Road test review: Mercedes-AMG GLA 45 S

Friday, 11 March 2022

• MERCEDES-AMG GLA 45 S

• Base price: $128,200

• Powertrain and economy: 2.0-litre turbo-petrol inline-four, 310kW/500Nm, 8-speed dual-clutch automatic, AWD, combined economy 10.7L/100km, CO2 250g/km (source: RightCar).

• Vital statistics: 4410mm long, 1830mm wide, 1610mm high, 2730mm wheelbase, luggage capacity 435 litres, 20-inch alloy wheels.

• Safety: Five stars (Source: ANCAP, standard GLA tested)

• We like: Incredible engine

• We don't like: Hard ride, don’t like the extra wings and aero bits (although optional), ultimately unnecessary

Mercedes-Benz makes a lot of cars. That means AMG has a lot of options when it comes to making things go faster. But some things don’t really need to go faster, and the GLA small SUV is one of them.

OUTSIDE

It looks largely like a GLA, funnily enough, but with a meaner Panamerica grille, lower ride height and larger wheels. This one also had the Aerodynamics Package applied, which adds the rear spoiler and small canards at the front.

**READ MORE:

* Sunday Drive: Mercedes-Benz GLA 35

* Meet our new long-term EV, the Mercedes-Benz EQA 250

* Mercedes- AMG confirms huge power for incoming C 63

**

If it didn’t have that package, it would look much better. Most cars look better a bit closer to the ground, but the whiskers on the front bumper and wing at the back make it look a bit too try-hard.

Considering it’s the spiciest GLA on offer, four functional exhaust pipes poke out of the rear bumper, two more than the lesser GLA 35 gets.

INSIDE

The only real differences inside the 45 S are the yellow accents on the seats, seatbelts and steering wheel, as well as the stitching. By default, you get Comfort seats, but the tester here had Sports seats optioned on through the High Performance Seat package.

Aside from that, it’s pretty standard GLA in here, so it’s up to you to decide if that’s a good thing or not.

UNDER THE BONNET

This is where the magic is. AMG has dropped its awesome 2.0-litre turbo four from the A 45 S into the GLA, and like the hatchback, it produces 310kW/500Nm, which is frankly astounding for a small engine coming straight out of the factory.

It’s connected to an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, sending power to each axle through Mercedes-AMG’s 4Matic all-wheel drive system. It’s even smart enough to divvy things between each wheel at the rear end.

Is it fast? Oh, yeah. This is seriously quick, even beyond the world of fast SUVs. It pulls decently from low revs, but the torque actually peaks quite high, at 5000rpm. That’s to give the engine a feeling closer to a naturally aspirated unit, rather than the sub-2000rpm torque figures usually associated with turbocharged engines.

The gearshifts are smooth even at full song, barely interrupting the flow of power. They make a great noise too, whipcracking through the quad exhaust outlets.

It doesn’t sound that bad either, with an interesting growl coming through the speakers. What, you thought those extra pipes resulted in a lot of extra noise? It’s definitely louder than the GLA 35, and it brings more pops and crackles, but it’s not a full-noise exhaust system. You can amplify the sound too, by opting for the $600 Performance Sound pack.

ON THE ROAD

This is where the GLA 45 S suffers a bit of an identity crisis. On one hand, it wants to be a cut-throat sports car, eating corners and drinking petrol in equal measure. But on the other, it wants to be a family wagon, softly spoken on the school run. And I think that shows that AMG really doesn’t need to add spice to every model it possibly can, because you end up with a car that can’t really do either.

Yes, the GLA 45 S is ferociously fast on the open road. As fast as things asking noticeably more money, it should be said. That torque vectoring is something special, preventing understeer even at silly entry speeds.

But the A 45 S is better, because it’s lower and smaller. That, plus the fact that you’re literally in the market for a sports hatchback, means you know what you get if the ride isn’t quite as supple as you might have expected.

It’s not terrible in the GLA 45 S, and might be better without the larger diameter rims and lower profile rubber our tester had, but it’s still not as soft as you might expect from an SUV. It just underscores that this car doesn’t really know what it is.

Maybe I’m just a hater, but I can’t see the kids being overly impressed when they’re belted around the back seat after whichever parent is driving decides to see what that Sports Plus mode is all about.

VERDICT

Maybe it’s not that I don’t like the GLA 45 S, it’s the actual concept of sporty crossovers. I just don’t understand why you would sacrifice comfort for power in a small SUV, which is, by nature, meant to be comfortable? You tend to end up with a hard-riding, moderately powerful vehicle that will still spend most of its life in traffic or sitting just above idle speeds doing 104kmh on State Highway 1. Why not just buy an A 45 S or a GLA 250? I guess the point is so you have one car that fits all, but does it really fit all?

Anyway, moving on from opinion, and the fact that 35 people bought one of these last year versus 39 GLA 200 buyers, the GLA 45 S is a weapon of a thing if you use it for what I would say is its intended purpose. That being getting from A to B on the long way around in the shortest time possible.

The engine is the biggest reason why you’d buy one, it’s amazing. Says a lot that Mercedes is going to use it in the next C 63, albeit with some hefty electrical assistance.

But if you do buy one, please don’t spec on the wing and canards, just leave it a sleeper.