Mercedes-Benz CLA 45 AMG Shooting Brake – On the chassis dynamometer

Etienne Estourgie and his partner Mary-Ellen Janssen make a fashionable entrance at Beek Auto Racing in The Hague. They are both adorned with striking, brightly colored glasses on their noses and ditto clothing. They get out of a pure-bred AMG in the well-known Mercedes-Benz gray-silver. Etienne bought the 2020 CLA 45 AMG Shooting Brake as a young used car in 2022 with a modest 12,000 kilometers on the clock.

Practical yet beautiful: that’s why Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake

“I bought a CLA Shooting Brake with a regular petrol engine in 2020,” Etienne explains. “Because I have three grandchildren, I wanted a somewhat practical car, but I didn’t really want an SUV, because I think that’s more something for older people,” jokes the former dentist. Etienne completely agreed with the approach route that Mercedes-Benz had in mind with the CLA coupé and Shooting Brake: a bit practical, but above all not at the expense of the graceful lines. “I think it is a very successful design. Four doors and a large tailgate, but still a beautiful car to look at.”

While waiting during turn, Etienne fell for the 45 AMG

At some point Etienne was at the dealer for his ‘normal’ CLA to be serviced. He had to wait and came across a young, used Shooting Brake imported from Germany in the showroom, but in AMG trim, from bumper to bumper. “That car called out to you,” jokes partner Mary-Ellen. And that was true. Still, Etienne initially controlled his nerves and did not strike immediately. He gave the thought some time and imagined what it would be like to purchase this stylish bomb on four wheels from a good background. And five minutes later he finally made the decision. For a price that is far above average if you were to buy a new car, Etienne gave herself an AMG as a gift. With a power source with 387 hp and a pulling force of an excellent 480 Nm. A retired dentist in no hurry in a CLA 45 AMG, logical, right?

Stones from the street

“No, I’m not a crack nose, I haven’t tapped into the car’s potential yet. I’m never really in a hurry and I’m not going to push this car. I enjoy merging onto the highway, getting away from the traffic lights quickly and knowing that you have a lot of reserve under your right foot,” he says. Why go to the roller bench? “I wanted to know if that was actually possible,” Etienne explains his application.

School dentist and health insurance fund

It’s not every day that we get a dentist with more than thirty years of experience in front of the camera, so we seize the opportunity to discuss two important matters with both hands. Is it really true that people nowadays save on dental costs and not on their AMG by simply going less often or eliminating expensive treatments because everything has become so much more expensive? “Not in my practice (in Megen; ed.). The big change came when the health insurance fund was abolished and everyone had to take out their own health insurance, because that is when the negative spiral started,” says Etienne. And why have almost all people over fifty been traumatized by the phenomenon of ‘the school dentist’? “In itself, the school dentist was a good initiative, but the mistake was that all kinds of older dentists were used who could not deal with those children at all.”

Just go through the programs to focus AMG

Dynamometer chief Ghisbert van Ginhoven has strapped down the AMG and is still searching through the engine management programs. That one has an AMG. You can set it to ‘normal’, but you can also go for ‘maximum’. That is of course the motto today. The CLA is convincing this afternoon. We pass through the barriers of the factory assignment with flying colors. Etienne can rest assured: this AMG can hold its own.