Mercedes-Benz A-Class Review (2018-present)
Mercedes-Benz A-Class cars for sale
4.0
Expert review
Pros
Cutting-edge technology and infotainment
Plug-in hybrid promises low company car tax bills
AMG hot hatches combine class and excitement
Cons
A premium product inevitably comes with a premium price tag
In general, a Mercedes is not as reliable as a Lexus
Narrow boot opening compared with the best in class
The CarGurus verdict
The fourth generation of Mercedes A-Class is its best yet, a stylish and well-made hatchback (and saloon), with some cutting-edge technology and a genuinely luxurious interior. It’s maybe not the most involving car of its type to drive, even when compared to cheaper cars like the Ford Focus or Volkswagen Golf, but that won’t matter to a large majority of its buyers.
It’s comfortable and economical, and there’s enough variety in the range to ensure that there’s a model to suit any one of a wide range of needs, from those wanting a monstrous hot hatch to those who prefer a plug-in hybrid, and everyone in between. It’s well worth checking out.
What is the Mercedes A-Class?
The A-Class has evolved over its life, from its introduction as an unusual hatchback-cum-MPV back in the 1990s to the smart, svelte hatchback and saloon you can buy today in this fourth-generation model.
Mercedes has tried hard to ensure that A-Class customers get the full Merc treatment, so its style is heavily inspired by larger models, and the interior too has a focus on very modern style and high quality materials.
Inside, you get an interior that mirrored Mercedes’ more expensive models when it was first launched. Despite a mid-life facelift in 2023, the interior has now started to fall behind the design aesthetic of newer models in the Mercedes line-up, although the tablet-like setup of infotainment system screens still looks impressive.
Rivals for this car include the BMW 1 Series and Audi A3, as well as higher spec versions of the VW Golf. Like the A3, the A-Class is available in five-door hatchback and four-door saloon body styles.
How practical is it?
There’s decent space for four adults in the A-Class, although getting three people in the rear seats will be a bit of a squeeze, and there's slightly less rear headroom in the saloon than in the A-Class hatchback.
The 355-litre boot is smaller than the 380 litres offered by the Audi A3 or BMW 1 Series hatch. Note that the saloon gets a larger, 405-litre boot, although the load space is long rather than tall.
The driving position is quite high, which is worth noting if you’re a taller driver, but the seats are very comfortable, especially the sports seats in the sporty Mercedes-AMG models. Build and material quality feels excellent, and really makes you feel like you’re in a premium vehicle, which is important given the badge that sits on the grille.
What's it like to drive?
The A-Class's handling is decent, with a solid feel to the steering and poise and composure through the corners. It's not quite as satisfying to drive as a BMW 1 Series, but equally there's little to complain about. It's also a quiet and comfortable motorway cruiser, particularly if you avoid the larger wheel sizes that are offered.
When it comes to engines, it depends what age of A-Class you are considering. Before the car's 2023 facelift, the A-Class range was offered with a wider range of engines. The diesel line-up started with the 114bhp A180d and progressed through the A200d with 148bhp and the A220d with 187bhp. The two higher-powered diesels come with an eight-speed automatic gearbox, while the A180d has a six-speed manual or a seven-speed automatic.
Petrol choices initially included the A250 with a 2.0-litre unit producing 221bhp. This was later dropped, leaving the 1.3-litre turbocharged A180 or A200. The former puts out 134bhp, while the latter puts out 161bhp, and both can be specced with manual or automatic gearboxes. We’d avoid the entry-level A180, because although it’s capable of acceptable performance, it has to work very hard to deliver it, so it becomes noisy under even moderate acceleration. The A200 is a much better bet.
The plug-in hybrid A250e has a 1.3-litre petrol engine mated to an electric motor, which combined gives you 215bhp and around 45 miles of electric-only driving.
For hot hatch fans, the 302bhp A35 AMG version is stiffer and even more composed, and we’d recommend splashing out on the optional adaptive suspension which really keeps things stable through even hard cornering. Some might find it a little clinical when compared to, say, the Volkswagen Golf GTI, but it’s still a very capable and engaging drive. The A45 S, meanwhile, dials up the performance to 11 with a frankly ludicrous 415bhp from its 2.0-litre engine, and all-wheel drive for tarmac-shredding traction. It’s not cheap, though, and only comes in hatchback form.
Technology, equipment & infotainment
At launch, the trim levels started with the entry-level SE, which was only available in hatchback form and gave you 16-inch alloy wheels and synthetic leather and fabric upholstery.
The Sport model upgrades the wheels to 17-inches and gives you two-zone climate control. Sport Executive adds some extra features like automatic parking and a reversing camera and a larger 10.25-inch infotainment screen, while AMG Line gets things even sportier with a bodykit and 18-inch alloys.
AMG Line Executive adds the same features as Sport Executive adds to Sport. Then AMG Line Premium has keyless entry and start, ambient lighting and some clever augmented reality features on the satnav, while AMG Premium Plus has nifty LED headlights and a panoramic sunroof.
By the time the A-Class was facelifted in early 2023, SE and Sport trims had been dropped, meaning that the range now begins with Sport Executive trim, and importantly for most buyers, all models come with the larger touchscreen as standard.
Go for a higher-spec model (or any post-2023 facelift A-Class), and the dashboard is dominated by a wide tablet-like set of screens. The right-hand screen is a replacement for traditional analogue instruments and shows you driving information. The left-hand infotainment display is a touchscreen, although you can also control menus using a centre console-mounted touchpad, or through thumbpads on the steering wheel. The system – called MBUX – is slick-looking and very detailed, which will mean you’ll need to spend a bit of time getting to know it, and setting it up to your preferences. While some of the graphics are a bit small, we love the system's quick responses, and it has one of the better voice recognition systems on the market.
Mercedes A-Class running costs
The A-Class is positioned as a premium product and, as such, will cost more to buy than, say, a Ford Focus or a Volkswagen Golf. But that also means it’ll hold on to its value better.
When it comes to fuel, the A250e plug-in hybrid could be very petrol-efficient if you have somewhere to plug it in and can make journeys mostly on electric power. For higher mileage drivers, however, the diesel models remain the ones to go for. The A180d has an official combined fuel economy of up to 62.8mpg, while the A200d can in theory return up to 57.7mpg. The A220d, meanwhile, will give you 55.4mpg.
In the petrol range, you’ll get up to 47.9mpg in the A180 manual, but there’s no fuel economy penalty in the A200, which will give you the same mileage. Both will see a small drop if you go for the automatic gearbox. Yet another reason why we think the A200 is the pick of the range.
Unsurprisingly, fuel economy drops considerably with the AMG models, which are both all-wheel drive and geared towards performance rather than saving fuel. The A35 will in theory give you up to 34.9mpg and the A45 S up to 31.4mpg, but expect considerably less than that if you drive the cars in the manner that AMG intended.
Mercedes offers fixed price service plans that can help with budgeting and cover roughly one service per year. The costs will vary depending on the mileage and how old the car is.
Mercedes A-Class reliability
The latest Mercedes A-Class had a mixed performance in the 2024 What Car? Reliability Survey. Out of the 26 models in the Family Car class, the hybrid A-Class came second, which was an excellent result, but the petrol model finished just below mid-table at 15th. That was an improvement on 2023, though, when the hybrid was 21st and the petrol 24th. The diesl A-Class didn't appear in the 2024 survey, likely because there are too few around.
Mind you, that still places it ahead of two of its key rivals, the latest VW Golf and Audi A3 Sportback, which fared even worse. For reference, the latest BMW 1 Series was fifth, while the previous generation of 1 Series came first in class.
In the same survey, Mercedes as a brand came 22nd out of the 31 brands included.
From new, Mercedes offers a three-year, unlimited mileage warranty on the A-Class, which is nothing special by today's standard. A Toyota might not have the same badge appeal, but the 10-year warranty it comes with when serviced at a Toyota dealer might go someway to making up for that.
- The current A-Class might seem like an entirely conventional (dare we even say generic) hatchback, that wasn't always the case. The original A-Class of 1997 was an entirely different kind of small car, with an innovative 'sandwich floor construction' that housed many of the car's major components in order to free up interior space. Check out our guide to Mercedes A-Class models over the years to find out more.
- The A250e plug-in hybrid promises, on paper at least, incredible fuel economy, but how much you get in the real world will depend how you use it. If you have somewhere to plug it in and keep the battery charged, and do mostly shorter journeys on purely electric power, then you can hardly use any petrol at all. But if you’re slogging up and down the motorway, or don’t plug it in to charge regularly, you’ll end up using the petrol engine to haul heavy electric equipment around and get a pretty poor mpg figure.
- The A-Class Saloon looks, at first glance, very similar to the Mercedes CLA, and in fact the two are mechanically closely related. But while the Saloon lacks the coupe-like styling of the CLA, it has more practicality, with better rear headroom and more boot space than the hatchback A-Class. That said, if you want maximum practicality AND the bonus of style as well, check out the CLA Shooting Brake estate. Although be prepared to pay more for it.
- If you want the best fuel economy: The A250e plug-in hybrid has an official fuel economy of up to 282mpg (WLTP), which is streets ahead of anything else in the range. But, how you drive it will depend how close you get to that figure. If a plug-in isn’t a realistic option for you, then an A180d will give you up to 62.8mpg.
- If you’re a company car driver: The A250e hybrid has an official CO2 emissions figure as low as 23g/km (WLTP), which puts it dozens of Benefit in Kind tax brackets below other models in the range. And for regular users, it’s exempt from Vehicle Excise Duty. If that’s not an option, the diesel models are compliant with the latest RDE2 emissions regulations, which means they avoid the 4% diesel BIK surcharge.
- If you want outright performance: The AMG A45 S is an absolute monster of a hot hatch, with 415bhp; power that rivals supercars from not that long ago. It’ll do the 0-62mph sprint in less than four seconds. For smiles and adrenaline in equal measure, this is the one to have.
- If you want still-excellent performance but for considerably less money: The AMG A35 isn’t too far away from the A45 S in terms of fun, and it’s a darn sight cheaper. With 302bhp it’s far from lethargic, and it’s clinical in the way it deals with corners.
