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In Europe, Mercedes-Benz models range from small to large.
But in the US, we're really just used to the big luxury barges.
Can the 2015 GLA250 convince America that Mercedes-Benz can go small?
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I really like the design of the car.
I think it looks great from the outside.
And it's got practical interior space as well.
It's got room for about five people.
It's got cargo space.
It's kind of like a hatch back but raised up a bit.
Higher driving positions but it also comes with all wheel drive and that, that helps a lot.
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There is an option that we have in this one.
It's called poplar wood trim.
It feels a little bit plasticky to me but, according to the spec sheet, it's real wood.
We also have a panoramic sunroof, a big opening in front, a smaller opening in the rear for the rear passengers, and the front opening opens all the way.
So, that's kinda nice to get a lot of fresh air in the car.
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For cabin tech.
We've got the standard Mercedes Benz command interface so I've got this dial on the console with a back button and a clear button.
Some buttons on the dashboard here for quick access to functions.
So I've got my audio.
I've got my hands free phone system.
But what I don't have here is navigation because that option comes in a package that costs $2,480.
But to get that option, I actually need another package, the premium package, which costs $2300.
That's almost $5,000 for navigation.
Also, in this car, I only have the base audio system.
I could upgrade to a Harman Kardon Logic 7 system.
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This GLA250 also has.
The driver assist package.
Mercedes Benz does this stuff really well.
So for example, I have adaptive cruise control.
That'll actually match the speed of slower traffic ahead of me.
That's something Mercedes Benz almost invented.
We've got lane keeping assist in here which will steer the wheel and keep the car in its lane.
bridging towards autonomous when you put both those things together.
I don't have a rear view camera on here but what I do have is automated parking assistance.
So that can almost take the place of it.
The GLA250 comes with a two liter, four cylinder engine, but that's with direct injection and turbo charging, 208 horse power, 258 pound feet of torque.
And that engine has made it to a 7 speed dual clutch transmission.
That's the type of transmission that uses computer controlled clutches to shift a lot faster, a lot more direct than a tort converter transmission.
There's a button on the console here and that'll let me change between a sport mode, an eco mode, and a manual mode.
Now this engine, will get this car, according to.
And the ETA.
24 miles per gallon city, 32 miles per gallon highway.
Those are some pretty decent numbers.
You're going to average around 30.
And it's also got an idle stop feature.
It'll actually shut down the engine and I found that system works pretty well.
I've been driving around with it in San Francisco and it hasn't really gotten in the way of my driving but I can turn off that system with a button.
On the dashboard.
With Mercedes Benz formatted all wheel drive system.
Now in this case this is really a front wheel drive biased system, but when I hit slippery patches it can actually put 50% torque to the rear wheel.
As for the ride quality I think that's one area where Mercedes Benz falls down a bit with this car.
And I haven't really seen Mercedes-Benz do a good, comfortable ride in a small car yet, and it certainly isn't up to the standards set by rivals BMW and Audi in their smaller cars.
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Let's price out our 2015 Mercedes-Benz GLA250.
The base price $33,300.
To get navigation we have to add the technology package, and that costs $2,480.
But to get that we have to add the premium package for $2,300.
That's almost $5,000 for navigation.
Driver assist package cost $2500, and that cool parking assist feature $970.
With destination that puts our total price at $43,955.
But quite like the look and the practicality and the general driving character of the GLA 250.
One thing that I don't like is the ride quality that's something that Mercedes Benz been.
Just can't seem to get right in their smaller cars.
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