AMG ventures into new territory with
a potent four-pot, all-wheel-drive mega-hatch to take on the BMW M135i
This should be interesting. AMG, purveyor
of wonderfully potent big cars, has made a small one.
It’s still wonderfully potent, as you might
expect, with 355bhp, to be exact, from what’s claimed to be, at 178bhp per
liter, the most specifically powerful turbocharged four-cylinder engine in
production. And the powerful turbocharged four-cylinder engine in production.
And the technical changes run deep.
The
new A-class is the first model with which AMG has moved away from rear-wheel
drive and into anything smaller than a six-cylinder engine
Mercedes has obviously thought pretty
carefully about this. The new A-class is the first model with which AMG has
moved away from rear-wheel drive and into anything smaller than a six-cylinder
engine. To want to broaden what’s hitherto been an exclusive range is
understandable enough. But it would be all too easy to dilute what AMG stands
for while it’s doing it. In other words, it’s a risk.
So? So AMG’s engineers have made a lot of
changes. More here, you might argue, than they would do to an executive saloon.
Which is why the A45 costs $57,000.
The
cabin is superbly well finished and resplendent with traditional AMG styling
touches, not least an excellent pair of front seats
From the front backwards, then. There’s a
new front bumper and grille, which wouldn’t be so significant were they not
backed by an intercooler for the blown turbo. There’s also a secondary radiator
inside one of the front wheel arches, which is surprisingly effective because
of the high air pressure found in there (AMG is quick to point out that it’s
something the SLS gets, too).
The steering knuckles are new, as are the
front anti-roll bars, springs and dampers. The electric steering rack is also
bespoke with a constant 14.5:1 ratio rather than one that quickens off-center –
and its electric motor is smaller to allow more room for the engine and
transmission.
The gearbox is a seven-speed dual-clutch
automatic, and – and here’s where the effort has gone into making this more
than a fast A-class – it drives through Mercedes’ 4Matic system, which means
the A45 AMG is four-wheel drive. To that end, the multi-link rear suspension is
new and its sub-frame is rigidly mounted to the body, while the clutch that
enables drive to the rear is mounted at the rear differential, in order to
improve weight distribution.
‘Enables’ drive to the rear? Er, yeah. The
A45 is four-wheel drive, it’s true, but the 4Matic system isn’t a permanent
set-up. Most of the time, the A45 is a front-drive hatchback, and only when
slip begins to occur does it become anything different. But the hydraulic pump
for the clutches are always pressurized, says AMG, so you’ll hardly notice a
delay before they engage the drive at the rear.
A45
is grippy and fun, but power only goes to the rear if the fronts break traction
Their control module takes note of the
vehicle’s speed, lateral and longitudinal acceleration, the steering angle,
gear, throttle position and the respective slip angles. But it has to monitor
those before it sends power to the back, and then it’ll send anything up to 50
per cent. The 4Matic system is the sort designed to aid traction in a road car,
rather than being a Subaru rally replica permanent four-wheel drive set-up.
Does that matter? It might. We’ll come back to it.
In the meantime, the other changes. Inside,
the A45 – and it’s quite nicely done, this – feels like, well, an AMG. I quite
like the black headlining, the carbon fiber-aping fabric weave and the small,
aircraft throttle-like gear selector. The red seatbelts and vent highlights I
could live without. The front seats I love; they’re heavily adjustable and
clenching without being restrictive. Maybe the base could sit a bit lower.
Perhaps the squared-off steering wheel could reach a touch closer. But it’s a
decent environment, while the rest of the A-class package is as you were:
respectable rear head and legroom and a big boot.
In
the meantime, the other changes. Inside, the A45 – and it’s quite nicely done,
this – feels like, well, an AMG.
The start-up isn’t as AMG-ish as we’ve come
to expect. With half the regular number of AMG cylinders, it was never going to
be. Our test car came with a standard exhaust – there’s an optional performance
one that increases the noise, but not the power or torque – and at idle the A45
burbles away largely unremarkably.
Pull away and – oh, hello – this is
definitely not conventional A-class territory. We haven’t always been entirely
complimentary about the latest-generation A-class’s ride quality, but even at
its sport-suspended, big-wheeled worst, the regular car doesn’t feel like this.
This is something else again.
But I don’t mean that as a criticism.
Rolling down any road for just a few yards makes you realize that this isn’t
just a car riding harshly for the sake of good looks. The A45 has a deliberate,
all-apiece firmness to it. Nuggety, you might call it. It reminds me – as I
suppose it might – of other AMGs, and good ones: the C63 Black Series, even the
old CLK Black. It isn’t as hard as either, but the impression is that it is
firm for a reason, that being to deliver impressive levels of body control. See
also earlier limited-run Subaru Imprezas, GT Porsches and the Ford Fiesta ST.
No, they don’t all ride the same, but I think in this instance the comparison
is fair; they all sacrifice something for something else. They all feel…
special.
