph. Its range, which is just as important a performance number when it comes to EVs, is said to top 400 miles, too. The car that Berger drove at the Nürburgring was completely stock, too.
It’s exciting to see a subcompact four-door like the AMG CLA post such a fast time at the Nürburgring. Less exciting, though, is the fact that, at least for now, there are no plans to sell the $75,000 performance sedan stateside, where we will just get the Mercedes-Benz version of the CLA 250+ (which starts at $47,950) and the CLA 350 4Matic ($50,500). Hopefully, if those EVs sell well, Mercedes will see fit to release the more powerful model on our side of the Atlantic.
Click here to see more photos of the Mercedes-AMG CLA.
