First Drive: Mercedes-Benz A-Class

by Joanne Ahern • November 13, 2012 • Car Reviews, First Drives

2013 Mercedes Benz A-Class exterior front right static

The sporty looking new Mercedes Benz A-Class is far more striking looking than its predecessor

Mercedes-Benz has replaced the incongruous with the incredible on the design front with the all new A-Class.

In a bid to lure younger drivers away from its rivals Audi and BMW, Mercedes has taken an eraser to the A-Class design and come up with a beautiful looking compact, which I had the pleasure of taking for a short spin yesterday.

The new Mercedes-Benz A-Class is a much trendier and far more youthful looking car than its predecessor.

Where the outgoing model was high and boxy looking, its replacement is sleek and sophisticated and fits in better with the Mercedes-Benz family.

It’s a lovely car to drive too. My test car was the entry level Style model, with a 1.8-litre diesel engine and automatic transmission. I was impressed with how smooth it was on the road and the seamless gear changes.

2011 Mercedes-Benz A-Class exterior front right dynamic

The outgoing Mercedes-Benz A-Class wasn’t the trendiest

While it was Style by name, it was also style by nature. The cockpit is very driver focused, with lovely firm sports seats.

The spec on the car is very good as well, with Collision Prevention Assist, which stops the car automatically if it detects the possibility of a low speed fender-bender, Attention Assist – which tells you to take a break if you’re driving erratically, ECO start/stop, and alloys all as standard.

Air conditioning, Bluetooth and Audio 20 CD and USB/Aux ports are also standard.

I also liked the reversing camera, which is simple to use, just showing the wheel base. It was fitted as an extra.

Three variants of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class will be available in Ireland, Style, Urban and AMG Sport with the sporty looking Urban expected to be the most popular.

2013 Mercedes Benz A-Class interior cockpit

The cockpit in the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class is well laid out, legroom is good and the sports seats are comfortable

Mercedes-Benz is aiming the new A-Class at ladies and gents in their mid-20s and 30s and is hoping to convert the traditional Audi A1 and BMW 1 Series candidates to Mercedes drivers.

It’s going for youthful appeal with the new A-Class and this new model is young and vibrant and enticing and a massive improvement in the style stakes on the outgoing model.

I enjoyed my short time in it and look forward to properly putting it through its paces in the new year.

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class officially arrives in Ireland next month, with prices starting from €26,435 for the entry level manual petrol model. Prices for the entry level diesel manual model start from €28,550, with extras on the automatic car I was driving bringing the price up to €32,233.

Visit the Mercedes-Benz Ireland website or its Facebook page for further details.