New Merc A Class takes the fight to VW Golf

[jamesatfish]

Looks like the entry level A Class will come in around $36K - so things are looking good for the A250 Sport to come in at a GTI competitive price too.

[jessv3]

Looks like the entry level A Class will come in around $36K - so things are looking good for the A250 Sport to come in at a GTI competitive price too.

The pricing is out for the a250 and it's 49k, it's annoying me that the jurno's are dubbing it the gti killer when they should be comparing it to the golf r which is the same price but has much more power and is awd. Personally at first glance the a250 seems way over priced, much like the BMW 1 series..

[DoggieHowser]

New Merc A Class takes the fight to VW Golf

49k is probably what the GTI would be like optioned up with what comes standard on the A250Sport

AMG rims
Reverse camera
Park Assist
Bixenon headlights

Not sure about the rest.

[alebonau]

The pricing is out for the a250 and it's 49k, it's annoying me that the jurno's are dubbing it the gti killer when they should be comparing it to the golf r which is the same price but has much more power and is awd. Personally at first glance the a250 seems way over priced, much like the BMW 1 series..

as doggie has mentioend the merc a250 is very highly specd. my mk6 gti optioned as it is costs pretty much same as the a250 so its a good comparison I think. option up the golf r to same as a250 I think its closer to $65k last time I checked !

things might change with the mk7 golf but at the present the merc a250 has the golf gti fairly and squarely in its sights !

ps been posting a bit of stuff re merc a250 like local reviews etc in the stiff competition thread,

http://www.vwwatercooled.com/forums/f197/stiff-competition-mk7-golf-gti-69132-26.html#post913062

links to the local reviews so far possibly better posted here,

[alebonau]

merc has released the a250 to the press for reviews and they have flooded in the last few days and all very enthusiastic about this new hot hatch contender ..

this review published in the herald sun gave it 4.5/5
http://www.carsguide...st_drive_review

excellent video review in drive
http://theage.drive....0208-2e20v.html

and a few other local aussie reviews of the a250
http://www.carsales....ch-review-34953

http://www.themotorr...oad-test-review

http://www.goauto.co...A257B0A00220268

http://www.caradvice...0-sport-review/

this thing defiitely going to be a hit

[walbjj]

ill be going to check it out tomorrow. from the pricing calculator, it would seem that the a250 sport compared to a similarly specced gti is actually about the same, like for like.
the a250 has 18" wheels, panoramic sunroof, faux leather, rvc, parking sensors, climate control, bixenons, same power, and for many, the badge.
i believe the a250 is definitely aimed at the gti, whereas the a45 will be aimed at the m135, and a fully specced s3. the golf r will also be in this class but of course it will be slightly cheaper, whether the few extra thousand dollars in savings is down purely to the badge, who knows.

[jessv3]

faux leather

So it doesnt have leather as standard.

For those who don't want options its still quite expensive, but I get that if you're the type of person who gets most of the mentioned options then the Merc A250 is something to think about..

[walbjj]

So it doesnt has leather as standard.

For those who don't want options its still quite expensive, but I get that if you're the type of person who gets most of the mentioned options then the Merc A250 is something to think about..

its called artico, a suede like leather material. kind of like alcantara. its actually pretty good. i prefer it over smooth leather. in fact, i prefer cloth to them both, but thats just me.
real leather is an option however.
as far as not wanting options, i guess they market the a250 as being the "top model" with most options included. being a benz and all.
i guess the horsepower race is always a factor, the a250 comes out to match the gti, then the mk7 gti comes out with more power, etc, etc.

[alebonau]

its called artico, a suede like leather material. kind of like alcantara. its actually pretty good. i prefer it over smooth leather. in fact, i prefer cloth to them both, but thats just me.
real leather is an option however.
as far as not wanting options, i guess they market the a250 as being the "top model" with most options included. being a benz and all.
i guess the horsepower race is always a factor, the a250 comes out to match the gti, then the mk7 gti comes out with more power, etc, etc.

the amg exclusive option for the a250 is only $2.5k ie cheaper than leather for golf gti and you get a lot more than just leather seats for that on the merc. but for me I actually like the two tone standard dinamica interior. its the same as what get on the c250 and looks fantastic. my wife is not a fan of leather at all so this a good option with the micro fibre inserts that looks like suede and why myself have just gone with the standard car and command option. really doesnt need much more

[jessv3]

i prefer it over smooth leather. in fact, i prefer cloth to them both, but thats just me.
real leather is an option however.

my wife is not a fan of leather at all so this a good option with the micro fibre inserts that looks like suede and why myself have just gone with the standard car and command option. really doesnt need much more

Its funny how different we all are, both me and partner cannot live without full leather, I made the mistake of buying my MKV GTI with tartan (cloth) and just missed leather everyday, so much that I purchased a leather interior from a wrecked MKV GTI and had the tartan seats, door trims and center console replaced with genuine leather

[alebonau]

wow quite a move !

hehe rather than that jackie tartan I went and got leather on my mk6 golf gti too. and man my wife has hated the car ever since for it ! so have yielded this time around. any time talk of a new car now first thing she asks....will it have leather seats ???

[jamesatfish]

The 'official' pics of the A45 AMG have emerged ahead of its launch in Geneva. Apparently 0-100 in 4.6sec with a price tag close to $80k here in Australia. No idea of the options list but if the other classes are an indication assume A250-spec with the AMG packs / wheels / leather as a starting point.

It seems AMG are going to target buyers of the S3 and BMW 1M rather than competing at the price point of the Golf R. I'm really looking forward to driving it to see if the AMG craziness survives in AWD form, but until then I'd still go with a Stage 3 Golf R for the same money.

[oshuyi]

here is a fantastic review
AUSmotive.com » Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG revealed

There's a guy suggesting it'll start from 69k, like the M135i, which is a bargain

[DoggieHowser]

Aesthetics aside, isn't the 135 a 6 pot engine? Seems odd to pit the 4 pot AMG against it.

[Candyman]

New Merc A Class takes the fight to VW Golf

Isn't that the whole point of turbocharging, allowing small capacity engines to compete with large capacity engines at the same time potentially providing less weight, more fuel economy ....