Mercedes-Benz is moving quickly to correct its early-2020s EV missteps, rolling out a string of new electric models. The CLA, GLC, and C-Class have all gone electric within roughly the past year, and now the GLA Electric is joining them. It will not go on sale until next summer, but it boasts impressive stats as sophisticated new electric cars emerge from just about every corner of the industry. As before, the GLA is the small-SUV counterpart to the CLA small sedan in Mercedes’ lineup. Both use the Mercedes Modular Architecture (MMA), which will underpin the company’s other small, typically front-wheel-drive vehicles. Unlike the platforms used for the new C-Class and GLC EVs, as well as the older EQE and EQS, MMA supports both electric and internal-combustion models. Even so, the electric versions are the most notable additions to the third-generation GLA. Mercedes will release final U.S. specifications closer to the GLA’s launch, but two versions are planned initially: the 268-horsepower GLA 250+ Electric and the 349-horsepower, dual-motor GLA 350 4Matic Electric. Both use the same NMC battery with 85 kWh of usable capacity.
© Mercedes-Benz Building off of the CLA introduced last summer, the GLA EV uses an 800-volt electrical architecture. Mercedes says it can charge at up to 320 kW on a 400-volt DC fast charger, adding as much as 165 miles of range in about 10 minutes. A built-in NACS charging port comes standard.
