Shopping cart – it ain’t! Mercedes-Benz A250

The thoughts that sprung to my mind when heard mention of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class was of a pint-sized car that dwells in the city. It would be nimble, simple to park and in turn ideal for day to day running about and purchasing excursions. So when Matt from MB pulled up in a racy little number I had to double take – evidently I had missed the ‘Sport’ in the title.

The Mercedes-Benz A 250 SPORT 4 MATIC is very eye-catching, especially in Cirrus white. MB have let their stylist loose and taken something I thought of as conservative and added kerb appeal. Rolling up on its 18” AMG Alloys and complete with AMG bodykit and red highlights, this car looked more ‘racetrack ready’ rather than a place to stash your fix of newly acquired consumer products. It seems to sit lower than I had imagined and oozes ‘Sport’ from all angles. High gloss ‘belt line’ trim, red MB brake callipers (with perforated front disks), two pipe trapezoid-shaped tailpipes and a sportier engine and exhaust note.

The cabin is filled with Black ‘Red Cut’ leather and carbon fibre trim with ARTICO/DINAMICA sports seats. Leather steering wheel and designo red seat belts and contrast stitching all floodlight through its Panoramic electric sunroof.

And it doesn’t stop there. The older 250 had a reputation for being a bit of a bone shaker; well I can happily report that this new Sport has a suspension that will have you driving smoothly past the Chiropractor’s practice, waving as you go. MB mechanics have ‘softened’ the ride in comfort but have managed to leave plenty of spring in its step as you flick through the driving modes of the AMG Ride control.

Under the bonnet is a 2L (4 cylinder) turbocharged motor that presents 160kW and 350Nm almost as soon as you press the accelerator. 100kph comes to you in a respectable 6.3 seconds and yet even combined with its sort configured 7G-DCT 7 Speed Auto box; it will still give you 6.7L/100k’s.

My week with this little beauty took in all the usual daily commutes and necessary chores, these fairly mundane trips gave me chance to go through the car’s huge menu of infotainment options, but when my roster was clear it was all about the freedom and enjoyment of driving this four-wheel drive car. Its size and handling gives you plenty of scope when negotiating out of town roads, ‘dynamic drive’ is just that Dynamic but I also took it on a long ride in comfort, going for lunch in a café that I won’t be frequenting again – the food was shocking but the drive there and back was great – I felt refreshed and dare I say it – invigorated. Plenty of time to relax and contemplate life!

When I first thought about the A 250 SPORT images of endless days in Malls and Grey city streets came to mind – but now, racy images of high revs and tearing up paved (and unpaved) roads out to the coastline flood my brain’s inbox. I still manage to throw a bit of shopping in there to break it up but now it’s thoughts of purchasing million dollar apartments.

More Mercedes-Benz Reviews here

Want to see more? Feel free to Subscribe