The 2013 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG’s big bark: Motoramic TV

The words “four cylinder” and “AMG” sit uneasy in close proximity. Four-cylinder engines are cheap, economical workhorses that, in their rare upmarket appearances, serve as fuel-economy specials. In a performance context, four-bangers connote the sport compact crowd — Hondas, GTIs and rally cars. None of those Venn diagrams overlap the territory of AMG, Mercedes-Benz’ cathedral to big horsepower and bigger money. Right now, if you want a four-cylinder AMG, one of your options is to cut an SL65 motor into thirds.

But come November there’ll be an easier path to quad-piston AMG entertainment. The 2.0-liter four-banger beneath the hood of the CLA45 AMG pumps out 355 hp, 332 lb-ft of torque and a truly bratty exhaust note. AMG’s littlest motor claims a bunch of production-car superlatives, including highest specific output (178 horsepower per liter) and highest boost pressure (26.1 psi). I’m guessing you’ll want to fill up with premium.

Mercedes introduced the CLA45 AMG at the new Bilster Berg race track in Germany. Nestled amongst quaint storybook hills where you can easily imagine witches getting pushed into ovens, Bilster Berg is a merciless succession of blind corners and drastic elevation changes. It’s certainly not a track to flatter your abilities or mask a car’s shortcomings. And while Mercedes led the CLA-driving ducklings around the track with a pace car, that pace car was an SLS AMG driven by a fellow who seemed to occasionally forget that he had an SLS while we had CLAs. A rolling roadblock he wasn’t.