HSV GTS v Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG: At the Dragstrip

We pit Australia's most powerful car against the world's fastest four cylinder sedan.

08 October 2013 Andrew MacLean

Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG v HSV GTS drag race
We pit the world's fastest 4-cylinder sedan against Australia's most powerful car.

This may seem like an unfair brawl, like bringing a knife to a gunfight.

But the Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG is more than up to the task of taking on Australia's most powerful ever road car, the Gen-F HSV GTS.

On paper, the local brute has a lot more muscle with its 6.2-litre supercharged V8 producing a mammoth 430kW and 740Nm - line-ball with the CLA's bigger brother, the twin-turbo V8-powered E63 AMG S.

But the HSV has to deliver all that grunt to the ground to the rear wheels through a six-speed automatic, whereas the CLA45 AMG - powered by a turbocharged 2.0-litre four cylinder that develops 265kW and 450Nm - has a smarter seven-speed dual-clutch automatic and all-wheel traction.

Both cost around the same money - the CLA45 starts at $86,900 and the GTS costs from $92,990 - and prove that you don't need to spend seven figures to go seriously quick. Mercedes claims the pocket rocket can sprint from 0-100km/h in 4.6sec while HSV says the GTS can clock the same speed a fraction faster.

We managed to beat their maker's claims in our run down the quarter mile, but to find out just how close they were you'll have to watch the video.