Compare the2024 Toyota CrownVS 2024 Mercedes CLA

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Crown are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Mercedes CLA doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Crown are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The CLA doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Crown has a standard Secondary Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The CLA doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Crown Limited/Platinum has a standard Parking Support Brake that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The CLA doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Crown. But it costs extra on the CLA.

The Crown’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the CLA.

Both the Crown and the CLA have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Crown its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 67 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The CLA has not been tested, yet.

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the Crown 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Mercedes covers the CLA. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the CLA ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

Toyota pays for scheduled maintenance on the Crown for 2 years and 25000 miles. Toyota will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Mercedes doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the CLA.

There are over 3 times as many Toyota dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Crown’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Crown’s reliability 23 points higher than the CLA.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. With 7 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Toyota higher than Mercedes.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota above average in long-term dependability. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Mercedes is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in overall reliability. Mercedes is ranked 29th.

The Crown’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid produces 15 more horsepower (236 vs. 221) than the CLA’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid. The Crown Platinum’s standard 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 119 more horsepower (340 vs. 221) and 142 lbs.-ft. more torque (400 vs. 258) than the CLA’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Car and Driver the Crown Platinum 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid is faster than the Mercedes CLA:

On the EPA test cycle the Crown gets better mileage than the CLA:

The Crown has a gallon more fuel capacity than the CLA (14.5 vs. 13.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Crown has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The CLA doesn’t offer a CVT.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Crown has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the CLA. The Crown’s optional 21-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels optional on the CLA.

The Crown has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the CLA; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the CLA don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Crown’s wheelbase is 4.8 inches longer than on the CLA (112.2 inches vs. 107.4 inches).

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Crown a Mid-size car, while the CLA is rated a Compact.

The Crown has 9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the CLA (98 vs. 89).

The Crown has .3 inches more front legroom, 2 inches more front shoulder room, 1.8 inches more rear headroom, 5 inches more rear legroom and 1.1 inches more rear shoulder room than the CLA.

The Crown has a much larger trunk than the CLA (15.2 vs. 11.6 cubic feet).

With its sedan body style, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the Crown offers cargo security. The CLA’s non-lockable remote release defeats cargo security.

Consumer Reports rated the Crown’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the CLA’s headlights, which were rated “Poor.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Crown has standard extendable sun visors. The CLA doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Crown has standard heated front seats. Heated front seats cost extra on the CLA. The Crown Limited/Platinum also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the CLA.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Crown Limited/Platinum keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The CLA doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Toyota Crown, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Mercedes CLA isn't recommended.

The Toyota Crown outsold the Mercedes CLA by almost two to one during 2023.