soon i’ll be starting a new job and with that job comes a new car. I’m debatting between a Mercedes CLA and a Volvo S60. is there anyone that have driven both? In Holland both are around the same price while the Volvo is the bigger car.
Pro’s S60
bigger (i have a 10 month old)
faster engine (200hp)
carply in dashboard
cheaper with more options
Auto pilot standard
Con’s S60
i like the look but i think the CLA is sexier…
no interior leds
Pro’s CLA
like the look more
i like gadgets
nicer interior
Con’s CLA
slower engine (136hp)
smaller
expensive…
I know the S60 is actually a D segment and the CLA C but given the price it;s both an option…
I’d pick the Volvo, far better car. The CLA is one of the lowest rated vehicles on Consumer Reports because of its low reliability and low owner satisfaction, in addition to just average test scores. It’s MB’s cheapest car, built on a FWD chassis unlike the rest of their line. And the Volvo is only 2" longer.
MPG is king in Europe b/c of high gasoline prices. How do the mpg ratings compare, car to car? If the CLA’s smaller engine yield considerably higher mpg, and since you like its gadgets and appearance, and don’t seem to care as much about rated reliability and repair costs, seems like the CLA would be your best choice.
This is my humble opinion having been a Volvo and Mercedes owner. We are a Volvo household and I refuse to buy anything else however this statement applies to models 2015 and earlier. Newer models get progressively worse based on year and anything made today in my opinion is not worth the sticker price and quality has all but been built out of them. Also if you enjoy the right, privilege, satisfaction and cost savings of maintaining your own vehicle, anything newer than 2015 will be very very difficult to diagnose since the Vida/Dice diagnostic tool went online and access to it is cost prohibitive. We used to own a Mercedes R350 and although I enjoyed the ride, style and power it was a maintenance nightmare as it was always breaking down for some reason or another and parts are $$$. Full disclosure, since we have a growing family we are now forced to look at other brands because we “outgrew” the XC90 (my wife and I disagree on this point but I have capitulated to keep peace), but if Volvo made an SUV on the order of magnitude of an Expedition or Suburban during 2015 or earlier I would have no hesitation on pulling the trigger. I would agree with a prior comment regarding Mercedes terrible reliability score and if I was forced to buy a new model Volvo or Mercedes, despite my loathing of what they have become, I would spend my hard earned dollars on the Volvo. Lastly and this goes for all makes/models starting 2027 unless of course new administration gets in and reverses the disastrous course of the regulations. All new vehicles will be equipped with among other things cabin cameras, tactile sensors and other monitoring apparatus which can take full control of the vehicle and leave you stranded at the side of the road while notifying police that you have been a bad citizen. In short this is being done under the pretense of DUI safety as the vehicles will check to see if you are too impaired to drive, however as with all sneaky Biden laws this will be the excuse to take away your rights to privacy and self incrimination and collect data which can be used against you.
I wont go into it here but if you are someone who actually respects, appreciates and values your rights you may want to read up on this and reconsider a future purchase, BTW Volvo is fully on board with this, enthusiastically it seems. Spread the word. (US cars mandated to spot drunk drivers—and stop them)
Hi @LPD07 I removed the more provocative political commentary from your post. We have found that the real partisan commentary starts fights. I get that these features were instituted in response to political decisions, so I tried to leave the criticisms intact without some of the more provocative phrasing. Thank you.
But in this case he gets both the better safety of the Volvo and the higher hp of the Volvo, along with better reliability and a better overall car, win/win/win.