Mercedes-Benz A-Class: Design Evolution

The A-Class has been around in the Mercedes-Benz portfolio for a while – since 1997 to be precise. Of course, it had its fair share of fame and infamy, but essentially was a one-box supermini bearing the three-pointed star logo on its grille that appealed to a mainly older target audience. While sales numbers were decent through all these years of its existence there existed an inherent conflict in its very being. The car was styled for a more mature audience, but a typical target customer for a hatchback in today’s day and age is younger.

When it came time to revamp the A-Class then, it was clear that just an evolution of the current car wouldn’t do – the new one had to be completely rethought, restyled and relaunched as a step ahead. This had to be much more than just an A-Class, it had to be everything good about Mercedes-Benz scaled to fit in hatchback dimensions. It had to be a car that would set the youth’s pulse racing with not just its sporty lines, but also its perky powerplants. It had to be small enough to make sense, but yet grand enough to make people want to aspire to own it. It certainly wasn’t an easy task but when you’ve been making automobiles for over 100 years, you definitely aren’t going to back down – and thank the Almighty that Mercedes didn’t back down!

That’s not all though, because this car had to be inline with current products from the three-pointed star and a continuation of the company’s family design theme. It had to reflect years of automotive history and at the same time be as luxurious as can be. What followed was a collaborative effort from Mercedes’ design studios across the globe, each presenting what their version of the new A-Class should be. Meetings and discussions later, the new A-Class was arrived at and the first concept sketches of what the car will look like began to take shape. From then on it was a tedious process of refining the details to culminate in the Concept A-Class that was showed off in 2011 and then further worked upon to finally unveil the production A-Class in 2012 to an awe-struck worldwide audience. The reception to the new hatch from Mercedes was overwhelming – it had achieved what Mercedes had set out to achieve. Everyone instantly wanted one!

Design theme: Of the SLS and aircraft wings.

Ever since Mercedes revealed the successor to the legendary 300SL Gullwing in the form of the mighty SLS AMG, the three-pointed star earned itself a new design direction for future models. Characterised by what Stuttgart likes to call as a soft nose, the front-end treatment on the SLS AMG forms the basis of the design on the A-Class as well. But the biggest feature on the new A-Class that sets it apart from the older car is the ditching of the single-box design in favour of a two-box structure.

The ideology behind the move was simple – the car had to appeal to a younger customer base and the only way to do that is to make a car look futuristic and sporty. That is something that just can’t be achieved with a one-box structure and so the move to a two-box design was the only way to go. This kind of design theme also comes with other advantages – occupants can be seated lower and the entire stance of the car can be made to look like it’s a cat ready to pounce, which is exactly what young minds want. The A-Class achieves this with its rather long hood that houses the various powerplant options available on sale. The soft nose blends well into two very distinct air dams – the subtler one meant for the lower spec A180 models while the more aggressive design with its wider slats attributes itself to the bigger engined variants.

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The grille itself continues a rather butch theme with its two horizontal slats with the three-pointed star logi in the middle and flanked by rather big-ish headlamps that also incorporate the day time running lights in them. The long hood flows well into the A pillar and the side profile is characterised by sharp lines – one along the waist gradually dropping towards the rear and the other starting off at the front sills and rising sharply beyond the B pillar. The high rear windscreen further helps amplify the A-Class’ sporty demeanour as does the roofline that keeps the car’s visual balance more or less flat. But this sporty deign theme isn’t just about the exterior – it extends well into the interiors as well where the dash itself is inspired by the cross section of an aircraft wing.

One quick look at the concept sketches and the finished product are enough to convince you that the A-Class hasn’t really seen too much metamorphosis while transforming from clay model to assembly line. Then there is also the inclusion of a varied set of materials for not just the upholstery, but also to wrap the entire dashboard in. Smart engineering and creative thinking team up to provide simple, yet effective customization innovations all round the interiors such as the modular air con vents that can change appearance by simply replacing the garnish ring that surrounds them. All of these options come together to form countless variations in the look and feel of the A-Class’ interiors depending on how much a customer is willing to spend. This not only gives the hatch a never-before feeling of being bespoked but also enables owners to add their preferred levels of luxury and bling to what is essentially a compact family car. While the Mercedes A-Class is superbly designed and appointed, it’s not just a styling exercise – it culminates in a car that is superbly rewarding to drive as well.

On road: Mild-mannered beast!

Step into the A-Class and the first thing that hits you is that this, despite being a hatchback is in every way a Mercedes as any other bigger sedan such as the E-Class or even the S-Class. The biggest contributor to that feeling is the uniformity in terms of the dash layout and the familiarity of the buttons that we have now come to associate with every car bearing the three-pointed star logo. Then there’s the plushness of the seats all round the cabin and the wrapped dashboard that simply adds to the luxury. The steering wheel is chunky and nice to hold giving the impression of complete control. The only parts that seem a little out of place if you’re not used to having a Mercedes around are the steering-stalk-mounted gearshift lever and the excessive arrays of buttons on the entertainment system in the centre console.

We had the opportunity to drive three variants of the A-Class over about 350km recently and we just barely missed out on driving the one that will finally make it to India. While we did get our hands on the A180 CDI, it was mated to a six-speed manual gearbox as opposed to the 7G-DCT auto’box that Indian customers will get. The 1.8 litre oil burner under the hood is capable of around 110PS and 250Nm, which makes the A180 CDI a great mix between power and efficiency – one of the biggest reasons why this is the variant that will make it to our showrooms. Even with the manual gearbox, the A180 seemed adequately powered for a daily hatchback that you wouldn’t mind living in all day if need be and the 7-speed automatic version will only make things even better.

If the 1.8 litre mill isn’t good enough for you and if you are in Europe, you have the option of getting yourself the A220 CDI that puts down 170PS from its 2.2 litre engine. That engine will also make 350Nm of torque and that, coupled with the near-1500kg weight, makes for some blistering times using diesel for propulsion. And if that isn’t enough either, you can always go on and get yourself the fabulous A250 petrol-powered A-Class. The 2-litre engine in this one is capable of 211PS and 350Nm and when all those figures get transferred to the road through the 7G-DCT, it simply spells madness.

The A-Class is dynamically as sound as it is visually stunning and ride quality on some of Germany’s broken-up backroads was pretty good – enough to convince us that this car can handle Indian conditions just as well. There is also tons of space all around the A-Class – not just for the passengers but for their luggage as well. The boot is big and loading height isn’t too high either. Ingress and egress from the A-Class is a breeze and the comfort for the occupants can only be matched by the dynamic pleasure for the driver.

There’s no doubting that the youth have taken to the Mercedes A-Class just as its makers intended them to. Mercedes-Benz will be hoping for the same reaction when the A-Class launches by the end of May on Indian shores and going by what we figure, they A-Class should start at a price tag of under Rs 20 lakh, ex-showroom of course. At that price and with the kind of class that the A offers, it sure should sell like hot cakes. But what’s even more extraordinary is that it will open up a completely new segment of buyers to the world of the three-pointed star. After all, if luxury comes at an affordable price, wouldn’t you want to get your hands on the stunningly beautiful Mercedes hatchback rather than a bigger sedan that will be less efficient and also tougher to live with in a crowded city?

Related Mercedes-Benz A-Class stories: 

Mercedes-Benz A-Class Price

Mercedes-Benz A-Class launched at Rs 21.93 lakh 

Mercedes-Benz A-Class : Road Test

Mercedes-Benz A-Class : A look inside

Mercedes-Benz A-Class launching on 30th May

Mercedes-Benz A-Class, A 180 CDI (Exteriors) : In Pictures! 

Mercedes-Benz A-Class (Interiors) : In Pictures!

Mercedes-Benz A-Class (Design Evolution) : In Pictures!