By Michael Hines
In recent years, May 4 has become known as Star Wars Day. (“May the fourth/force be with you.” Get it?) To celebrate this “holiday,” Mercedes-Benz has released the CLA180 Star Wars Edition.
Only 120 of these sedans will be made, and they will only be sold in Japan. What’s worse is that both sedans are aligned with the dark side. Sixty of them are finished in Calcite White and celebrate stormtroopers. The other 60 come in Night Black and pay tribute to Darth Vader himself. (If you want to get technical, black is also the color of the flight suit worn by TIE fighter pilots.)
The CLA180 Star Wars is priced at $44,960 (5,040,000 yen). In Japan, the base model CLA180 starts at $33,736 (3,790,000 yen). The CLA180 Sports goes for $38,721 (4,350,000 yen). So, either way you slice it, the Star Wars Edition is pricier.
What does all that extra yen buy? Unfortunately, nothing extra under the hood. The CLA180 is powered by a 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine with 121 HP and 148 pound-feet of torque. Japan has strict laws regarding automotive emissions, hence why the CLA in Japan has such a small power plant. For reference, the entry-level CLA250 sold stateside has a turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4 with 208 HP and 258 pound-feet of torque. It’s also cheaper by about a thousand bucks.
While the CLA180 Star Wars Edition doesn’t offer any performance goodies, it does feature a ton of aesthetic additions. All 120 special editions are equipped with the AMG Line appearance package. This aggressive appearance package features sports bumpers, side sills, and AMG-sourced wheels. The Darth Vader model is equipped with black 18-inch multi-spoke alloys, while the stormtrooper CLA180 gets 18-inch five-spoke two-tone alloys. In addition to the AMG Line package, both cars feature the optional Night Package. As expected, this package is heavy on the black. Gloss black trim is added to the grille, front splitter, side sills, side mirror caps, the window line, and the diffuser in back. On the Calcite White CLA, aka the Stormtrooper Mercedes, the Night Package provides a nice contrast.
Inside, both the Stormtrooper CLA180 and Darth Vader CLA180 get Artico man-made leather with Dinamica microfiber upholstery that matches the paint outside, courtesy of the AMG Line package.
On the Calcite White model, the seats feature white and gray lines, and the stitching is silver. The ambient lighting is blue.
On the Night Black version, the stripes are absent and the stitching is red. The lighting is also scarlet.
When it comes to picking a favorite, I give the nod to the Darth Vader CLA, at least when it comes to the exterior. It’s really tough to beat all-black in almost any circumstance. However, the interior of the Stormtrooper CLA is much more eye-catching, in my opinion. The seats and lighting just look classier.
Both Star Wars Mercedes come with a sun shade featuring the heroes from the first film (“Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope”) on one side and the iconic phrase “May the force be with you” on the other.
The door lighting has also been programmed to display the Star Wars logo, a nice touch that lets everyone know just how much of a geeky gearhead you really are.
There are also Star Wars all-weather floor mats. The coolest feature of the Mercedes-Benz CLA180 Star Wars Edition is the R2-D2 beep-boop sound that plays every time the ignition is turned on and off. Yeah, it may get annoying after a while, but it’s still pretty awesome and unique.
Overall, the Star Wars CLA180s are a bit of a disappointment, and seem like a bit of an attempt to cash in on the 40th anniversary of the first Star Wars film. That being said, it’s no worse than the Nissan Rogue: Rogue One Star Wars Limited Edition released last year. The limited production run means that these CLAs might even be worth something some day.
Check them out. Would you drop $44,000 on one? Do you think they’ll one day be a collector’s item? Let us know in the comments.
