2021 Mercedes Benz GLA35 Review
2021 Mercedes Benz GLA35 AMG
Specs: 2.0 Liter Turbo 4 Cylinder
302 HP / 295 ft-lbs TQ
0-60: 5.0
Price as tested: $63,050 (! for a GLA!)
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Guy who did stuff: Yousef Alvi
Pictures: Manufacturer
The Mercedes GLA class is a vehicle that one needs to approach differently. Whereas pictures and video show a classically styled compact crossover, in real life it’s diminutive status is more hatchback if anything…and that is NOT a bad thing. Approach this GLA35 as a hot hatch and then it all starts to make more sense.
From it’s oversized wheels, to it’s low roofline to it’s seating position. It all screams hot hatch to me and I LOVE hot hatchbacks. But if you’re reading this and you’re a normal human being…chances are that hatchbacks give you an allergic reaction. That is fine because here is a secret:
“All the crossovers you see are fundamentally hatchbacks...just a bit taller. ”
Think of it for a second. What differentiates a crossover from a hatchback? If you are about to say one is truck based and one is car based…then you’re wrong. They are both car based. The base recipe for both are the exact same:
—Take a sedan platform
—Add a Tall Body
—Add a hatch/tailgate
—Add AWD if you feel spicy
BOOM! You have a hatchback. With a crossover you just add one more additional step
—Add an inch or so of ground clearance
That’s it! So let’s add this to the GLA. Remove that ride height and what do you have? You have a hatchback and what is a fast hatchback called? A hot hatch!
Anyhoo…on to the GLA35.
Think of the GLA as this:
The Euro market (damnit) A35 and it starts to make more sense
The GLA35 is a vehicle that confounded me at first. Here was a supposed crossover that wasn’t really a crossover and it has an AMG badge but it didn’t go like an AMG. So what is it? Well think of the GLA35 as a lifted Euro market A35 and it makes a bit more sense. So a turbocharged, AWD, hatchback with plenty of room and cargo…now I’m paying attention.
Let us go ahead and break it down:
The Great
Approach the GLA35 as a hot hatchback and you come to realize that it’s a spacious, practical and quick machine. Add the fact that this is actually made in Germany and uhhh not other places…it’s starting to look great!
The Good
Starting with the lowly CLA and slightly going up the rung to this GLA…you are offered with the same amount of excellence. That excellence is the interior…it’s a rolling ode to Star Trek. The interior lighting is among the best on the road today. It can switch from subtle lighting cues to ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ inspired rave in an instant. Add that along with excellent visibility, interior materials and seating…it’s just a pure joy on the inside.
The 2.0 Liter Turbo may not be a bespoke engine to the GLA35 but it takes everything that makes the CLA250 so special and turns it to 11! That revised 2.0 liter turbo just keeps the GLA in the happy spot, so off the line and highway passing is a fun squeeze of the throttle.
Lastly it is coupled with an excellent 9 speed dual clutch automatic. Fast, direct and smooth the transmission paired with this engine is a joy to operate.
The Bad
The Price: As tested this sucker costs $63k!!! Sure the ‘base’ model costs $47k but finding a bare boned base model would require a special order that no dealer would fulfill.
The Ugly
If you get a GLA35, I implore you, do not check off the 21 inch wheel and tire package. First, it look ridiculous and second it ruins the vehicle. The GLA35 suffers from incessant tire roar that only gets louder on the highway along with crashing over bumps and a darty steering…it is on the verge of ruining the GLA35 overall. Just don’t check that option.
Overall:
So, just to reiterate…this compact crossover, AMG Lite, sucker costs $63,000!! For a GLA! That is a huge amount of money for something that is just a ‘tweener’ model.
Let me put it into context for you. For $7000 less you can get a BMW X3 M40i that is larger, quicker, more comfortable and more fun to drive. Or, if you know how to bargain, you can probably get yourself a GLC43 for the same amount of money as this GLA35.
But this is the real question: Is this worth more than it’s plebeian stablemate the GLA250? To build a GLA250 to the same specs as our tester resulted in a $55,000 price on MB’s website. The performance trade-off versus the almost $10,000 price difference just doesn’t make sense to me.
If it was my money…I would stick with the GLA250 or go massively into debt and go straight to the GLA45.
