Mercedes-Benz CLA45 vs Gac Aion Ut

What's the difference?

The new CLA 45 S has knockout performance to match its knockout looks, neither of which are much of a surprise given the ingredients involved.

That said, it is far from perfect, with questions raised over its value and practicality. And for those reasons, we’d be buying the A 45 S hatch instead.

Is the new CLA 45 S worth such a hefty premium over its non-S predecessor? Tell us what you think in the comments below.

The Aion UT is a cleverly-specified little hatchback and a great entry-point into electric motoring. The software needs a bit of work from a usability perspective, plus the spongy ride and cutesy styling might not be for everyone. 

However, with strong points including driving range, cabin space and value, there’s even a pitch for it in some cases to be an only car compared to most of its price rivals, which are more likely to be thought of as a second car runabout in a two-car garage.

The pick of the range is definitely the entry-level Premium. It comes in at a headline-grabbing price with specs to blow rivals out of the water, while only missing out on a few luxuries.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with accommodation and meals provided.

There’s simply no mistaking the CLA 45 S from its CLA siblings. It’s angry and stylish, at the same time.

Up front, Mercedes-AMG’s signature 'Panamericana' grille insert is large and in charge, flanked by adaptive 'Multibeam' LED headlights that incorporate sinister-looking daytime running lights (DRLs).

The real action, however, is happening below, where the AMG body kit starts to come into frame. It’s delightfully chunky and highlighted by cavernous side air intakes, which hint at the sledgehammer residing beneath a bonnet featuring prominent power domes.

Around the side, the CLA 45 S does its best impersonation of a coupe, with a sloping roof line and a curvaceous glasshouse. It also brings the aggro with a particularly sporty set of 19-inch alloy wheels, which flank pointy side skirts.

At the rear, the CLA 45 S again hints at its performance level, this time with a bootlid lip spoiler, although look past its LED tail-lights and you’ll find the star of the show, a furious diffuser that houses the quad 90mm tailpipes of the AMG sports exhaust system.

Inside, the CLA 45 S is pretty special. While the CLA certainly provides the building blocks, it goes a step further with a number of unique touches.

Your eyes are immediately drawn to the wickedly cool 'Dinamica'-trimmed AMG Performance steering wheel, which not only has paddle-shifters, but also features two ‘display buttons’ that make adjusting vehicle settings on the fly super easy.

Then there are the front sports seats, which are covered in Lugano leather upholstery alongside the armrest door inserts, while artificial cow hide trims the upper dashboard and door shoulders.

Hard plastics? You’ll need to look lower than the soft-touch middle dashboard to find them, as they are primarily confined to the lower sections of the cabin. And yes, some of the switchgear is very cheap for a six-figure performance car.

One personal bugbear, though, is the liberal use of gloss-black trim for the centre stack and console. Not only is it a fingerprint magnet, but it scratches easily, too. The brushed stainless-steel and silver accents elsewhere are nice, though.

While stainless-steel sports pedals also help to make the CLA 45 S stand out from the CLA crowd, it is otherwise a carbon-copy of its siblings, which is no bad thing.

Of course, the headline act is the pair of 10.25-inch displays, with one a touchscreen that is partially concealed by the steering wheel, while the other is a digital instrument cluster.

The former delivers the now-familiar 'MBUX' multimedia system, which is still at the cutting edge when it comes to functionality, especially with its always-on natural voice recognition, which is as good as it gets, albeit not perfect.

There are, of course, more input methods, with two small touchpads located on the steering wheel, while a larger item sits on top of the centre console, supported by a palm rest. There are also shortcut buttons and physical climate controls.

GAC tells us the UT hatch was designed in Milan, Italy, but it also isn’t ashamed of the Chinese influence on its overall appearance, like the ultra-short bonnet and Chinese city-car style face.

Along the side it has a modern, aerodynamic profile, and the ultra-short overhangs and long wheelbase maximise the amount of room for batteries under the floor and interior space.

The rear feels a lot like a modern Mini, with its bulbous tailgate and protruding light clusters, spiced up with a sporty spoiler piece jutting out.

It’s not a bad looking thing and it’s available in an array of fun colours.

On the inside it seems to follow the established rule-book of Chinese automakers, with plush trims, big screens with minimal physical buttons as well as a contemporary two-spoke steering wheel.

There’s a trendy floating console which hosts the cupholders and wireless charger on the Luxury grade, and an array of interesting patterns and textures through the doors and dash which you wouldn’t have once seen on a car at this price-point.

However, it is worth noting that while the seats are quite nice, and the steering wheel is a stand-out touchpoint, the trims on the doors and across the dash-top are hard plastics, more so than some of this car’s rivals.

Measuring 4693mm long, 1857mm wide and 1413mm tall, the CLA45 S is actually similar in size to a C-Class but not quite as practical.

Cargo capacity is pretty good, at 460L, but can be increased via the 40/20/40 split-fold three-seat rear bench stowed – an action that can be performed via the boot’s manual release latches, although it doesn’t tumble forward by its lonesome.

Speaking of the boot, four tie-down points are on hand for to help loose loads alongside two side storage nets. Bulkier items will have to contend with a tall load lip. That said, the boot’s aperture is much wider than before, which is good news.

In-cabin storage options are okay, with the glove box decently sized and the map pockets of the net variety, while the central bin is fairly average, although it does house two USB-C ports.

There’s also a standard sunglasses holder and a cubby in front of the centre console’s two cupholders. It isn’t that useful, though, as the wireless smartphone charger takes up most of space alongside a USB-C port and a 12V power outlet.

The front door bins can accommodate two regular bottles each, while their counterparts in the rear take only one apiece. That said, the second row does have a fold-down armrest with another pair of (flimsy) cupholders.

Rear occupants don’t have a whole lot of room to play with, though. Legroom behind my 184cm driving position is pretty decent, at around four centmetres, but headroom is not. In fact, it’s non-existent sitting upright, with the panoramic sunroof not helping matters.

Toe-room is also at a premium alongside precious footwell space, which is reduced by the tall transmission tunnel. As such, the second row is best for up to two adults or three children at a time.

And if there are three occupants abreast, they’ll have to compete for the two USB-C ports, which are located in a fold-out cubby below the central air vents at the rear of the centre console.

For reference, child seats can be fitted in the second row thanks to top-tether and ISOFIX anchorage points, although both are only available for the outboard seats.

In terms of interior space, the Aion UT stands out with its spacious cabin. At 182cm tall, I am easily able to find a comfortable seating position, and visibility out the front sides and rear, while not as good as some small SUVs, isn’t bad.

There’s lots of headroom, and while I mentioned the hard plastic door cards before, there’s enough padding everywhere your elbows are going to touch to make it feel a bit nicer than perhaps it is.

The main drawback of this car for me is the lack of tactile buttons and the frustrating software.

The main screen isn’t particularly well utilised, being taken up by either a background or the navigation map, with an array of typically small shortcuts across the bottom for important features like the climate control or settings menus.

You can pre-set a few information panels which sit above the shortcut bar as in many rival cars and there’s also a shortcut tray which can be hosted on the driver’s side and configured with a variety of shortcuts and settings.

It’s just a bit clumsy to use, and the array of poorly-labelled settings menus for things like active safety equipment feel needlessly complicated.

I’d love to see this car with physical controls for climate and multimedia to make it easier to live with.

Up front the storage is decent. There are big pockets in the doors and a large storage tray between the driver and front passenger thanks to a flat floor. There’s also a slightly weird storage box under the touchscreen which has a net inside, good for more delicate objects you don’t want flying around the cabin.

On the floating console there are two cupholders which are a bit too shallow for my liking, and the wireless charger feels almost pointless because its made of a hard plastic, so your phone just slides right off in the corners. The cabled outlets are hidden beneath which allows for tidy cable management and the centre armrest console box is a healthy size.

The rear seat is comparatively basic, although touches on the key points. Its main advantage is how generous the space is. My frame was able to fit behind my own driving position with heaps of room for my knees, and just enough room for my head despite the dip in the roof for the sunroof shade in the Luxury-grade car we tested. There may be even more headroom in the base car.

The flat floor makes the space useful even for three across in a pinch and there’s a drop-down armrest with (again, shallow) cupholders. There are pockets on the back of both front seats and smallish pockets in each door. The array of soft trims continues, too, and the back of the centre console features a partially adjustable air vent. Luxury spec cars get a single USB rear power outlet.

As with many Chinese cars in this segment, the generous rear seat space comes at a cost to the boot. It measures just 321 litres, which is slightly smaller than its main opponents in this category, although larger than some hatchbacks like the Toyota Corolla, for example.

It has its advantages, though. The floor is two-tiered, and can offer a flat load area with the rear seats folded down, or a deeper boot in its lower position. Underneath there’s a cutaway good for charging equipment and the tyre repair kit (sorry, no spare wheel in here).

Unlike some EVs, the Aion UT doesn’t get a frunk (front boot) for additional storage.

The GAC Aion UT starts from $31,990, before on-road costs, for the entry-level Premium grade, which makes it the third-most affordable EV you can buy in Australia after the city-sized BYD Atto 1 and the entry-level version of the BYD Dolphin.

It sits closer to price-parity with the GWM Ora, but is significantly more affordable than the rear-drive MG4 and more spec-competitive top-grade BYD Dolphin.

The bigger threat to the Aion UT is that a lot of buyers will be willing to spend slightly more to get into one of the most affordable electric small SUVs, like the BYD Atto 2 or Jaecoo J5.

Still, GAC makes a solid pitch for its hatch, which offers a higher spec level than its most direct price rivals.

For example, the Aion UT is more powerful than the entry-level Dolphin and Ora while offering a higher level of interior equipment. 

Even the just-arrived front-drive MG4 Urban also starts at $31,990, but that’s for a version with significantly less driving range.

In fact, I’d go so far as to say the entry-level version of the Aion UT (the confusingly-named Premium) is probably the pick of the two variant range.

Standard equipment levels on this car include 17-inch alloy wheels, LED lighting all around, synthetic leather interior trim with heated and power adjust front seats, a 14.6-inch multimedia touchscreen with online connectivity and built-in nav as well as wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

There’s also an 8.88-inch digital instrument cluster, heated steering wheel and the full array of safety kit.

With the same power and battery size, this leaves only arguably unnecessary luxuries for the Luxury grade, like a wireless phone charger, ventilated driver’s seat, auto dimming rear vision mirror with auto power folding wing mirrors, a powered tailgate and of course, a panoramic sunroof (with shade!).

The CLA45 S is motivated by the most potent series-production four-cylinder engine yet.

The 2.0-litre turbo-petrol unit punches out an astounding 310kW of power at 6750rpm and a significant 500Nm of torque from 5000-5250rpm – a marked 30kW/25Nm improvement over its non-S predecessor.

It’s also worth noting Mercedes-AMG performed “torque shaping” to make the new engine’s output delivery (or curve) akin to that of a naturally aspirated unit. This attitude also led to a screaming redline of 7200rpm.

An eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is responsible for swapping gears, while Mercedes-AMG’s fully variable '4Matic+' system sends drive to all four wheels, although it does have a 'Drift Mode' that effectively disengages the front axle.

With the help of standard launch control the CLA 45 S sprints from a standstill to 100km/h in four seconds flat, while its top speed is electronically limited to 270km/h.

The Aion UT has a front-mounted electric motor producing 150kW/210Nm. That’s plenty punchy for any hatchback at this price, and I like the way the brand hasn’t messed around with a sub-100kW motor in the base variant to push prospects towards the top-spec car.

It’s more powerful than all of its closest rivals and at the time of writing you’ll have to spend four to six thousand dollars more to get into something equivalent from BYD, Chery, Jaecoo, Leapmotor or MG.

It even has a claimed 0-100km/h sprint time as low as 7.3 seconds.

Fuel consumption on the combined-cycle test (ADR 81/02) is 8.9 litres per 100 kilometres for the CLA 45 S, while its claimed carbon dioxide emissions are 202 grams per kilometre. Both are pretty keen given the level of performance on offer.

In our real-world testing, we averaged 12.0L/100km over 270km of driving evenly split between city traffic and highways. This result was somewhat inflated by some ‘spirited’ driving but is certainly something we can learn to accept.

For reference, the 51L fuel tank in the CLA 45 S takes 98 RON premium unleaded petrol at minimum.

The Aion UT has a 60kWh lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery pack, which grants it a WLTP-certified 430km of driving range.

That’s more than its closest rivals, like the entry-level Ora Standard Range (310km), BYD Dolphin Essential (410km) or BYD Atto 2 (345km).

Claimed efficiency is 16.4kWh/100km and the car I tested returned a consumption of 14.0kWh/100km over a 130km route of mixed conditions, which isn’t bad at all.

Charging speeds are less impressive, but realistically appropriate for the relatively small battery. The peak DC charging capacity of 87kW means a charge time which the brand quotes at 24 minutes, but this is from 30-80 per cent. Expect closer to 40 minutes for a 10-80 per cent charge.

AC charging is decent, at 11kW. This should have you charging from 10-80 per cent between four and five hours.

When it comes to sheer driving pleasure, the CLA 45 S is a huge step-up over its non-S predecessor.

Of course, the 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine will steal all the headlines, and rightfully so; it’s the most potent unit in its class by some margin.

In reality, it absolutely slaps. Simply put, acceleration is addictive, and not just because of the outputs, but also the way in which they’re delivered.

The CLA 45 S does its best impression of natural aspiration, and I can’t help but award it an automotive Oscar.

Don’t get me wrong, performance is still strong down low (despite a hint of turbo lag), with it progressively building into, and through, a hard-hitting mid-range before reaching a knockout top end that you’ll want to revisit time and time again.

That said, it does take two to tango, and what a dancing partner the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is.

It’s almost flawless, with its gear changes stereotypically super quick but uncharacteristically buttery smooth at the same time.

Responsiveness is another strong point, although it does sometimes have difficulty recognising when the fun is over, as it can hold onto the short lower gears for a little longer than necessary.

And despite our initial fears, the CLA 45 S is still very, very vocal, with its sports exhaust system serving up plenty of aural pleasure, albeit not quite as much as the original CLA 45.

The soundtrack is booming and is complemented by plenty of pops on downshifts and the overrun as well as frightening crackles when aggressively up-shifting . But these theatrics require the Sport Plus drive mode to be engaged, which opens up an all-important exhaust valve.

Given the level of performance on offer, you’d be right to assume the CLA 45 S has a firm ride, but it’s actually better balanced than most.

The 'AMG Ride Control' sports suspension on hand consists of MacPherson-strut front and multi-link rear axles with three-stage adaptive dampers, which progressively stiffen things up.

However, all is relatively comfortable, even in the stiffest setting. In fact, only sharper edges are felt. It’s more than liveable, especially considering the benefits of the trade-off.

Speaking of which, the CLA 45 S loves to eat up corners. Handling is more or less neutral when pushing hard, at which point its 1687kg kerb weight starts to be felt.

Nonetheless, body control is very strong, partially thanks to the reinforced chassis, with only a hint of roll encountered when cornering with intent.

A lot of the credit has to go the fully variable 4Matic+ all-wheel drive system with rear torque vectoring, which provides outstanding grip, even in the poorest of conditions.

In fact, it bestows such confidence you'll want to push harder to try and find the limits of adhesion. A staggering effort.

The CLA 45 S isn’t without its flaws, though, with the electric power steering on tap good but not great.

It’s speed-sensitive and has a variable ratio, which mean it’s pleasingly light in hand at low speed and noticeably heavier at high velocity, with the latter exacerbated when playing with the available drive modes.

Either way, it’s nice and direct and provides a good amount of feedback through the wheel, but we feel Mercedes-AMG could’ve taken it even further in these two departments to really mix it up with genuine sports cars.

What isn’t half-baked, though, is the 'AMG High Performance braking system', which consists of 360 x 36mm front and 330 x 22mm ventilated discs with six-piston fixed and single-piston floating red callipers respectively.

This set-up washes away speed with ease, instilling the driver with even more confidence when tackling a winding road, while pedal feel is good. Yep, the CLA 45 S decelerates nearly as well as it accelerates.

The drive experience can be where a lot of Chinese cars fall down but I walked away less frustrated by the Aion UT.

That’s not to say it will behave as you might expect a low-slung hatchback to. The suspension, for example, is extremely soft as it maintains its original Chinese-market state-of-tune.

This makes the car waft over imperfections on city roads. And in that sense it offers supreme ride comfort in the scenarios it was designed for. However, at the extremes, like some speed bumps, or particularly deep pot holes there can be a surprisingly violent re-bound sending a thud through the cabin.

The other trade-off for soft suspension is less body control. I was surprised to find that the Aion UT holds it together mostly well on a flat country B-road, but when undulations and big dips introduce themselves, the soft suspension can be too slow to react, making the car lose confidence in higher-speed open road scenarios we’re more used to in Australia.

The steering, like many electric cars in this category, is relatively heavily electrically assisted. This makes it light and easy to adjust at low speeds for easy park and maneuverability in the confines of a city. It loses a little bit of road-feel at higher speeds but the Aion UT’s steering is far from the least connected I’ve experienced recently.

One thing it can’t be criticised for is a lack of power. With 150kW instantaneously available the Aion UT has some serious poke and while the ChaoYang tyre package is tuned more for efficiency than grip, it’s again not one of the worst I’ve driven with.

One thing which helps the whole experience along is this car’s hatchback layout. With the weight of the battery low and squat and the wheels all the way out to the edges of the frame, the Aion UT inherently handles decently compared to an electric crossover or small SUV.

Like all Chinese cars, the UT has a host of occasionally frustrating driver aids, which you can read about in the Safety section below. While I was inclined to turn some of the features off after testing them, the alerts are relatively quiet and non-invasive.

Is the UT any good to drive? It’s not bad for the segment, I was largely pleased with how it handled and the power on offer, and while it still has its annoyances, they’re not big deal-breakers. 

The MG4 rear-drive is a better allrounder, while the GWM Ora isn’t as good. I’d say it’s on par with the BYD Dolphin, but they excel in different areas. The Dolphin's a bit sharper in terms of handling but the Aion UT is more comfortable.

As with many Chinese cars the list of active safety equipment is long but that doesn’t mean it’s particularly well calibrated.

Standard gear includes the key stuff like auto emergency braking (AEB), lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert and adaptive cruise control. There are also rarer features for an affordable car like this including traffic sign recognition, door open warning, auto high beams and front cross-traffic alert.

On the parking front you get a 360-degree parking camera view as well as front and rear proximity sensors.

There's also an annoying driver monitoring system and one I haven’t seen much in the form of an occupant warning system, which seems to imagine you’re not wearing a seatbelt when you are.

It’s not the only safety system I found myself reaching to turn off. The lane keep assist could occasionally be a bit heavy-handed and the traffic sign alert was typically frustrating. This, sadly, is what we’ve come to expect from these types of systems from many Chinese automakers.

It’s not the most annoying system I’ve used, though, and the alerts are quiet enough and far enough apart that they aren't as intrusive as they can be in some rivals. You can also adjust the tolerance of some of the systems in the (needlessly complicated) menus to make them less annoying.

At the launch, the Aion UT was yet to be rated by ANCAP.

Like all Mercedes models, the CLA 45 S comes with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, which sets the standard in the premium market. Better yet, five years of roadside assistance is also bundled in.

CLA 45 S service intervals are every 12 months or 20,000km, whichever comes first. A three-year/60,000km capped-price servicing plan is available for $3750, which is not cheap. That said, its pricing can be reduced by $750 if paid upfront alongside the vehicle.

GAC covers this electric hatch with an eight-year and unlimited kilometre warranty, while the brand’s “magazine battery 2.0” is covered by a separate eight-year and 200,000km warranty. Five years of roadside assistance is included.

The Aion UT needs to be serviced once a year or 15,000km. The service price schedule extends all the way out to 240,000km with yearly visits costing between $199 and $640 but for the life of the warranty the average yearly cost comes in at $352.

There are currently 19 GAC dealers in Australia, confined mainly to Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane with a single store in Perth and an outlier in Cairns. No representation yet in Tassie, Canberra, the Northern Territory or SA.