Mercedes-Benz A170 Avantgarde

Mercedes-Benz's alternative hatchback grows from quirky to cool with new engines and smoother styling

What's New
Having learnt how the hard way, Mercedes could probably give you reams of information on what a high-end luxury carmaker should do in order to properly introduce a new model into the lower end of the market spectrum.

Roundly lambasted for a whole litany of niggles with its previous model, the German carmaker has gone to great lengths to make doubly sure that this won't be the case with its all-new second-generation A-Class.

The new A-Class is still based on the sandwich-floor chassis of its predecessor. The result of an intended fuel cell vehicle programme, the original A-Class's double floor passenger cell was meant to accommodate batteries and other fuel cell paraphernalia.

In the original production A-Class, and in its replacement, the sandwich floor has proven to be a boon in safety terms as it acts as a space for the engine to slide into in the event of a frontal collision.

This means that impact energy gets dissipated underneath the passenger cell, rather than into it. The fact that passengers sit higher up because of the double floor means that they also sit above typical impact zones.

That's where the similarities between the old and new cars end, though. For starters, the new A-Class is far more attractively styled. Rakish lines, an aggressive face and deeply sculpted sides echo details on Mercedes' new B- and R-Class cars, effectively erasing memories of the old car's innocuous styling.

Inside, high-quality materials abound, a far cry from the old car's plasticky interior. You'll also recognise bits from more expensive Mercedes models, which helps end the cheap, entry-level perceptions that plagued the last model.

How it Performs
A newly developed range of four-cylinder engines is also available, you can choose from the entry level 1.5-litre to the range topping 2.0-litre unit, The Highway tested the 116bhp 1.7-litre A 170.

All A-Class models come with a Continuously Variable Transmission that Mercedes calls Autotronic. It's very smooth and responsive, in fact almost indistinguishable from a conventional automatic gearbox and even comes with a manual override facility for keener drivers to exploit.

On the move, the A-Class shines, delivering levels of refinement that wouldn't be out of place in larger, more expensive cars. It's pretty competent in corners too, and the electric power steering is both nicely weighted and precise.

How it Stacks Up
If Mercedes' original brief for the A-Class was to provide a stepping stone to the marque for a whole new range of buyers, then to a certain extent, the first car can be seen as having been pretty successful. This time around, the new A-Class does the same without making buyers feel like they've had to slum it.

Technical Specifications

MODEL Mercedes-Benz A170 Avantgarde ENGINE Engine: 1,699cc 8v in-line four Max Power: 116bhp @ 5,500rpm Max Torque: 155Nm @ 3,500rpm TRANSMISSION 7-speed Contiously Variable Transmission (CVT) TOP SPEED 183 kmh 0-100km/h 11.5s