• Enough cabin space for four adults
• Boot capacity now competitive with rivals
• Easy-to-access Isofix points on outer rear seats

How much space is there?

The lack of cabin space is a common complaint about many premium family hatchbacks, lots of which prioritise form over function. This is something that Mercedes worked to address with the A-Class. So, shoulder, elbow and headroom are generous front and rear, and there’s enough space for four average-sized adults to get comfortable.

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Technically, it will even seat five, but the middle seat is best suited for children thanks to the chunky central tunnel robbing legroom. Legroom and headroom for the outer rear seats is ample for most, now, though. It’s certainly better than the current Audi A3.

Boot space and storage

Luggage room has grown to 370 litres in this A-Class and, although that’s still shy of the 380 litres available in the A3 Sportback, BMW 1 Series and Volkswagen Golf, the squared shape of the boot in the Mercedes makes it very useable. Not only does it boast an extra 29 litres of storage space with the rear seats in place compared with the previous model, the load aperture is 20cm wider. This means it’s easier to get awkward, wide objects such as pushchairs in the space. The lip should prove low enough for most, too.

For longer items, the rear seats fold down almost flat in a 40:20:40 split, while arch intrusion is kept to a minimum. The boot also contains power sockets and hooks for storing shopping bags.

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The A-Class has enough storage space for the needs of most drivers. Up front, the door pockets are a good size and there are two reasonably capacious cupholders in the centre console. The compartment under the armrest is fairly narrow but deep, while the glovebox is an average size. In the back, there are a couple of smaller door pockets, fold-out cupholders and twin air vents behind the front armrest. 

The removal of the touch controller for the MBUX infotainment system also adds a useful tray for keys or other oddments, although it’s very much on display to passing foot traffic. The cupholders are a good size but tall bottles block the climate controls.

Is it easy to park?

All cars come with a standard reversing camera, making it relatively easy to manoeuvre the A-Class into tight spots. It is 14mm wider than the previous-generation car however, so owners looking to upgrade their old A-Class should double check that the new one fits comfortably in their garage.

Safety

• Five star Euro NCAP safety rating
• A-Class boasts raft of accident-avoiding safety kit
• Two easily accessible Isofix points fitted as standard

The A-Class scored a maximum five star rating from Euro NCAP when tested in late 2018, performing well in all categories. 

As we’ve come to expect from Mercedes, the A-Class is packed with what it calls Intelligent Drive systems designed to help the driver avoid potential accidents. The list of technology is comprehensive, and includes:

• Active emergency brake assist – brakes the vehicle to a standstill within its lane if it detects no input on the steering wheel during a pre-defined time and after multiple visual and acoustic warnings
• Active lane change assist – capable of automatically changing the vehicle’s lane when either of the indicators are activated
• Active distance assist Distronic (adaptive cruise control) with active steering assist – maintains a set distance (and maximum speed) to the vehicle in front, while also providing in-lane active steering assist
• Active blindspot assist – warns the driver of the presence of another vehicle in the car’s blindspots. Also capable of alerting the driver to vehicles and bicycles approaching from behind as they are about to open their door
• Autonomous emergency braking
• Active speed limit assist – automatically adjusts the adaptive cruise control speed with the help of the traffic sign recognition function

The active lane change assist works well when using the adaptive cruise control, taking its time to check for traffic before making the manoeuvre. The active speed limit assist works with the cruise control but we found it to be quite abrupt when adjusting to speed changes – driving into a lower speed limit often resulted in the sudden application of the brakes, making for a less relaxed experience.

The same is true for the operation of some of the other safety systems. The active lane keeping is very aggressive, for example, and will tug hard on the brakes if you even try to pull out behind a car that’s passed you without leaving enough room for the system’s satisfaction. One you learn that the car is going to react like this you can account for it, but the first few times its intervention can come as quite a shock.

From the 2023 facelift, all A-Class models come with LED lights and high-beam assist. Premium Plus cars come with the useful Multibeam adaptive headlights that allow main beam to stay on more of the time.

Mercedes-Benz A-Class Euro NCAP crash test results