Mere's smallest offerings in India
turn 1. We join the party
The setting was a tyre launch event at the
Zandvoort circuit near Amsterdam, and I was driving the A-Class in a painfully
slow convoy around the track. We barely nudged the 100-kph mark (thanks to the
pace car leading us), and were expected to give feedback on tyre noise, grip
levels and the heights of boredom achieved during the drive. Because the
session lasted 30 minutes, it gave me enough time to look around the A-Class
and admire how well it was built and finished, especially for a car its size.
The B-Class, I have never driven (or fancied) before, but Rohin swears by it
and now was a good time to sample it, since it has (along with the A-Class)
turned a year old. Well, in India that is.
The
Mercedes-Benz A-Class Edition 1 is a visual standout from every angle, inside
and out
Anniversary editions typically call for
sticker jobs and embroidered seat covers, but Mercedes-Benz India has taken a
more substantial route, by way of incorporating rather welcome additions into
both the A- and B-Class; they also get an 'Edition 1' nameplate.
So, what makes the Edition 1s special? To
begin with, both are loaded to the non...existent gills with features. To reel
off a few of those, you get seven airbags, an ECO start/ stop system, ESP, ASR,
ABS, Attention Assist (Hey, I could do with one of those!), Hill Start Assist
and a secret button hidden under the floor mats that unleashes 600 extra
horses. Okay, not the last bit, but you get the drift of how safe the duo is,
right?
Despite
the underpowered 2.2-litre diesel motor, the A-Class Edition 1 manages a
0-100kmph time of 10.6 seconds
Both cars also get, as part of the Edition
1 package, a panoramic sunroof (blacked out, for extra street cred),
electrically adjustable front seats (which should have been there in the first
place), a reversing camera and a rear centre armrest, all of which make them
more desirable than they were previously. Hot 17-inch alloys (on the A-Class),
along with discreet matte black ' Edition 1' decals, round up what's new about
the two.
Blacked-out
ORVMs and discreet badging on door sills separate the Edition 1 from the
regular B-Class
Nothing has changed on the driving front,
which is no bad thing. With the exception of the low-end diesel drawl (that
does not belong to a Mercedes-Benz), the A-Class drives beautifully. Despite
its outright lack of grunt on paper, (108 bhp at 5(XX) rpm, 25.4 kgm of torque
at 1,400 rpm - same as the B-Class), it is quite brisk when you floor the
throttle and the seven-speed auto works rather well for this car. While it's
not a rip-snorting hot hatch, it has the potential to be one, and it won't be
surprising to find a handful of ambitious A-Class owners giving their cars a
Mercedes GP/Petronas paintjob, large diffusers and carbon-fibre inserts. I'm
hinting at something here. The B-Class retains its relaxed power delivery and,
in terms of everyday usage, is the more composed of the two. I see why Rohin
advocates it, then.
The
refined engine of the B-Class Edition 1 is a decent performer
Overall, the additional goodies make the A-
& B-Class Edition 1 s great deals, though they're not necessarily cheap. At
$43,065 (ex-showroom, Mumbai), the A-Class is no doubt expensive (for its
dimensions; the same goes for the B-Class, at $47,310) but for those who want
exclusivity, you can't really go wrong with either car.
