AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)05/19 Report--

On May 18, the new generation of Mercedes-Benz long wheelbase A-class sedan was launched. The new car canceled the A 180L sports version and launched a total of three models, namely the A 180L, A 200L sports model and A 200L fashion model, with a price of 24.95-272200 yuan. For comparison, the current Mercedes-Benz long wheelbase A-class price is 21.48-264800 yuan.

Although it is called a new generation of models, but the overall change is not obvious, mainly some small details of the upgrade. The new car adopts the latest styling design of the Mercedes-Benz family, adopts the intake grille of "all over the sky" style, and redesigns the front enclosure, showing a more dynamic style as a whole. It is worth noting that the internal structure of headlights has also been adjusted, the whole department standard LED headlight group, with the bottom air intake and black kit embellishment, the overall movement has become more aggressive, while adding sea night blue and time and space silver two metal car paint.

The side and rear shape of the new Beijing Mercedes-Benz A-class body basically continues the model design for sale, but the internal structure of the taillight is changed. In terms of size, the length, width and height of the new long-axle version of the A-class sedan are 4630/1796/1459mm and the wheelbase is 2789mm, which is basically the same as that of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class on sale.

In terms of interior decoration, the layout of the new car interior remains unchanged, continuing the brand's family-style double-screen central control layout, and classic elements such as turbine air conditioning vents, Nappa leather covering the brand-new multi-function steering wheel and electronic shift mechanism are also highly recognizable. Compared with the old models, the new car is equipped with the second generation MBUX intelligent car-computer interaction system, which supports third-party applications such as intelligent voice and Gaud navigation. In addition, in terms of color matching, the new car also offers three options: grey (ARTICO sage ash), black (ARTICO/MICROCUT black) and brown (ARTICO/MICROCUT cocoa brown), as well as two different carbon fiber style panels.

In terms of power, the new Mercedes-Benz long wheelbase A-class standard 1.3T four-cylinder turbocharged engine, the maximum power of the A 180L model is 136 horsepower (100 kilowatts), the peak torque is 200 Nm, and the maximum power of the A 200L model is 163 horsepower (120 kW). Peak torque is 250 Nm. In terms of transmission, it is matched by a 7-speed wet double clutch gearbox.

Overall, the overall strength of new car products has been improved to a certain extent, but it is also very limited. More importantly, except for the cancellation of the A180L sports version, the prices of other versions have increased to varying degrees, especially the entry-level model, which is 34700 yuan higher than the 214800 of the 2023 model. For an entry-level compact car, even with the halo of the Mercedes-Benz brand, the price seems a little high.

From January to April 2023, Mercedes-Benz sold a total of 13800 A-class vehicles, ranking fifth among Mercedes-Benz brands, according to the Federation of passengers. As a luxury compact car, the BMW 1-Series (guidance price 20.58-249900 yuan) and Audi A3 (guidance price 20.31-251300 yuan), the most direct competitors of Mercedes-Benz A-Class, have the highest sales volume of Audi A3, which sold 18450 cars in the same period, while the BMW 1-Series model has a three-cylinder engine, which makes more consumers can only buy the highest-equipped models. As a result, its sales performance has always lagged behind its competitors, with cumulative sales of only 5086 vehicles from January to April.

It is worth mentioning that the new generation of BMW 1-Series will also be released this year, the new car will use BMW's latest design language, the appearance and interior will be greatly updated, but if the three-cylinder engine continues to be assembled, sales are not expected to improve significantly. After the new generation of Mercedes-Benz long wheelbase A-class comes on the market, it has also become the highest price of the same class, up to 272200 yuan, which will also affect the market performance to a certain extent, good for Audi A3.

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