In 2013 Mercedes-Benz released a heightened, roughed-up version of the A-Class. The first GLA. And they could get away with a lot of things,
because there were some crossovers available back then, but they weren't incredibly hot or anything. But the tables have turned.
Today, you have to do everything right. And this is Mercedes' attempt at everything right. The entirely new GLA, with a whole new own design.
If you can't see the difference immediately, try putting it next to a previous generation GLA.
In the garage of our office building, there was one, so I parked this next to that and you can easily tell it's a different car.
And the fun part is, despite the smaller roofline, the car is more spacious. It's higher, it's longer, it has a longer wheelbase, so that means...
in the back, there's much more space. And it was necessary. The headroom was and still is alright, despite the fact it has shrunk a little.
But it's the legroom that has improved massively. The boot has also been enlarged, it now fits 435 litres which is very decent for this class.
The big party is at the front though. It's a brand-new Mercedes so it has all kinds of nice functionalities. It even has the big screen that once started...
in the S-Class. And it's now available in the A-Class. You're able to configure it to your own preferences. Different moods and such.
The 'Underway'-mood, or the 'Lounge'-mood. You name it. You control those through an interface that I don't like very much.
There's a touchpad inbetween the seats and that's it. Touchpads are like skillgames, which are nice for when you're on the couch at home.
But in a car? That's not handy. Speaking of hands, I'm left-handed. That makes it even more difficult. And you could say that's not Mercedes' fault,
and you might be right, but almost 10% of the Dutch population is left-handed. So yeah. You can also use Voice Command,
but I don't like that either. It usually doesn't understand what I'm saying and it starts talking to me when I don't want it to.
I know better systems. When it does work however, it works well. It's a good system with a lot of possibilities.
The sound system is nice as well. I do miss the bass, but it does have a good pitch.
So, it's a very nice place to be. Seating position is good, lots of glass around you, clear vision. A very comfortable car.
If we take a look at the handling, we should consider it's a crossover but it really feels comfortable. Maybe too comfortable.
When you start steering heavily, it heaves quite a bit. Also, this is a pretty basic version. It has 17-inch wheels, but that's not big anymore nowadays.
Quite big tires as well, which can make it feel a little unstable at the front. It's still very comfortable though. Right now, I'm driving over a very nice...
straight road with good tarmac, and it's incredibly comfortable.
Right now, I'm driving the GLA 200 which is the entry level petrol engine. It's powered by a modest Renault 1.3-litre engine producing 163 horsepower...
and 250 Nm of torque. It's a decent engine which produces enough power, but you do notice it gets a little loud when you start asking more of the engine.
If you're just driving along, it's a very good engine.
It's connected to a 7-speed automatic gearbox which is very smooth, but when you accelerate from a standstill, it can be a bit shocky.
That can prove to be difficult when you're manoeuvering, like reversing or something. You have to wait a bit for something happens.
If you want more power, you can get a 2.0-litre as well. That's the GLA 250 and it'll produce 224 horsepower. Also, that comes with an additional...
gear and the possibility of four-wheel drive. The real power freaks will wait for the GLA 35 AMG 4Matic which is powered by the same 2.0-litre...
only with a signature from an AMG-worker. That will produce 306 horsepower.
If you want to save some money, just wait a bit. In a later stage, a plug-in hybrid GLA will be available as well.