Brabus tunes Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG to 394 hp

It was only a matter of time before German tuning house Brabus looked at the Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG and said: nahh, it's just not powerful enough. Recall that the base CLA 45 AMG already produces 355-hp and 332 lb-ft of torque courtesy of its modestly sized 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four (an impressive feat by itself, yielding the highest output of any production four-cylinder engine), which gives it the ability to get to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds.

Given its $48,375 price tag for stateside 4Matic all-wheel drive version, many would call that a bargain for the performance stats provided. And it's also the most affordable way to get into an AMG-badged Mercedes-Benz.

So how could Brabus have improved on those power figures?

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Brabus has also tweaked the exterior details of their version of the CLA 45, though rather conservatively.

By retuning the engine, Brabus turned up the horsepower to 394 and 369 lb-ft of torque, a gain of 39 hp and 37 lb-ft of torque. A bit of a modest move on Brabus' part, as they kept the original engine which itself is based on that found in the much milder CLA 250 sedan, which is the base version in the U.S. range, instead of swapping in something monstrous. (That will perhaps come a bit later, when Brabus finds a way to shoehorn a V8 into that tiny engine bay. And don't think it won't happen).

Brabus' current efforts give the tuned CLA 45 AMG the ability to make the dash to 60 mph in just 4.2 seconds. The company also plans to give buyers the option to raise the electronic limiter from 155 mph to 168 mph, an option that probably only makes sense in Germany where they're allowed to have nice things such as derestricted autobahns.

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The changes to the interior are minimal in this car, one of the first examples built, and include red accents and alcantara surfaces.

Brabus, being Brabus, has also tweaked the exterior of the CLA, though they didn't go overboard like with some recent tuning efforts. The Bottrop, Germany-based performance house's CLA 45 AMG has received a redesigned body kit with red accents, a carbon fiber lip for the front bumper, a rear window-mounted spoiler, and a range of wheel choices including the 19-inch rollers it wears in the photos above. The changes to the interior are relatively minimal, with red accents on the seats and seat belts, but as each car is built per order, the sky is really the limit when it comes to Brabus' interior customization efforts.

Brabus has yet to release pricing for this model, but we will let you know as soon as Brabus' representative office in the U.S. publishes that information.

By Jay Ramey