We were surprised to say the least when the new Mercedes CLA arrived earlier this year without a 400-volt DC converter, making it incompatible with the majority of UK public electric car charging stations. Mercedes has since back-tracked on this by adding a 400-volt converter to its compact electric saloon – but it won’t be available until Spring next year.
On top of the lengthy wait, Mercedes won’t be able to retro-fit the converter to existing CLAs either, with the update only coming to “orders as of Spring 2026”, according to the company’s online configurator. It’s also unclear if the converter will be made standard or be offered as an optional extra on the CLA, which starts at £40,421 in entry-level 250+ guise.
If you can’t wait, you can the best prices on existing new and used Mercedes CLAs through Auto Express’s marketplace, where you can also sell your existing car.
The CLA is offered in both hybrid and fully-electric forms, with the latter sitting on bespoke 800-volt EV underpinnings. While older EVs using 400-volt tech can plug in and use most electric car chargers with no issue, those with 800-volt architecture must incorporate a converter to adjust the voltage of the incoming electricity so it matches the car’s battery and other systems.
Without the converter, the CLA will be blocked from many of the 14,000 public rapid chargers in the UK. Newer, faster, 800-volt EV chargers are beginning to crop up across Europe, but there are only a limited number of these here in the UK, with most chargers using 400-volt tech. The CLA did, however, launch with a 400-volt converter in the Norwegian market.
There is no official line on why Mercedes decided to originally ditch a 400-volt converter for the new CLA, but cost-cutting may have been to blame. A Mercedes spokesperson told Auto Express that for the CLA, “the focus is on high-power charging infrastructure, and the share of 800-volt DC fast-charging stations in the entire charging network is constantly increasing”.
The new baby electric Merc will be able to direct drivers to compatible chargers via the sat-nav; providing you always log your charge stops via the car’s mapping, you’ll never unknowingly arrive at a charger you can’t use.
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