Mercedes Compact Cars

Mercedes-Benz is busy updating its entire lineup. In the past few months, we caught facelift prototypes of pretty much all the models Mercedes is currently offering. The facelift A-Class was last caught testing back in December 2021, right before the winter holidays.

Now, the car is back, and it seems that Mercedes-Benz decided to test both the sedan and the hatchback at the same time, but not only this, prototypes were caught testing all over Europe, outside the factory’s own gates, at Nürburgring, and around the Arctic Circle.

We have to admit, the B-Class was never on our favorite Mercedes-Benz cars list. But, we admit that the third generation launched in 2019 came with a lot of updates that made it better than previous generations. It features a sportier interior, it is more upscale on the inside, and shares lots of technology with bigger sedans such as the E-Class and the S-Class.

And now, like pretty much every other car in the Mercedes-Benz line-up, the B-Class is about to receive a facelift, and today we have the first spy shots for you.

The Mercedes C-Class used to be the more budget-minded Mercedes, it was smaller, slower, and cheaper than the other Mercs but pretty much was able to uphold the Mercedes mantra. However, with the new generation hitting dealerships in the spring of 2022, Mercedes has just released the pricing and equipment details of the new base C300 C-Class, and it’s not quite as affordable as it used to be.

If you are in the market for a car, you will be surprised at the number of offerings you get in every single segment. Right from your Nissan Versa to a Ferrari F8 Tributo; there is competition in every segment. Whether you’re into classic cars, imported models or luxury items, you will be spoilt for choices. But, not every car you see is a cool one. There are a number of factors in determining whether a car is cool or not. There’s the exterior, the interior, the performance, and most importantly, it’s every individual’s opinion. You may or may not agree with some of the entries here, but here’s a look at the coolest cars of 2021.

Normally, when an automaker announces a defect on one of its vehicles, it immediately comes with a corresponding recall in order to fix the issue. That is not the case with Mercedes-Benz’s recent announcement involving 800,000 vehicles.

Even with the holidays closing in, carmakers are working hard on their upcoming or refreshed models. With this in mind, the facelift version of the Mercedes A-Class was spotted not long ago, testing in heavy snow. In October, we sawthe refreshed Mercedes AMG A35 testing, although not in snowy weather. Just like the A35, the regular A-Class features almost no camouflage, so almost all of the exterior is visible.

Sam from ‘Sam CarLegion’ uploaded a video of an Audi S3 taking on a Mercedes-AMG A35 on his YouTube channel. Both the cars feature a four-pot turbo engine and an all-wheel-drive system, but the A35 is slightly more powerful on paper. Do you think this will play a role in the end result, or will the S3 be able to take down the A35?

Just as Christmas is finally ready to descend on our weary but grateful souls, automakers left and right have been on a commercial rampage, touting their models in TVCs with the hope of getting some Youtube love. Mercedes-Benz isn’t immune to such strategies and the company proved as much by releasing the “Silent Night” commercial promoting the C350 e Plug-In Hybrid’s ability to balance its gas engine and electric motor.

The commercial starts off in a snowy landscape, capturing a downtrodden man pulling a recently cut-down Christmas tree. Before any of us can feel bad for the poor dude, the scene immediately shifts to the C 350 e Plug-In Hybrid speeding along and lugging its own tree, while rock music starts blaring. Care to guess where this is going? A few quality angles go by and the hybrid sedan passes a sign that says “Elektra”. Just as quickly, the music stops and the car goes eerily quiet as the lights go up in a surprisingly desolate Christmas village. This is Mercedes’ way of showcasing the aforementioned hybrid technology on the sedan, because as soon as the C 350 e Plug-In Hybrid exits the village, it roars back to life as it speeds past a rock band playing a rock version of “Silent Night”.

It’s not the best car commercial I’ve seen this holiday season, but for the purposes of getting its message across, I’d say that Mercedes accomplished that.

Note: This article was originally posted for Christmas 2015, but we stumbled across it in our archives and wanted to share it again. Enjoy!

When you think of 1980s Mercedes-Benz cars, you probably think of the bulletproof W124-generation or maybe its smaller brother, the 190E (W201), also known as the “Baby Benz”. But what you probably didn’t know is that, in the 1990s, a tuning company called Schulz took a Mercedes 190E and turned it into the first Mercedes hatchback, way before the A-Class and BMW 1 Series. It’s called the Mercedes 190E Stadt (City).

In 2012, the Mercedes A-Class finally became what it should have been from the beginning – a proper hatchback. With the W177-generation, the A-Class improved upon the traditional hatchback body type even more and now, a facelift is in the making. The latest spy footage suggests that the mildly hot AMG A35 is out testing and, given the amount of camouflage, the hot hatchback is almost ready for a debut.

Brabus builds are quite expensive at the onset, but there’s no denying that they’re fun. This time around, the aftermarket company has laid its hands on the Mercedes-AMG A45 S. The Brabus build of this hatch is more than just a remap. The car comes with part upgrades under the hood, new wheels and tires, an upgraded suspension system, and a few changes inside the cabin.

This is a Mercedes-AMG A45 S, or at least it used to be. Don’t be fooled by what you see here; It still looks like the AMG A45 S, but underneath that bright yellow paint, black decals, and gimmicky taxi lamp on the roof lies a different beast altogether - one that’s going to rip your heart out the second it gets the chance. This used to a Mercedes-AMG A45 S. Now it’s called the Posaidon A45 RS 525, and best be warned, “mercy” is not in this hot hatch’s vocabulary.

Mercedes-Benz has officially unveiled the new GLA, the A-Class-based crossover whose first-generation was a popular choice among buyers. The new Mercedes-Benz GLA, however, takes a lot after its bigger brothers design- and tech-wise, and that’s a very good thing.

The new GLA is 4.1 inches higher (now 63.4 inches) and 0.6 inches shorter (now 173.6 inches) than the model it replaces. This means you get more headroom, but Mercedes-Benz highlights that now there’s even more legroom in the rear (38.4 inches, compared to 33.9 inches in the previous model). The U.S.-bound 2021 GLA has an aerodynamic coefficient of 0.30, which will contribute to low levels of wind noise inside the cabin as well as a reduction in fuel consumption at higher speeds. What’s more, Mercedes is so confident that the GLA can pull its own weight off the beaten path that it offers the Off-Road Engineering Package as standard on the GLA 4Matic.

On the inside, the GLA receives the highly-acclaimed MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User Experience) infotainment setup. Rear headroom, however, takes a 0.3-inch plunge (now 38.1 inches instead of 38.4), but shoulder room is more generous (now 54.8 inches instead of 53.1 inches, a 1.7-inch increase). Trunk capacity is also better in the new GLA, measuring 15.4 cubic feet, a 0.5 cubic feet increase from the previous model’s 14.9 cubic feet rating.

The safety bundle is a hefty one, especially if you opt for the optional Driver Assistance Package. Here’s what you get:

Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC Active Steering Assist Active Speed Limit Assist with Traffic Sign Assist Evasive Steering Assist Active Lane Keeping Assist Active Brake Assist Pre-Safe PLUS

In the U.S., the non-AMG 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA can be had with a four-cylinder, 2.0-liter, turbocharged gasoline engine bolted to an eight-speed 8G-DCT automatic transmission. The powerplant makes 221 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and 258 pound-feet of torque between 1,620 rpm and 4,000 rpm. You can pick between the GLA 250 or the AWD GLA 250 4Matic. Performance-wise, Mercedes-Benz estimates that the 2021 GLA needs 8.6 seconds to reach 60 miles per hour from a standstill en route to a top speed of 130 miles per hour.

No words on pricing yet, but the 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA launches in the U.S. in the summer of 2020, so we’ll know more as its market debut closes in.

It’s been only a few months since the Mercedes-Benz GLB went into production and the German firm already launched a higher-performance model. Called the Mercedes-AMG GLB35, this crossover slots above the standard model and below the upcoming AMG GLB45. Like all 35-series models, it looks slightly sportier than the base version and brings extra power and performance to the table. Let’s find out more about that below.

Performance wagon fans from the U.S. have missed yet another enticing, fun new model, in the form of the new (second generation) Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting Brake. More specifically, one of the AMG-tuned performance versions, the Mercedes-AMG CLA 35. The sleek new CLA load lugger is quite a pretty car, with a striking interior, and this AMG version also adds proper poke and cornering ability into the mix.

Power comes from a 302 horsepower 2.0-liter four-cylinder that sends its power to all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. Naturally, since it is an AMG mode, it features styling tweaks and upgrades to set it apart from CLA Shooting Brake examples and the same goes for the interior. It’s a car that packs a proper punch, but it’s also practical, very stylish and very modern-feeling inside too. None of the modifications are over the top, though, because, as you might know, this is the lesser of the two AMG versions of the CLA wagon and the design needs to reflect this.

For most people, the more powerful Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 Shooting Brake will be too much, not necessarily in terms of looks, because that model doesn’t look significantly more extreme than the CLA 35, but in terms of mixing sporty looks and performance. The CLA 35 will undeniably be more popular primarily because it looks pretty much the same as the CLA 45 and most buyers won’t feel the need for the extra 100 horsepower that the more powerful version offers and the inherent extra performance.

Created in the Affalterbach pleasure house of AMG, the new 2020 Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 and the 2020 Mercedes-AMG A45 have become the most potent automobiles powered by four-cylinder engines. With a "one man - one engine" philosophy, each Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 and A45 come with a hand-made “M139” 2.0-liter engine capable of delivering 382 horsepower or 416 horsepower (in its S version). Furthermore, both cars feature an eight-speed, dual-clutch automatic transmission and a clever 4Matic+ all-wheel-drive system.

As far as performance goes, I can tell you that the two cars that stormed up the Goodwood Hill yesterday can achieve 62 mph in 3.9 seconds (A 45 S), 4.0 seconds (CLA 45 S and A 45), and 4.1 seconds (CLA 45). Furthermore, if you pay for the AMG Driver’s Package, you can unlock the maximum speed of 168 mph (instead of a standard 155 mph).

The 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLB is a small crossover that slots between the company’s smallest SUV offerings yet, the 2019 GLA and the 2019 GLC. The 2020 GLB is based on the new platform underpinning the latest A-Class and B-Class, and was previewed by the 2019 Concept GLB at the 2019 Shanghai Auto Show. The GLB stands out compared to the GLA and GLC due to a much boxier design. The crossover is often referred to as the baby G-Class, despite sharing underpinnings with the tiny A-Class and B-Class hatchbacks.

Rumors about a new compact SUV surfaced all the way back in 2012 when Mercedes unveiled the Ener-G-Force Concept at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Created by the company’s Advanced Design Studio in Carlsbad, California, it looked like a futuristic version of the G-Class and had a hydrogen-powered drivetrain. The rumors turned into certainty when a small but boxy crossover was spotted testing on public roads, but the hydrogen drivetrain was dropped in favor of conventional engines. With one in three Mercedes-Benz cars now an SUV, and one in four a compact model, Mercedes-Benz thinks that a compact SUV like the GLB "combines all the success factors of the company’s highest-volume segments." Let’s find out more about that, shall we?

Packed in a more compact body even compared to the Nissan Rogue, the new 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLB manages to find a unique point in space among SUVs, where no vehicles like it exist. It is a premium compact SUV - short, not enormous - that packs seven seats inside combined with the well-known Mercedes-Benz luxury and sophistication qualities. To put it clearly - BMW, Audi, Lexus, Infiniti, Cadillac, or Lincoln do not have a vehicle that could threaten the existence of the GLB.

Its sole competitors reside in the realm of cheap alternatives. If endowed with the right options, these compact SUVs can be seven-seaters - Land Rover Discovery Sport, Skoda Kodiaq, Nissan Rogue, and VW Tiguan Allspace.

The 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLB, however, is the only premium entry in this tight segment - this is how it is better than anyone else.

Mercedes not only invented the four-door coupe with the original CLS, but it also eventually launched a smaller version of that car, dubbed the CLA. Now in its second generation, the all-new CLA holds a lot of promise that stems from its exterior styling, bold and upmarket interior, and the news that it drives considerably better than the model it replaces.