Mercedes-Benz A-Class 2018 Review

Mercedes-Benz claims the new A-Class can “learn its driver’s habits” within six weeks, thanks to advent of artificial intelligence.

The human brain’s emotional intelligence acts decidedly quicker, it seems. One minute barely passes at this week’s national launch of the Mercedes-Benz A 200 before a firm connection is realised. This is far from a humble hatch.

“Hi Mercedes, turn the seat warmers on please,” I utter from the car’s cockpit in chilly Melbourne, in the faint hope it will do as rehearsed in an earlier presentation. “Turning the seat heaters on,” chimes the response.

How thoughtful! The 2018 Mercedes-Benz A-Class is that sort of car; one capable of shifting the small luxury car segment into a different paradigm thanks to the advent of a new voice-driven interface, an S-Class level infotainment system and a hugely advanced safety suite.

The Mercedes-Benz A 200 is also a car fully worthy of wearing the three-pointed star on its nose, offering more a more refined and dynamic skillset than before.

On sale in Australia this month, the Mercedes-Benz A-Class range kicks off from $47,200 (plus on-road costs). It is initially available in a solitary A 200 specification, soon to be joined by the warmed-over A 250 (quarter four, 2018) and an entry-level A 180 (quarter one, 2019). There is no diesel option and no manual transmission available.

Our full A-Class pricing story has the rundown.

The Mercedes-Benz A 200’s newfound maturity is underpinned by its engine, a smaller displacement 1.3-litre turbo-petrol good for 120kW and 250Nm.

The new generation A-Class is longer (120mm), wider (16mm) and rides on a lengthened wheelbase (30mm) compared with its immediate predecessor, along with a boot that measures 29 litres larger, at 370 litres (no spare, up to 1200 litres with the split-folding rear seats down).

As such, there is more rear seat space than before, allowing the A-Class to passage four adults in relative comfort, and even pass as an occasional family car.

And unlike the vehicle before it, the fourth-generation Mercedes-Benz A-Class won’t have to face questions over its authenticity; such is the presentation of the cabin and the technology on board.

This is a decidedly more mature hatchback.

Take the aforementioned artificial intelligence caper. Mercedes-Benz’s new software interface, MBUX (short for Mercedes-Benz User Experience) debuts on the A-Class and uses the technology to monitor an owner’s habits. Say, for example, you call your significant other upon finishing work and settling into your commute at the same time each day, the baby Benz will recognise this and prompt the phone call without you pressing a button.

Safety is first-rate, thanks to Mercedes-first technologies including cross-wind assist (which mitigates powerful winds by making minute adjustments) and PRE-SAFE sound, which primes the cockpit ahead of an impending accident to reduce hearing damage to occupants. These features come on top of automated emergency braking and nine airbags, and from October will be complimented by active cruise control and other functions.

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class is backed by a three-year/100,000km warranty and servicing intervals spaced every 12 months/25,000km. Mercedes-Benz Australia is still finalising servicing costs.

The best indication of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class’ newfound maturity comes from sitting in a car with no options.

In the past, the cabin would have be devoid of myriad creature comforts, but for 2018, the standard equipment in the Mercedes-Benz A 200 hatchback is generous: Artico seat material (artificial leather), dual 10.25-inch display screens, said Artificial Intelligence, a nine-speaker audio system (with sub and amp), climate control, digital radio tuner, reversing camera and parking sensors.

Naturally, there are omissions. You have to purchase an optional package for rear air vents and some of the plastics below the eye line are quite scratchy. Niceties such as the 64-stage ambient lighting suite and aforementioned seat warmers are optional too, predictably. Expect a swag of AMG options too before long.

Nonetheless, we thumb the car’s starter button and amble off on a 300km road loop.

First thing’s first, the engine. Employing a Renault-sourced block with Mercedes ancillaries, the A 200’s small four thankfully relinquishes some of the low-rev coarseness of earlier A-Class engines, offering instead a smooth take-up and peak torque from a lowly 1620rpm.

A faint turbo whistle and uninspiring soundtrack (this is no 45 AMG!) still manage to permeate the cabin’s added sound dampening, in what is otherwise a smooth and enjoyable transition to around-town speeds.

The car’s seven-speed dual clutch transmission is likewise more refined than before, resisting any low-speed abruptness while shuffling drive to the front wheels.

Mercedes-Benz claims a fuel usage figure of 5.7L/100km from the A 200’s 1.3-litre; we saw 8.0L/100 in a mix of conditions.

With the Mercedes-Benz A 200 hatchback’s driving mode switched to Sport, the engine happily takes on added urgency. There’s a pleasing mid-range punch on offer and the gear changes are snappier, working in concert with steering wheel-mounted paddles.

The engine becomes breathless at the top end of the dial, but it hardly dilutes its backroad charm. Officially, the A 200 clips the 0-100km/h ticket in 8.2sec.

More pertinently, the Mercedes-Benz A-Class goes a long way in addressing its predecessor’s foibles. Road noise is better blocked out, aside from some roar on coarse-chip bitumen, and the cabin feels nicely put together save for a rattle in the dashboard of one test car.

Elsewhere, the baby ‘Benz feels much more proficient in the corners than before. It harnesses its 1375kg mass well, offering better body control (notwithstanding some body roll through corners) and nicely weighted steering.

The Mercedes-Benz A 200 still has an inherent front-drive feel to it, but is far from out of depth when thrown into a corner with urgency. At least that’s the impression on the car’s conventional torsion beam rear axle fitted standard.

Conversely, the optional multi-link rear suspension teamed with adaptive dampers feels more controlled, better harnessing body roll through corners – especially where mid-corner undulations are concerned.

However, the latter set-up tends to lose some of the standard car’s suppleness over bumps, with sharper undulations pronounced more readily through the car’s 18-inch wheels.

In any case, adaptive suspension on a modest hatch seems a moot point. It will likely make more sense on the upcoming A 250, and the AMG haus’ A 35 and A 45 hot(ter) hatches.

Improved driveline and refinement aside, what really gets the Mercedes-Benz A 200 across the line is the driving environment.

It is a decidedly smarter hatchback, and one capable of imbuing itself with a real sense of occasion. With more time behind the wheel, you soon grow to appreciate the value of the new technology, along with the way it has been integrated.

Take the car’s voice-driven functions. It soon becomes a game to see whether I can confuse the fang-dangled system. Ask it to call your nanny, and it will first ask for your nanny’s name so that it can store the information.

Turn the music up and try to outsmart it with voice commands and the system manages to eke out my voice every time, ocker accent and all.

The system raises inevitable questions: will personal security be breached? Will third-party software partners be privy to my personal habits? Stakeholders insist there is nothing untoward about it.

In all, the Mercedes-Benz A 200 version works well as a technological torch-bearer, something that cannot be said of predecessor products.

While earlier versions of the A-Class have struggled for broader acceptance, the fourth-generation model finds itself in truly unchartered territory.

2018 Mercedes-Benz A 200 pricing and specifications:
Price: $47,200 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 1.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 120kW/250Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 5.7L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 130g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP