Mercedes is adding a third production shift to meet overwhelming demand for the new CLAGerman buyers are facing delivery delays stretching into 2026 due to strong order intakeProduction will expand to include gasoline variants and a new Shooting Brake wagon later this year The internet can be a cruel mistress. One moment you're riding high on the wave of automotive enthusiasm, the next you're being torn apart by keyboard warriors who've never actually driven anything more exciting than their mother's Toyota Corolla. Such is the fate of the new Mercedes CLA, a car that's been absolutely savaged online but is apparently flying off the production line faster than free beer at a brewery tour. You see, there's something rather delicious about this whole situation. While automotive forums have been having an absolute field day tearing the CLA apart—criticizing everything from its jellybean styling to its electric powertrain—actual human beings with actual money have been queuing up to buy the thing. It's like watching a restaurant get terrible reviews on Yelp while simultaneously having a three-hour wait for a table. The numbers don't lie, and they're telling quite a story. Mercedes production chief Joerg Burzer has described the order intake as "very encouraging," which in automotive executive speak translates to "we're absolutely drowning in orders and we need more shifts immediately." So much so that the company is ramping up to a three-shift production schedule later this year just to keep up with demand. That's not the kind of move you make for a car that's struggling to find buyers. Mercedes CLA production challenges and solutions But here's where it gets interesting. Some German buyers who placed orders are being told they might have to wait until 2026 for delivery. Twenty-twenty-six! That's not next year, that's the year after next year. In the automotive world, that kind of wait time is either a sign of catastrophic production problems or genuine, honest-to-goodness demand that's caught everyone off guard. Initially, there were some hiccups with securing rare earth materials—because apparently even making cars now requires elements that sound like they belong in a chemistry textbook rather than a garage. But Burzer insists those supply chain gremlins have been sorted, and production is now in full swing without any meaningful restrictions. The factory in Rastatt is working overtime to build these things, and Mercedes isn't stopping there. They're planning to add a gasoline version near the end of the year, complete with a turbocharged 1.5-liter engine and an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic. This should bring the starting price down considerably from the current €55,858 entry point for the electric CLA 250+, making it accessible to people who don't have the GDP of a small nation at their disposal. What's particularly clever about Mercedes' strategy is that they're not just building one car—they're building a whole family. The CLA Shooting Brake is coming back, and this time it'll be available as both an electric vehicle and with traditional combustion power. It's as if Mercedes looked at the crossover-obsessed market and said, "Right, we'll give you your SUVs, but we're also going to make wagons cool again." Mercedes CLA market positioning and future plans The broader implications of the CLA's success are rather fascinating when you consider Mercedes' overall strategy. This isn't just about one car selling well; it's about the fundamental reshaping of the brand's entry-level offerings. The A-Class and B-Class, those stalwarts of the compact Mercedes lineup, are effectively being phased out. No replacements are planned, making the CLA the new gateway drug to the three-pointed star experience. This is a bold move that says quite a lot about where Mercedes sees the market heading. Instead of continuing to chase the bottom end of the premium market with increasingly compromised small cars, they're consolidating around the CLA as their entry-level offering. It's a more focused approach that should allow them to put more resources into making fewer models better. The success of the CLA also validates Mercedes' electric vehicle strategy in a way that no amount of press releases or executive presentations ever could. Real customers are putting down real money for an electric Mercedes, and they're willing to wait years to get it. That's not the behavior of a market that's skeptical about EVs; that's the behavior of a market that's ready to embrace them, provided they come from the right badge. Looking forward, Mercedes isn't resting on their laurels. A new GLB is in development with both gasoline and electric variants, and there's even talk of a "Little G" later this decade—presumably a smaller, more accessible version of the legendary G-Wagon that won't require you to sell a kidney to afford. The CLA's success story is ultimately a reminder that the internet's opinion and the market's reality don't always align. While automotive enthusiasts have been busy dissecting every design detail and questioning every engineering decision, regular customers have been quietly voting with their wallets. And their verdict is clear: they want this car, they want it now, and they're willing to wait years to get it. That's not the mark of a failure; that's the mark of a hit.
