Mercedes-Benz A 250e 2020 Review

The showroom sticker for the Mercedes-Benz A 250e is just the start of the potential savings for the greenest member of the new A-Class family.

The model is priced from $63,400 plus on-road costs as a hatchback and $66,000 plus ORCs as a sedan, but running fully electric for weekday commuting is a genuine probability and means visits to the petrol pumps will be rare and usually only needed for longer runs into the country.

Potential buyers of the new e-car are also likely to have access to solar power, and perhaps even a home battery, to keep their energy costs very low.

The price difference between the A 250e and equivalent petrol-powered variants is significant. With a fresh price hike, the regular A 250 front-drive hatch now starts at $51,500 plus ORCs, while the 4MATIC all-wheel drive version is priced from $57,800. The equivalent sedan-bodied A250s are now set at $53,500 (FWD) and $59,700 (AWD)

But the extra spend for the PHEV brings a lot of extra technology.

It’s still a front-wheel drive car but has the latest eight-speed DSG gearbox and standard equipment runs from 18-inch alloys and a fully-digital widescreen dashboard to wireless charging and LED headlights.

Something new is ‘pre-entry climate control’, which means the cabin can be pre-cooled or heated using a smartphone.

The high-grade safety suite is as expected from Mercedes, with everything from nine airbags and Pre-Safe crash anticipation to traffic sign recognition and adaptive high beams.

The Mercedes-Benz A 250e sits in the middle of the electrification rollout by the German brand, following the EQ Boost mild-hybrid system that uses a 48-volt battery with a starter-generator and ahead of the fully-electric EQC range.

“It’s part of our overall EQ strategy. They are all under the same technology umbrella. All of them are being developed simultaneously and being used where they are most appropriate,” says Mercedes-Benz Australia spokesman Ryan Lewis. “It’s the fourth of the plug-in generation hybrids in Australia. We also have the C 300e, E 300e and GLC 300e.”

The heart of the system is an electric motor tucked inside the transmission and a 15.6kWh lithium-ion battery below the back seat, which means all sorts of minor changes.

The exhaust now exits from the centre of the car instead of going all the way to the tail, the fuel tank is trimmed to 35 litres, and there are twin filler caps on the rear flanks – driver’s side for electric, passenger side for petrol.

Like all hybrids, the operation of the system is complex as the car can run in parallel, series and pure-electric modes. The default setting is electric and the 1.3-litre combustion engine can provide charging, a performance boost or pure petrol power.

The infotainment system takes on a new dimension for monitoring the operation of the hybrid package, providing hours of distraction and enjoyment. It also contributes to one of the most information-dense dashboards on the road today, although thankfully the head-up display means the driver only has to concentrate on the basics.

Outside the car, the basic charge time is eight hours. Taking advantage of Benz’s home wallbox ($1250), the figure halves to four hours, and the DC Charging Package ($1490) cuts it all the way to 25 minutes to 80 per cent of battery capacity.

“A lot of people can get to grips with the car just using a normal home plug. It’s really up to the customer to determine how much of the range they are going to use, and whether they want to use a wallbox,” Lewis says.

The headline number for the Mercedes-Benz A 250e is 73 kilometres. That’s the car’s electric-only range, as measured to the Australian Design Rule standard.

But the car has far more potential and will easily cover 350km, even with a tiny tank to fuel the combustion engine, if you have a chance for regenerative charging in rolling countryside.

Digging into the e-mobile reveals far more numbers than necessary, apart from technophobes and dinner-party braggers, although the car is 150kg heavier than a combustion-only A 250, the tailpipe emissions are officially 34 grams of CO2 per kilometre and the officially-rated fuel economy is 1.6 litres per 100 kilometres.

The total output from the powertrain package is 160kW with 450Nm of torque, which means it is much more than a miserly econo-wagon.

“This is not set up to be an AMG at all, but it is a pokey little thing,” says Lewis.

The many modes of the system, from ‘electric’ through to ‘boost’, can be controlled entirely by the car or the driver can get involved at several levels.

Pushing the accelerator beyond the ‘kick-down’ point fires the combustion engine, the flappy paddles for the gearshift can be used for regenerative braking, and it’s possible to go one-pedal driving, to use regen for slowing, or ride the brakes on a downhill run to give the battery a top-up.

The packaging of the powertrain is almost totally seamless, apart from a slight hit to the luggage space which drops by 50 litres.

The Mercedes-Benz A250 e is a hybrid to genuinely like. And enjoy. It’s as easy to drive as a regular A-Class, not giving up anything and without worrying about the next charge point.

And it’s not like the hulking SUV elephants that are hiding behind a green PHEV sign.

The priority for the A 250e is electric-only operation in European cities where combustion engines will soon be super-taxed and then banned, but it can also be a worthwhile contributor to the greening of motoring in Australia.

It’s also a good thing to drive as an electric car around the city and suburbs of Sydney, before venturing across the Blue Mountains – as I did on the Bathurst 1000 weekend – with the combustion engine as a range-extender.

In my case, with help from some hilly roads for regen, I was able to better the claimed electric-only range. Not by much, but at least it’s not just a dream drive.

The car is extremely quiet as an electric, no surprise, but genuinely punching if you get all-in with the accelerator pedal on the floor.

It’s easy to get mesmerised, and confused, by the digital displays of modes and charging operations and all the rest. It’s a car that definitely requires a pre-flight briefing and proper clearance before take-off.

But, on the go, I’m only worried about the speedo reading in the head-up display and the traffic around me.

The auto-dipping and shaping of the LED headlight beams is not as refined as a Volkswagen, but that’s a small gripe.

The car rides the same as a combustion A 250, is just as easy to park and just as comfortable and well equipped, and there is only a small e badge on the boot as a giveaway.

When I dive into the fancy stuff, watching the various modes and switching between them – electric, drive+charge and my favourite, coasting – a boring two-hour drive becomes an informative and rewarding trip.

My time with the Mercedes-Benz A 250e hatch was surprisingly enjoyable – and relevant.

After driving a wide range of hybrids over the years, it’s good to be behind the wheel of a properly city-focused electric car with decent range that can also do combustion-powered touring.

There are no noticeable compromises from the ’normal’ A-Class cars, apart from the price.

It’s still a refined and classy compact car, loaded with gadgets and safety stuff, with few of the ‘buts’ of other electric contenders. And it’s not shouting about the PHEV thing.

The e-mobile can also be surprisingly swift and puts the challenge and, for me, extra enjoyment back into driving.

Now, if I could just find a single sentence that sums up the whole PHEV package and driving experience for my friends…

How much does the 2020 Mercedes-Benz A 250e hatch cost?
Price: $63,400 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 1.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol/electric motor
Output: 160kW/450Nm (combined)
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 1.6L/100km (ADR combined)
CO2: 34g/km (ADR combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2018)