2020 Mercedes Benz Gla Review

The new Mercedes Benz GLA is the smallest version of the Mercedes SUV range and the competitor of the BMW X1 and Audi Q3. It's essentially an A class under the hood but it's taller wider and way more practical than that. Read the whole article to find out how it compares to it's rival and if it is worth your consideration.

Let's start this review by talking about the new GLA's looks. So to start off the GLA looks more like a SUV than a hatchback it's wider and taller, Mercedes actually claims that it's ten centimeters more taller. At the front you get led headlights as standard and Mercedes pin grill which in my opinion gives the car an aggressive look. The bumpers also add to the aggressive looks of the car as they have bigger air intakes which by the are fake wasn't expecting that Mercedes!

As standard you get 18 inch alloy wheels on the new GLA in addition to that you get chrome roof bars and window strips which makes the car look more posh and so does the rear privacy glass. At the rear Mercedes gives a rear spoiler and shiny trim on the bumper which gives the car an ostentatious look. What's not so cool about, however, is that the rear diffuser, vents and the exhaust pipes are indeed fake.

Let's now talk about the engine options available on the new GLA. The new GLA comes with two variants one with petrol and the other with diesel.

The GLA 200 has a 1.3 liter engine with 163 horsepower and 250Nm of torque.

The GLA 250 has a 2.0 liter engine with 224 horsepower and 350Nm of torque.

The diesel versions the GLA 200d has 2.0 liter engine with 150 horsepower and 320Nm of torque.

And the GLA 220d has a 2.0 liter engine with 190 horsepower and 400Nm of torque.

All of them come with an automatic gear box the diesel versions, however, also come with an all wheel drive option.

The interior of the new GLA has a nice mordern touch to it and in my opinion competes well against it's competitors such as the BMW X1 and the Audi Q3. One design upgrade that I love on the new Mercedes is the twin screen which as standard come as a 7 inch and to upgrade it to a larger screen you have to upgrade to the executive model which is a bit annoying. The new GLA has a sportier steering wheel and a load of shiny buttons which help to navigate through the cars settings. The gear shifters look premium and are made out of real metal. The new GLA gets sports seats rather than the normal comfort seats and they do also get red stitching.

The new GLA gets Mercedes latest MBUX infotainment system which in my opinion really is the best system available. The screen is brighter than the previous ones and can be controlled by the buttons on the steering wheel or the touch pad system. The system on the new GLA can also recognize the users preference over time such as the music or radio station the user usually listens to and will automatically display those on the screen.

Although the new GLA is a bit shorter in length than the previous model the distance between the front and rear wheels is actually more which means that the knee room has been increased. Mercedes actually claims that the knee room is 11cm more. Head room, however, is just fine but for carrying three people in the back the car does a decent amount of job.

The boot capacity of the new GLA is not exactly the best it is, however, quite average with a capacity of only 435 liters compare that to a BMW X1 which has a capacity of 505 liters and an Audi Q3 which has a capacity of 530 liters. The seats can be folded three way to carry longer items and for maximum storage space you can fold all the three seats.

The new GLA has some pretty decent in car storage spaces such as the front and rear door bins are huge and there is plenty of storage space in the central arm rest the glove box, however, is just fine it's not too big and the car also has cup holders for both the front and rear passengers.

Under the hood the new GLA is same as the A class which means they are front wheel drive though you can get them in all wheel drive. The new GLA has two suspension options the normal comfort suspension on the entry level cars and the lower comfort suspension on the amg lineup.

• When the glass roof is open it can change between different angles to help reduce wind noise.
• If you forget to close the roof of your car when you turn it off the rain sensors will be able to detect the water and automatically close the roof.
• The optional augmented reality makes following directions easier as it gives live camera feed of the road ahead and imposes directions on it so you never take a wrong turn.
• The car has a new feature called the energising seat kinetics which changes the backrest of the seat so that you do not seat in the same position for too long.
• The new GLA has the Mercedes car wash option which when you turn it on will automatically close the side view mirrors, the windows, sunroof, the parking sensors and the rain sensor and will turn on the 360 degree view camera.

Let's now talk about the equipment you can get if you're interested in buying the new GLA. As standard the new GLA gets dual zone climate control and heated front seats. The new GLA also comes with lane keep assist with auto emergency braking. As standard you also get the rear view camera on the new GLA.

For an extra £1500 you can upgrade to the executive model which has a 10 inch screen rather than the standard 7 inch one. You also get all round parking sensors, a wireless charging pad for your mobile phone and electrically folding mirrors.

Top of the range premium plus model gets a 84 multi beam LED headlights with a range of 650 meters!! This particular model also gets a panoramic glass roof.

If you pay an extra 1500 pounds you move up to the premium model which has the 225 watt stereo, larger digital drivers display, augmented reality and keyless entry.

The new GLA will start from about £33000 for the entry level car, however, top end models such as a GLA 220d with an all wheel drive system will cost a bit more than £40000.