2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class First Drive: Big Tech In A Small Package [Video Review]
This week, Mercedes-Benz brought us out to Seattle, Washington to drive the U.S.-market 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class Sedan. I spent two days driving around the Pacific Northwest in a mix of city, highway, and backroad situations. The A-Class joins the CLS coupe with Mercedes鈥?new design language. Mercedes calls it 鈥楽ensual Purity鈥? Mercedes spent their time in the design room actually removing lines from the car. The designers told us this was their mentality, 鈥渋f we can remove a line and still like the design, we should remove another line鈥? What they ended up with was a simple, but handsome looking car. The belt line is the most prominent body line that starts by the shark-nosed front end, and makes its way all the way to the back. Styling is always subjective, but I think the A-Class is stylish, simple, but well designed. The U.S. version of the 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class sedan comes with just one engine choice, for now.
We get a 2.0-liter turbocharged four cylinder that makes 188 horsepower and 220 lb-ft of torque. You have a choice of front-wheel drive or the optional 4MATIC all-wheel drive system, though both come with a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. The all-wheel drive version will hit 60 miles per hour in 7.0 seconds at sea-level, while the front-wheel drive model is slightly slower. Look, the 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class isn鈥檛 a rocket ship. That said, it had plenty of power to get out of its own way, or to pass on the highway. In Europe, the AMG A45 variant makes almost 400 horsepower. Mercedes wouldn鈥檛 confirm an AMG version of the A-Class sedan, but I suspect one will be making its way here very soon. We did catch an A-Class hatchback testing in Colorado back in July. The 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class actually has three different suspensions available. There is the comfort setup, the lowered comfort and an adaptive damping system.
The only difference between comfort and lowered comfort is about 15mm of ride height. Mercedes claims that the ride is no stiffer in the lowered car. Handling was actually quite good. The aforementioned tires provided excellent grip and body-roll was minimal. I found myself giggling frequently when faced with any slight bend in the pavement. On top of it all, I was very impressed with the steering feel coming from this electric power-assisted unit. Compared to many similar units in the industry, road feel was very positive, which further enhanced the driving experience. The 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class is a compact sedan, and it feels pretty compact on the inside. The front seats have plenty of space, but the back seat felt cramped for my 6鈥?鈥?self. Really cramped. Mercedes haven鈥檛 told us how big the trunk is by volume, but the trunk felt spacious enough. Utility would be even better if we could get the hatchback version that they get in Europe. However, Americans aren鈥檛 buying hatchbacks so Mercedes doesn鈥檛 want to sell them here.
The 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class is packed to the gills with technology. The crowning jewel of which has to be the new infotainment system, MBUX. Mercedes-Benz User Experience, as the acronym spells out, made its North American debut in the Sprinter Van, though the A-Class is the first car to receive the new infotainment system. In fitting the MBUX infotainment system, Mercedes has gone from one of my least favorite infotainment systems to one of the best, at least on first impression. The 10-inch touchscreen display has a high resolution, and is remarkably intuitive. I felt like I knew exactly how to access everything I wanted within 20 minutes of playing around. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration make it even more user-friendly. The best part of MBUX is the optional Augmented Navigation system. This uses a front-facing camera mounted in the mirror housing, in conjunction with augmented reality overlays that appear on the infotainment screen. The directions appear to be floating in the street, exactly where your turn is and it works really well.
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