Merc1

I know a lot of the Benz faithful don't care much for the A-Class (I'm one of them), but this thing is a hot seller. The little thing is kinda cute, but I'm not sure that a Mercedes is supposed to be "cute".

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Maserati

good news .. well each company should have a hot seller .. what is left is to correct Smart situation and bring sales up again ..

SDNR

Yes Merc1............but you know my point of veiw on the A class. I just find it completely ironic that Daimler-Chrysler were so concerned about the image of a Mercedes ultra-limousine, that they decided to call it a Maybach and yet thought nothing of putting their badge on such a nasty little entry-level car that their Japanese, French, and German competitors consistently out-perform.

Mr. Mercedes

lol, ok again I don't think the A-class is nasty, but I very much agree with the sentiment of your post. A car such as the A-class could never really be a true Benz. It's too compromised on too many fronts and Mercedes simply can't do what they do best at that price point. As I've said before, the B should have been the A, and the B-class should have been a true A3/1-series competitor. Instead were left with two VERY AVERAGE odd people mover/ tourer things that really don’t know where they belong and who they're competing against, and are subsequently falling flat on their face, not in terms of sales, but in terms of the competition. For the sake of the brand, a Mercedes simply cannot be mediocre. It must be near the top, if not the class benchmark.

cawimmer430

I used to hate the A-Class, W168 and even the W169. But after driving the W169, I was blown away. For a FWD car, it handled amazingly well and the steering feel was very BMWish: solid and direct and responsive. Now, I have to confess that the A-Class is one of my favorite Mercedes-Benzes. If I was in the market for one, I'd select either an A180 CDI 5-speed or A200 CDI 6-speed.

They're so fun to drive and handle like a sports car. For a subcompact car like the A-Class, let me say that there was very little body roll in corners. Amazing. I'd honestly label this car as the 3rd most sportiest Benz after the SLK and revised C-Class. Here's my recent A-Class testdrive: A170. Loved it.

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Mr. Mercedes

Sadly, the driving experience just doesnt translate over to Australian roads. In a small car comparison the A-class was absolutely trashed by every vehicle except the toyota corolla. The bumps caused the suspension to bottom out frequently and sometimes the rear even became airbourne on the rebound. While the interior is HUGE leaps ahead of the old car, its now only class competitive, nothing more. The 1.7 is also thoroughly outclassed by other similar displacement engines. I have no idea why the engine is SO WEAK in term of output. All in all not very high praise. And this car is carrying a 10 thousand dollar premium over the next most expensive competitor.

cawimmer430

I know that Mercedes plays around with suspension tweaking for different markets, could be that they did that for Australia. US-spec Benzes tend to get softer suspensions and vaguer steerings. As for the 1.7-l engine, I found it to be quite agile in the A-Class, a little torqueless tha faster you drove but overall, adequate. In the B-Class (B170), the 1.7-l engine is totally underpowered IMO.

Imhotep Evil

Well the previous generation was also a succes, despite the gremlins it toped the 200 000 units per year benchmarck.

So no suprise here.

Merc1

It took you eight months to come up with that? You're not adding anything to the thread here.

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The Artist

well i hated the A class to..and then i drove the new one..
its freakin gr8..the interior feels good,,, it drives good,, it looks good imho..
no wonder it sells..plus it has a low price for the Star..
and ppl love the STAR