Mercedes-Benz A-Class

A concept car is a thing of beauty. It is what little boys and grown men alike dream of, and when a car makes it to production in the same form that it was displayed as a concept, it is a reason to rejoice, for bits of our dreams have been brought to life by engineering and design. The current-generation A-Class is one such car, with the only concessions to the production model over the Concept A-Class displayed at the 2011 Shanghai Auto Show being the headlamps, mirrors and bumpers. Small wonder, then, that the A-Class looks like a million dollars.

The original A-Class was the practical, no-nonsense addition to the lineup; a small yet spacious car that had a driveline that was new for Mercedes-Benz – both the engine and the driven wheels were in the front. As with all succeeding models, the second generation grew in size but carried forward the philosophy of practicality and space. India will get the third generation of the A-Class, and it’s got a slightly different philosophy.

The A-Class plays younger brother to the B-Class, and as such it follows the same styling cues. It is a modern, refreshing design, and it is a sea change from the previous generation. Mercedes has consciously opted for a two-box design rather than the monobox that the previous A-Class was; this reduces interior space for the same footprint occupied, but the silhouette is far more stylish.

There are a number of different options available for the grille mesh design and bumper depending on what variant you purchase. One thing Mercedes doesn’t offer with the A-Class is the traditional three-pointed star mounted on the end of the bonnet. The ‘Avantgarde’ grille with the large three-pointed star occupying the entire centre of the grille is standard: another break from tradition. The headlamps are edgy, but look closely and there’s too much detail compared to the clean lines of the rest of the car; it seems untidy until they are switched on – the running lamps add a touch of “wedginess” to the design, making it more purposeful. Of particular interest is the way the different lines from the hood and bumper seem to meet at a central point at the grille: it reminds me of the SLS AMG, and that’s no bad thing. The bumper is noticeably aggressive if you purchase the AMG sport version, but is quite elegant in the other variants.

From the side, the two-box shape makes it look like a premium European hatch – which it is. Traditional Mercedes fans might find it a little fussy, what with the number of lines on the side – there is one that swoops back from the headlamps, almost meet the other one at the bottom that originates from the front wheel arch. If you look carefully, you’ll notice that even the plastic sills below the doors have two lines, giving it a very interesting visual effect from certain angles. In the flesh, this doesn’t look ungainly; it merely helps to hide the excess visual bulk towards the rear. Tall people will also notice the extra-long spoiler on the roof. There is more than one wheel design to choose from, but the most eye-catching is definitely the AMG Sport design, with its large, five-spoke rims.

At the back, the rear glass is the first thing you’ll notice. It is designed to appear short and wide; this makes the car look wide and short, and gives it strong ‘shoulders’ from the rear. The rear is clean and devoid of unnecessary cuts and creases, making for a very elegant look. The bumper of the AMG Sport variants has vents in the back, lending it that much more muscle. All versions of the car get two exhausts, one on each side at the rear, regardless of what is under the hood. The projector headlamps and LED tail-lamps are standard across the range, which adds to the premium feel of the car.

The interior of the A-Class is... cosy. It isn’t as spacious as you would expect from a hatchback of this size, but that was a conscious decision taken when the A-Class was being designed. It was supposed to appeal to a young buyer, not a mature one like the rest of the range (with the exception of the B-Class) is supposed to. Get into the front seat, and you feel cocooned in luxury. Everything is familiar, with the steering controls, audio head unit and COMAND controller the same as always.

What is new to the A-Class is the display screen mounted on top of the dashboard and the AC vents, both of which are present in the B-Class. These are the best and worst things about the interior: the vents are straight out of the SLS AMG, and wouldn’t look out of place in a supercar manufactured by anyone. They are modular units that have different colour and material combinations depending on the variant. The screen, on the other hand, looks like an afterthought and the competition like the Audi Q3 and BMW X1 do a much better job with screen integration. Even the audio head unit (despite being exceedingly usable and ergonomically sound) looks out of place in the car because the forest of buttons on it is very last-generation. If there’s one thing Mercedes can do to make the interior better instantly, it is to update the design of this element and integrate the screen.

The seats are comfortable, the steering wheel just the right diameter and thickness to hold, and the mirrors have auto-dimming in the German-market cars. Leather upholstery isn’t standard, surprisingly – a combination of leather and fabric is on offer, or leather and alcantara in the case of the AMG Sport versions. This is a welcome change considering our hot weather, but we also wonder how well the Indian market will accept a premium car with a part-fabric interior. The dashboard top is swathed in leather as well in the top-end variants, and the rest get soft-touch plastic.

The front of the floor is angled upwards to keep your feet comfortable – this also indicates that the height between seat base and floor isn’t very much. The seats in our test cars had electric adjustment for the driver, with the controls being mounted on the doors. The passenger’s controls were manual. In the back, the legroom is merely adequate, and headroom is just enough for a six-footer like me, thanks to that low roofline. The rear windows are quite small, and the dark interiors make it seem smaller than it actually is – this isn’t a car for those looking to occupy the rear seat, but that’s okay; those customers will be catered to by the upcoming CLA sedan. The A-Class is meant for those who will drive their Merc, with an occasional rear seat occupant. The boot is fairly large at 341 litres, and the rear seats split and fold.

The cars we drove in Germany were a mix of all the lineup, with the exception of the A45 AMG. I got to drive the A250 CDI automatic and A180 petrol manual, so I got to sample an India-bound engine and gearbox separately. The engines that will go on sale in India are the A180 petrol and diesel. The petrol is a 1595cc unit that makes 123PS and 200Nm with the help of turbocharging and direct injection. The common-rail diesel A180 CDI makes 109PS and a very healthy 250Nm from 1796cc. The petrol feels like a diesel in many ways: peak power arrives at 5000rpm, and peak torque is available at an astonishing 1250rpm. It is such a refined engine and the sound insulation is so good that it simply feels slow, but getting to nearly 200kmph on the derestricted sections of the Autobahn wasn’t a problem at all. The 7G-Tronic automatic gearbox is one of the first dual-clutch ‘boxes from Stuttgart, and it is a big leap ahead of the standard 7G-Tronic. Shifts are quick and seamless, and offer manual downshifts in any mode via paddle shifters. Despite those dual exhausts, the engine is muted, with a faraway growl filtering through to the cabin when you approach the redline.

Handling was expectedly good – the European suspension settings meant that ground clearance is lower than Indian-market versions, and the stiffness was apparent every time we passed a rough patch of tarmac. I expect this to change when the A-Class makes it to India, with greater ground clearance and softer damping to take care of our bad roads. The steering in our test cars was well weighted and very accurate – the route chosen by Mercedes for us included long stretches of mountain roads with speed limits in excess of 70kmph. On these roads where we saw many motorcyclists and convertible drivers having the time of their life, the A-Class held its own and put a smile on the face of the driver.

The A-Class will open up a niche that hasn’t been present so far in the Indian market – that of the premium hatchback. The most expensive hatchback that has gone on sale in India was the Chevrolet SR-V, and that was too far ahead of its time. The competition has chosen to go the SUV way with the X1 and Q3, which is a more appealing proposition for the Indian consumer, who prefers a “bada gaadi” to a hatchback when it comes to premium offerings. The plant in Rastatt, Germany is running at full capacity – that’s how popular the A-Class is in the markets it is sold. The quality and aura of the three-pointed star will help sell the A-Class in the Indian market, but at Rs 20 lakh onwards, it will remain a niche product.