Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
IT must be magic working for Mercedes-Benz nowadays. It’s a marque that is flying high with Lewis Hamilton storming to victory in Bahrain and car buyers frantically getting excited about dealers Al Haddad Motors last week selling off the cars the world champion and his team spun around Bahrain off the track during their victorious weekend.
The thought of test-driving a sporty little Mercedes was too irresistible, so whilst everyone-else was enjoying a relaxing ‘Labour Day’ off work after waking up at the crack of dawn to watch the big fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao (what a let-down that was) I headed towards Tubli to the showroom for a date with something guaranteed to pack a punch.
The CLA-Class 250 does not disappoint. It’s a knock-out from the moment you look at it and to steal something from the company’s glossy brochure ‘its flowing lines give visual expression to its exemplary aerodynamics and in so doing demonstrate the outstanding aesthetic cohesion that results when form follows function’.
In plain English, that means its incredibly sexy shape is made for a reason and its designs are made-up by the fact that its level of air resistance is so low rival manufacturers can only look on with envy.
And, when it comes to putting the pedal to the metal this mean machine will stick like glue to the highway and there’s a feisty roar from its 2.0-ltr engine too as you smoothly overtake all-comers on the road. Sweet.
It drives like a dream and with the helpful pre-ride guidance of marketing manager, Imran Ali, I quickly got to grips with the flick of the wrist technique of slipping the vehicle into drive, neutral or reverse and driving along in an economic, sport or paddle-shifting mode, whenever the desire took me.
It’s such a cool-looking car too, often described as a scaled-down version of the prettiest Mercedes design on sale today, the CLS, and the bright red colour of my test example dazzled in the sunlight. The interior had a youthful, sporty ambience throughout with red stitching on the leather and suede upholstery and racing red rims around the air filters, plus colour-co-ordinated safety belts, of course.
The sport version had all the specs you would expect with a clear rear-view camera allowing you to reverse easily into the tightest of parking places, mobile phone connectivity and music-listening options.
The seats were as snug as a rug, almost wrapping around you, making you feel secure and ready for the adventure ahead.
This magnificent machine is most likely to attract the dynamic young businessman or woman who likes to impress, or the mature man who is still young-at-heart, like me.
It starts with a price tag of BD17,995.
For further details or to arrange a test drive call Al Haddad Motors on 17785454 or call into the showroom.
