From breadbox to caviar
MERC’S A-CLASS: UGLY DUCKLING OF YESTERYEAR TURNS INTO LIGHTNING-FAST SWAN
In the late 1990s MercedesBenz’s first-time venture into the sub compact segment hit South African showrooms following huge anticipation. The new gateway into the German premium brand was an odd-looking machine by Mercedes’ design standard.
It looked like a bread bin, some would declare, an observation still fairly accurate some two decades on.
The entry-level model into the newly created A-Class had a A160 badge on the back and was powered by a 1.6-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine sending 75kW/150Nm to the front wheels.
It got 100km/h from a standstill in 11.6sec and had a top speed of 186km/h.
It’s hard to get your head around the fact this duckling, whose ugliness took a back seat to its slowness, is related to the daring line-up of swans Mercedes recently rolled out as its latest A-Class AMG offerings.
First up we had the CLA 45 S 4MATIC which our road test editor Mark Jones reviewed a couple of months back and next up is the A45 S 4MATIC Hatch.
Not only is this racing-styled pocket rocket about as far removed from that A160 as Cinderella was from her stepsisters in looks, but also under the bonnet.
According to Mercedes, the turbocharged 2.0-litre powerplant that does duty in the A 45 S is “the world’s most powerful turbocharged four-cylinder engine manufactured for series production”.
It punches out a stupefying 310kW of power and 500Nm of torque, which is sent to all four wheels via the AMG Speedshift DCT 8G dual clutch transmission.
Jones managed to clock an impressive 0-100km/h of 4.15sec during The Citizen’s road test at Gerotek – 0.07sec quicker than the CLA, powered by the same hardware.
The A45 S’ claimed top speed is 270km/h, something we definitely don’t doubt.
Maybe the only area where the A 45 S does take a back seat to the A160 is fuel consumption. We averaged around 14l/100km.
And what the A 45 S has in grunt, it matches in dashing good looks and just the right amount of noise to complete an excellent package.
Our test unit was clad in Sun Yellow and we thought it combined perfectly with the striking black elements.
At the front it features an AMG-specific radiator grille, wider front wings with flared wheel arches for the wider front axle plus a front apron featuring a “jetwing” design.
Down the sides there are wider AMG side skirts which give the car a low appearance, while distinctive features at the back include two pairs of round 90mm-diameter tailpipes with internal fluting and AMG lettering, plus a mean-looking carbon spoiler.
If an onlooker is not entirely convinced of the A 45 S’ intentions after inspecting the rest of the exterior, the spoiler will most certainly clinch the deal.
The blacked-out 19-inch light alloy wheels in five twin-spoke design, which rides on 245/35 R 19 rubberware and red brake callipers on our test unit was also beneficial to the overall design.
The sportiness continues on the inside, where the typical Mercedes layout gets an injection of bucket seats, metallic pedals, striking inserts of the exterior yellow colouring on the seat trim and steering wheels and the usual AMG lettering.
The amount of technology under the A 45 S’ skin is enough to fill an encyclopedia.
The highlights include the allwheel-drive system’s AMG torque control which controls power to specific wheels via two electronically controlled multidisc clutches; the standard AMG Dynamic Select includes six driving modes with the optional AMG Dynamic Plus adding a Drift mode and larger brakes; the standard Race Start launch control; the optional AMG Ride Control adaptive damping system offers three suspension control modes, while the standard AMG Track Pace gives feedback from 80 different data points to help improve lap times.
But no mean-looking fast car is complete without the sound, and the A 45 S comes standard with an exhaust flap which is automatically controlled depending, on the engine speed and load.
Should you be in the market for some louder engine noise inside the cabin, the optional AMG Real Performance Sound allows you to toggle between a more subtle Balanced, or more emotional Powerful engine notes.
While there are many little excellent sideshows that come with the A 45 S, you’ll ultimately be forking out a whopping R1 144 000 and likely a bit more for optional extras because of the drive, which is addictively superb. With all the technology on board, it’s needless to say that this car handles superbly well and is ridiculously easy to drive fast, not to mention seriously fun.
But you’ll have to consider the disadvantages of burdening this beast with rush hour traffic on a daily basis as it simply wasn’t built for that kind of torture.
The stiffer sporty suspension means that everyday impurities on our inner-city roads tend to make the ride a bit bumpy, while lots of little driving gimmicks are really not meant to be used on public roads.