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Road test: The new Mercedes GLA
The second generation of the GLA seeks to create for itself a distinct class from the A-Class on which it is based.
He takes what is good in her, improves what was missing in him and comes up with all the right answers, almost
Tags
Mercedes
Crossover
Colmobil
prestige
Gippon
Keenan Cohen
Friday, 04 September 2020, 11:20
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Short, tall and sturdier looking, all that was missing from the previous generation
From the point of view of premium manufacturers, entry-level cars have never been the ones that made sense to pour piles of money on.
Bottom line they were supposed to be an accessible entrance ticket that would get younger customers to enter the showrooms and hopefully continue to grow at home.
But then the trend changed, and within the world of small tools from manufacturers like Volvo, BMW, Audi and even Mercedes, small crossovers began to climb in sales numbers.
And with the climb in sales also comes the need to provide a better answer to the competition and attract buyers to your home.
So now there is a dilemma, how do you profit from a model without investing too much in it and not embarrassing the symbol it carries?
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19-inch rims do not compromise too much on comfort and noise insulation
The trick in the platform
The solution was shared platforms, it dramatically lowers development costs and it is quite easy to put a variety of vehicles on them.
BMW does it at home with its two brands Mini and BMW, Audi also does it at home and mixes popular and luxury brands on the same floor.
Mercedes has gone half a step, keeping the platform with it, but mixing with a popular manufacturer like Renault for engine development.
The common platform in Mercedes is the one that is also below the A-Class, also the previous generation of the GLA was built on the floor of the previous A-Class, but in this generation Mercedes have learned the lesson and move away from visual identity between the two.
Fake exhaust ports, whoever thinks this is a good idea will stand up and raise their hand please
The cabin, certainly worthy of being one of Mercedes, is two and three notches above the competition.
From the overall design with the nice air vents and the interior lighting, to the material combinations.
But it's clear that the show is stolen by the display of the virtual dashboard and multimedia system on Mercedes' MBUX interface - this message to customers, that "what you see here - is also in a tool that costs twice as much" is not something that can be ignored.
Spacious, very handsome and mostly has a much more luxurious sense of luxury than its competitors
Despite its richness human engineering excels that it's another Mercedes crack.
The systems can be controlled using the touch screen, touchpad on the console, two small touchpads on the steering wheel and even voice activation for some of the functions.
The amount of cells is sufficient, with a division between open and closed.
In terms of the amount of instrumentation at the "premium" finish level that is the intermediate level on the GLA scale there is not much to add.
Leather upholstery, panoramic sunroof, reverse camera, electric seat direction, Apple and Android connectivity, electric trunk opening, LED lighting, full safety systems and more.
Most of the upholstery materials in places where your hands are supposed to wander are high quality and pleasant to the touch, those below the midline of the cabin are already simple plastics, because let's remember, this is the company's entry model.
3 cm addition to the wheelbase arranges an excellent space, but 300,000 shekels and there are no air vents?
The front seats are very comfortable and have excellent back support, although not enough for my taste on its sides.
Spacing is good, except for long-legged drivers or those sitting close then the right knee meets the console.
The wheelbase, which is 3 cm longer, makes more room for the rear seat, even with the panoramic roof there is room in all directions for two older passengers, but this is it. There are no air conditioning ports in the back, in the back of the console there is a mobile phone, a small compartment C. In the trunk 435 liters, enough for modest family use, there are no amazing flashes, but there is an interesting solution of a double-sided floor made of rubber that is easy to clean and can be turned if you load shoes after a day of riding or the half house you had to take to the beach.
Useful trunk with a floor that can be turned to the other side with a rubber bottom
In the city and on the mountain
Under the hood of the 200 version being tested, there is the 1.33-liter, four-cylinder turbocharged engine shared by Mercedes-Renault-Nissan.
Here it produces 163 hp at 5,500 rpm and 25.5 kg at 1,620 rpm.
The paddle is front and the dual-clutch gearbox with 7 gears.
The engine itself is not very impressive in terms of power and performance, a total round unit and not conspicuous in any way.
Ride with her in administrative driving and there will be no problem, go around with her on the ascent - and you will begging for another 20 horses.
The road behavior is very good for a vehicle of its kind to which I come with mostly low expectations.
From turn to turn the confidence goes up to get in with him fast, he is lighter than his competitors and reacts accordingly, he is not really excited about driver mistakes like braking or leaving the throttle at the height of the turn.
The engine limits it long before the chassis, shock absorbers, multi-link suspension at the rear (A-class voltage beam) or tires are really challenged.
It will be very interesting to sample it with the more powerful engine and later also in AMG versions.
He is not afraid of winding roads, the engine is the weak link
Up to three-report speed the noise levels are really impressive.
This is not a complete isolation, but impressive.
If the road is less quality than the one the engineers aimed for, you will hear the tire noise penetrating inwards and if you continue to accelerate, wind noise from the front beams joins.
The ride comfort is very good, both on highways and in the city.
This is despite the 19-inch rims, in my estimation those in the AMG LINE finish level with a 20-inch diameter and a low tire cut will no longer exhibit the same comfort.
The disadvantage it has in the city is due to the thick front beams that take up a lot of visual space and also the unpleasant operation of the gearbox in slow gliding.
As is the case with slim turbocharged engines, fuel consumption varies greatly depending on the nature of use.
On the combined test days it finished with an average of 12.3 km per liter, a very reasonable fuel consumption for a car of its kind under test conditions.
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From this level of finish you get the full appearance of the MBUX system
How much does a symbol cost?
At the heart of the consumer is the GLA facing three competitors BMW X1, Audi Q3 and also Volvo XC40.
In its base version, an exclusive that will probably be the most popular in this generation as well, at 289,000 shekels it is tens of thousands of shekels more expensive than these, but it should be said fairly - even though it lacks things like keyless opening, electric trunk door and Apple and Android connectivity - Equipped better than the two Germans by a large margin and this joins the cabin and better overall quality.
This price is due to the fact that Mercedes is moving away from the "starting from ..." games that make you encounter embarrassing and poor levels of finish among competitors, especially in safety systems.
At the premium finish level, it does not lack equipment and the price accordingly - NIS 315,000, but there it is already inferior to the competitors that are already offered at these prices at the higher power levels.
Bottom line, it's true that his previous generation started at NIS 250,000, but it was much less good and well equipped, and the current one has definitely improved in everything that matters - from the quality, comfort, equipment, behavior, safety, only the price had more room for a small "push" .
The engine in this version, 1.33 liters and 163 hp is small in some numbers about the vehicle and its capabilities
The most advanced is the most lucrative
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On the technical side: Mercedes GLA200 "Premium"
Engine, propulsion:
petrol, turbo, 4 cylinders, front
volume:
1,332 cc
Power / rpm (5 hp):
5,500 / 163
torque / rpm (kg):
1,620 / 25.5
Transmission:
automatic , Dual-clutch, 7-speed
Dimensions:
Length (cm):
441
Width (cm):
184
Height (cm):
161
Wheelbase (cm):
273
Trunk (liters):
435
Performance:
Acceleration 0-100:
8.7 seconds
Maximum speed:
210 km / h
Competitors:
BMW X1, Audi 1, Audi Q3, Volvo XC40
Price:
NIS
315,000
(test), NIS
289,000
(base)
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