Mercedes-Benz A-Class (Parallel Imported)

The first conti car that I have own and I must say that it is very value for money. Responsiveness of the engine and a very nice design on the outside make it a very cool car for the executive.

A car that appeals to those who are young at heart and enjoys a spirited drive. Car is well built and front seats are sporty and comfortable.

Test drove the A180 style awhile back.

Exterior:

The new baby merc looks much better than its predecessor. The updated front grill looks sporty and the overall looks will attract the younger crowd. The hidden tail pipes of the style version is abit of a let down on an otherwise sporty looking hatch.

Interior:

As a small hatch, there is nothing to shout about regarding interior space. Sits 4 comfortably with the rear seats slightly hard and lower roof space. Not really liking the half leather seats and dashboard is mainly plastic. Dials on the dashboard feels cheap. Memory seats for both front passengers is good though. Boot is rather small, not something uncommon for a hatch this size.

Drive:

I love the driving position but the position of the brake pedal is quite high and needs some time to get used to. Step on the gas pedal and the acceleration feels sluggish. Was told by the SE to step harder to feel the power. One thing i don't really like is the shifter is located behind the steering wheel which i thought is only found on those old school lorries and vans. This is hard to see which mode you are in but the plus side is that it frees up space on the centre console where you normally find the stick shift.

Ride quality is good with the suspension slightly on the stiffer side. Steering feedback is responsive and the car feels stable at higher speed. The sound proofing in the cabin is quite good too.

Features:

The basic A class is packed with nifty safety features including collision warning and aiding system and also the auto parking system.

What else can I say when I have already owned couple of Merc before this...

This was actually a replacement of my B200 to the A200 Urban....

Exterior - it's sexy and appear ready-to-go

Interior - I have to admit, it's a little bit tight compare to the B200. However, this ain't a family drive so no bothered....

Drive - Nice acceleration, but I seriously prefer much softer setup for the suspension....guess this is more for hard cornering drive.....

This drive is more for my wife....so I only get to drive it once awhile....

The new A class platform, the new interior design, the swooping curves, the new light clusters. These all sums up to a brand new identity, but still retaining the traditionally reliable marc technology in engine design, giving it a new found attraction. Go with your heart.... albeit a little costly for the size.

Love the look on the new A Class, from an ugly duckling to a beautiful swan. The three pointed star has got a game changer here for the premium hatch market.

Great handling, functional and best of all, good looking.

Merc has really gotten the finer details right. Great interior quality to complement the styles.

It can get crampy in the car once you have a full load, but who says the A class is for sharing?

Tested the A200 over the weekend.. Drive was the minimal you would expect of a Merc..

Great looking car with great specifications

Similar to the B-Class, rear cabin is more spacious than the exterior suggests

Would I recommend this car to a fren?

Maybe only.. it's not for everyone

I bought the entry-level Mercedes Benz A200 (Style) in June and have been happily driving it since. The exterior design (in my opinion) is very well executed - especially the flow lines on the sides. I can see why the A200 styling is replicated in newer models like the CLA and the upcoming GLA.

The fuel efficiency, I feel, can be better and the performance is sketchy. Sometimes I get great performance and other times, it is laggy and doesn't kick in when pressed. The stop-start eco function also affects the effectiveness of the aircon to maintain cool temperatures especially in a hot and humid environment like ours. That's about the only gripe I have about A200.

Overall, I am very happy with this car. The styling is more aggressive and modern compared to the Audi A3 Sportback. The driver's space is more generous than the BMW 1 series and the price is friendlier than the Volvo V40.

My wife got rid of her Megane for a A200 3 weeks ago and I have been driving it over weekends since. I would like to share my feel with this car.

Exterior Look - Simply a very good looker and never get sick of it. It attracted attention everywhere it went; perhaps also because not many are on the road and passerby were curious to figure out what is this good looking car!

Interior - Overall looks great. Really like the air on outlets, which look luxurious. The small rear windscreen is not an issue as the two large wing mirrors provide very good coverage of blind areas. The seating space is reasonable in this compact. What I dislike are, (1) gear change lever on the right of steering column. I have mistaken it as signal lever (as in my Odyssey) or wiper lever (as in Megane) many times and inadvertently pushed it to Neutral gear and disengaged the drive. Getting more used to it now though. (2) resolution of audio display monitor. The map of the locally installed GPS (given FOC) when displayed on this monitor is really poor!

Brake Control - good, and I particularly like the 'hold' control which allows holding on slope without using the park brake. But the design and location of park brake lever is weird, it is more like for opening the bonnet!

Dynamics - very good and smooth pickup with the high torque and 7-speed auto gearbox. Ride comfort is ok though her Megane is more comfy. Steering control is precise.

Sustainability - 2 factors that I considered. (1) reliability - so far so good, not a single problem or irritant at all. But i would need a much longer usage period to better assess. (2) fuel consumption - still far below the rated 17.5km/liter. Achieved only close to 10, might be because the car is running in and also because the route that my wife took to work.

She paid about $145k, $12k lower than current price. It is not cheap, never cheap owning a car in Singapore, but i rated it good value for money comparing it to other makes of cars

Went for the Merz A Class launch by Torque magazine sometime ago at Big Splash.

First looks....like its given impression...REBELLIOUS which I totally agree in comparison to its predecessor.

A look of young executive car to be driven especially when you drive a 3 point star that is popular among executives (young and mature).

Driven the urban version which I think is a 1.6L...

The drive was ok but kick boost wasn't there which was disappointing...when hit on throttle, it wasn't responding as of immediate like the fellow siblings of C class or so.

Interior was like in a space shuttle and looks futuristic indeed.

Nothing much to comment as other add ons are typical need to pay.