Item: Mercedes AMG A45
Rating: 5
Author: Steve Huntingford

Our chosen engine is this more powerful version of the A180. It increases the power to 161bhp and trims down the 0-62mph sprint time to 8.2sec. As a result, it doesn’t need to be worked as hard to make good progress and is more willing when you need a sudden burst of pace.

A200

Hatchback

Mercedes’ line-up is vast – ranging from the A-Class family hatchback through to staple saloons such as the C-Class and E-Class, and onwards towards multiple SUVs, luxury saloons and even sports cars. Coupés and convertibles are thrown into the mix as well.

As one of the ‘big three’ German brands, Mercedes most often finds itself competing with Audi and BMW but more recently has found itself fending off Jaguar and Volvo, too.

Mercedes models are known for comfort. One example of this is the E-Class, because while the Audi A6 has a plusher interior and the BMW 5 Series handles better, the E-Class is probably the most comfortable for a long motorway journey.

MERCEDES-BENZ

A CLASS

If you can, we’d suggest stepping up to AMG Line Executive because it doesn’t cost all that much more but comes with larger 18in alloy wheels and the incredibly comfortable sports seats. Other than that, you’ll find lots of AMG styling upgrades across the exterior and interior. 

AMG Line

A200 AMG Line Executive 5dr Auto

a200-amg-line-executive-5dr-auto

Abarth 595

Audi RS3

Audi S3

BMW M135i

Cupra Leon

Ford Fiesta ST

Ford Focus ST

Honda Civic Type R

Hyundai i20N

Hyundai i30 N

Mercedes A35 AMG

Mercedes AMG A45

Peugeot 308 GTi

Skoda Octavia vRS

Suzuki Swift Sport

Toyota GR Yaris

Volkswagen Golf GTI

Volkswagen Golf R

Volkswagen Polo GTI

Volkswagen Up GTI

Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

Costs & verdict

The Mercedes AMG A45 S is one of the most expensive <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/best-hot-hatches-2022/n17005">hot hatches</a>&nbsp;you can buy, costing many thousands of pounds more than even the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/1-series/hatchback/review/n26">BMW M135i</a>. Then again, the Audi RS3 – the A45's only direct rival – costs a very similar amount.

Although it’s unlikely you’d run one as a company car, it's worth noting that the A45’s CO2 emissions put it in the top 37% benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax bracket. However, its official&nbsp;31mpg fuel&nbsp;economy figure isn’t bad for a car this fast, and in our real-world tests it still averaged a respectable 28.5mpg.

The excellent&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/the-safest-cars-on-sale-today/n19724">Euro NCAP</a>&nbsp;safety rating awarded to&nbsp;the regular <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/a-class/hatchback/review/n88">Mercedes A-Class</a> doesn't cover the A45, but safety should still be a strong point. To help you avoid testing its crash-protection credentials, the A45 comes with automatic emergency braking (<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/what-is-aeb-and-how-does-it-work/n3283">AEB</a>), lane-keeping assistance, blind-spot monitoring and driver attention monitoring as standard.

Mercedes came joint 22nd out of 30 manufacturers in our&nbsp;2021 <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/2022-what-car-reliability-survey/n23397">What Car? Reliability Survey</a>&nbsp;brands league table. That's a few places below Audi in 18th and way behind BMW in 13th.

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Let’s start with the obvious:&nbsp;the Mercedes AMG A45 S is indecently fast. With launch mode engaged (in the dry at least)&nbsp;there’s barely a single horsepower wasted as it hunkers down and fires you forward like few other cars of any type, let alone hatchbacks. Even in the rain we managed a 0-60mph time of 4.0 seconds.

That’s all well and good, but how often do you really use launch control? More important is how the A45 AMG accelerates when you just plant your right foot on the accelerator pedal. Whether you’re stationary or moving, there’s the briefest of hesitations before the A45 rockets forward ferociously, firing through its gears swiftly yet smoothly.

There is, of course, a manual mode which is pretty faithful to your requests (you pull paddles behind the steering wheel), and certainly more alert than the&nbsp;gearbox in the rival <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/rs3/hatchback/review/n175">Audi RS3</a>.&nbsp;But don’t expect the power to arrive all of a sudden like it does in some heavily turbocharged cars.

This is an engine that thrives on revs, with peak power not&nbsp;arriving&nbsp;until a heady 6750rpm. That's no&nbsp;hardship, though – you’ll enjoy how the turbo wakes up at around 2000rpm, and how the power increases in a linear fashion all the way to the redline. And, sure, it might not sound as good as the five-cylinder Audi RS3, but it’s still pretty tuneful for a ‘mere’ four-cylinder.

Now, if you’re reading this thinking the A45 must be a&nbsp;temperamental beast&nbsp;that behaves like a bear with a sore head in traffic, prepare to be pleasantly surprised. Left in comfort mode, it feels no more recalcitrant than the regular <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/a-class/hatchback/review/n88">Mercedes A-Class</a> and is happy to trundle along quietly.

Yes, its standard adaptive suspension is firmer, but only nasty potholes or manhole covers really cause any discomfort. If you avoid scrappy surfaces, the A45 AMG is&nbsp;actually quite easy to live with by <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/hot-hatches/n17005">hot hatch</a> standards, proving far softer than the often jarring <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/renault/megane-rs/hatchback/used-review/n20105">Renault Megane RS</a> Trophy. The RS3 fitted with adaptive suspension is even more agreeable, though.

So, what happens when you turn away from regular roads and on to something more sinewy and interesting? Well, the steering isn't hyper-quick but it gives you a much better sense of connection with the front wheels than you get in the RS3. Crucially, the steering always feels natural and precise, making it&nbsp;a cinch to place the A45 exactly where you want it on the road.

Even in Comfort mode, body lean is minimal, and you can easily ramp things up to Sport mode to further reduce it without completely ruining ride comfort. The Sport + and Race suspension settings are a bit too much for all but the smoothest of roads,&nbsp;but you can opt to apply&nbsp;these most extreme modes to the engine and exhaust without affecting the ride.

The A45 is four-wheel drive, but the&nbsp;rear wheels&nbsp;always seems happy to receive plenty of power to prevent the nose running wide through corners.

Then, of course, there’s Drift mode. Although it doesn’t make the A45 fully rear-wheel drive, which the equivalent setting in the larger&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/saloon/review/n17226">Mercedes AMG E63</a>&nbsp;does, it does help the car to slide sideways easily when you accelerate hard and steer into a bend. Its propensity to destroy tyres and unsuitability for road use mean&nbsp;it's really just interesting gimmick, though.

Four hundred and fifteen horsepower. That might seem like the power figure for a musclebound sports or performance car, but it’s actually how much grunt the Mercedes AMG A45 packs under its sensible hatchback skin.

Even more impressive than the headline power figure –&nbsp;or indeed its 3.9sec 0-62mph time –&nbsp;is how the baby AMG achieves that level of firepower. You see, there isn't a big six&nbsp;or eight-cylinder engine to be found under the bonnet, just a 2.0-litre four-cylinder – albeit with a turbocharger that’s bigger than your head.

<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/make/mercedes-benz">Mercedes</a> also makes a&nbsp;less powerful non ‘S’ model that's&nbsp;available in the rest of Europe, but apparently us Brits are too power-mad to even consider it.

Like the less powerful <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/a-class/hatchback/review/n18801">Mercedes AMG A35</a>,&nbsp;the A45 uses an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox to feed its power to all four wheels. However, while you might assume the two cars use the same four-wheel drive system, the A45’s is far cleverer and can not only vary the power split between the front and&nbsp;rear wheels, but also from side to side at the rear.&nbsp;

The aim? Well, depending on the drive mode you’ve selected, the system can either boost traction and therefore stability&nbsp;or, if you've decided to take your A45 on to a racetrack, can encourage it to drift sideways creating lots of smoke.&nbsp;

There’s really only one other <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/hot-hatches/n17005">hot hatch</a>&nbsp;that can even get close to the A45’s manic performance:&nbsp;the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/rs3/hatchback/review/n175">Audi RS3</a>. Of course, you might also want to consider the less powerful <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/1-series/hatchback/review/n26">BMW M135i</a>&nbsp;– especially if a premium badge is a must.&nbsp;

So, is the Mercedes AMG A45 any good to drive, or is it just good for bragging rights down the pub? Stay with us over the next few pages of this review to find out if it’s fun as well as fast and whether you could actually live with the thing day to day.

Don’t forget that you can save thousands off the list price of most makes and models of cars by checking out our free What Car? <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals">New Car Deals service</a>. It has some&nbsp;very tempting <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/category/hot-hatch">new hot hatch deals</a>.

In addition to the already visually striking interior of the standard <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/a-class/hatchback/review/n88">Mercedes A-Class</a>, the A45 S gets plenty of racy touches, including&nbsp;a pair of AMG sports seats, an AMG flat-bottomed steering wheel with touchpad controls, and AMG-specific graphics for the digital instruments, which include a Supersport mode with a large central rev counter.&nbsp;

The driver’s seat has plenty of adjustment and, in combination with a steering wheel that offers decent amounts of&nbsp;reach and rake adjustment, this allows&nbsp;drivers of all sizes to find a comfy posture. Electric seat adjustment comes as standard.

The A45 also adds a bundle of bespoke AMG software to the car’s MBUX infotainment system. This can show engine and gearbox oil temperatures, record lap times and there's even a G meter to show handling and acceleration forces.

It can log 80 separate feeds of data so you can analyse your on-track performance. It’s something we doubt many buyers will actually use more than once or twice&nbsp;and, like having a dive watch that's rated to 200m, it’s more about bragging rights than anything else.

To display this array of information, the A45 has twin 10.3in screens –&nbsp;one behind the steering wheel instead of traditional instrument dials, with an adjoining touchscreen to its left. Both have sharp graphics and the ‘virtual’ instruments are highly configurable yet remain easy to read at all times.&nbsp;

As for the infotainment system, it can be controlled either by pressing the central touchscreen, swiping a&nbsp;laptop-style touchpad between the seats or using a small touchpad on the left of the steering wheel. It’s a good system with logical menus, but is not as intuitive&nbsp;as the iDrive system in the cheaper <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/1-series/hatchback/review/n26">BMW M135i</a>.

Premium Plus Edition

A brilliant hot hatch that's staggeringly quick, capable and fun. It isn't cheap, though.

To put it simply, the AMG A45 S is just as practical&nbsp;as any other <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/a-class/hatchback/review/n88">Mercedes A-Class</a>. That means plenty of space up front for a couple of 6ft-plus adults as well as decent oddment storage.

A couple of tall mates will fit in the back, but can expect to find their knees fairly close to the front seatbacks and their heads near the roof. Still, that's also true in the rival&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/rs3/hatchback/review/n175">Audi RS3</a>&nbsp;Sportback.

There’s nothing spectacular about the boot of the A45, although it’s quite a bit bigger than the RS3's and capacious&nbsp;enough for a big weekly shop or a week away for two. In our tests, we managed to slot six carry-on suitcases below the parcel shelf, compared with only four in the RS3.

The lip at the boot entrance is a bit annoying because&nbsp;its presence means you have to heave heavy items over it rather than simply sliding them in or out. There’s no height-adjustable boot&nbsp;floor on the options list.

Make no mistake, the AMG A45 is more than just a one-trick pony. Not only is it incredibly rapid in a straight line, it’s also agile and entertaining through the corners, too. It's very pricey, though.


<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Engaging handling </li> <li>Thrilling performance </li> <li>A characterful engine with an enticing soundtrack </li> <li>Reasonable running costs </li> <li>Not hard to live with day to day</li></ul>

A popular choice with UK buyers since the days of the original Volkswagen Golf GTI, the hot hatchback mixes everyday practicality with higher performance and the sort of handling and agility that’s ideally suited to British roads. A good hot hatch should be fun and, since it’s likely to be your daily drive, it should also deliver respectable running costs.

Hot hatch

Mercedes AMG A45 review

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In addition to the already visually striking interior of the standard Mercedes A-Class, the A45 S gets plenty of racy touches, including a pair of AMG sports seats, an AMG flat-bottomed steering wheel with touchpad controls, and AMG-specific graphics for the digital instruments, which include a Supersport mode with a large central rev counter. ,The driver’s seat has plenty of adjustment and, in combination with a steering wheel that offers decent amounts of reach and rake adjustment, this allows drivers of all sizes to find a comfy posture. Electric seat adjustment comes as standard.,The A45 also adds a bundle of bespoke AMG software to the car’s MBUX infotainment system. This can show engine and gearbox oil temperatures, record lap times and there's even a G meter to show handling and acceleration forces.It can log 80 separate feeds of data so you can analyse your on-track performance. It’s something we doubt many buyers will actually use more than once or twice and, like having a dive watch that's rated to 200m, it’s more about bragging rights than anything else.,To display this array of information, the A45 has twin 10.3in screens – one behind the steering wheel instead of traditional instrument dials, with an adjoining touchscreen to its left. Both have sharp graphics and the ‘virtual’ instruments are highly configurable yet remain easy to read at all times. ,As for the infotainment system, it can be controlled either by pressing the central touchscreen, swiping a laptop-style touchpad between the seats or using a small touchpad on the left of the steering wheel. It’s a good system with logical menus, but is not as intuitive as the iDrive system in the cheaper BMW M135i.

Review of Mercedes AMG A45 interior by the expert What Car? team. Compare in car entertainment system, driving comfort and visibility with similar cars.

Mercedes AMG A45 review

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