Mercedes-AMG calls the GLA45 a compact SUV, but it’s really more of a compact luxury hatchback. Its corporate fraternal twin is the CLA compact luxury sedan. The GLA is about four inches taller than a Ford Mustang, and its 4.9 inches of ground clearance is less than you’d find in many compact cars such as the Mazda 3. That doesn’t translate into the adventurous outdoor-lifestyle attributes and expected utility crossovers like the BMW X1 with which the GLA-class competes (and which rides more than seven inches over the pavement). Yet the 375-hp AMG variant squeezes sporty thrills and functionality into a hatchback package with a character that compares more directly with less luxurious performance cars such as the Honda Civic Type R and the Volkswagen Golf R.



Wearin’ the Four-Five

Mercedes-AMG updated the CLA45 for the 2017 model year and followed that with changes to the GLA for 2018. In the process, the GLA45 amped up its looks another notch by ditching some of the crossover-like cues and replacing them with racier pieces. The front bumper drops the squiggly chin plate for a flat splitter insert, and the lower grille and side intakes now have Hannibal Lecter–esque vertical slats. The headlights have been redesigned and no longer wear beaded eyebrows, while the twin-blade radiator grille is now finished in silver chrome.

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Changes to the rear are subtler. While the GLA45 keeps its quad exhaust tips, the mesh bumper insert has been replaced with a solid piece. Meanwhile, the diffuser no longer masquerades as a skid plate, shrinking in width such that it fits between the exhaust tips instead of surrounding them, and its fins are more aggressively drawn.

Small front-bumper canards and a large rear wing can be added by choosing either the $1950 AMG Aerodynamics package that came on our test car or a $6300 AMG Performance Studio package. (A new option for 2018, the latter also includes yellow styling accents inside and out, blacked-out exterior bits, black 20-inch 10-spoke wheels, suede trim for the dashboard and steering-wheel rim, high-back AMG performance seats made by Recaro, ambient lighting, and illuminated front doorsills.) The changes give the GLA a sharper visual edge, but the overall result—especially with the optional add-ons—is nearly as cartoonish as the overwrought Civic Type R.



Ultra Boost

The GLA45 backs up its racy looks with its AMG-fettled engine. A hand-built 2.0-liter inline-four is juiced with a maximum of 26.1 psi of intercooled boost pressure from a twin-scroll turbocharger. Thanks to a new exhaust camshaft and a retuned ECU, output jumped from 355 to 375 horses and from 332 to 350 lb-ft of torque. Mercedes-AMG likes to point out that those numbers make it the most powerful four-cylinder engine in series production and with one of the highest specific outputs in the industry (at 188.3 horsepower per liter, it outshines the 1500-hp Bugatti Chiron’s 187.7).

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Drivers can choose between letting the dual-clutch automatic transmission make the decisions while kicking through its seven gears automatically or selecting their own ratios via wheel-mounted paddle shifters that rev-match on downshifts. Torque goes to the ground via the GLA45’s standard variable all-wheel drive; the system allows a range between full front-wheel drive up to a 50/50 front-to-rear torque split.

Add these elements together, and the result is an exercise in flat-out speed. Even with a noticeable moment of hesitation while the turbo spools, the GLA bolted from rest to 60 mph in 4.0 seconds and completed the quarter-mile in 12.5 seconds, both 0.2 second slower than the times the CLA45 registered. That still makes it substantially quicker than the more economical Honda Civic Type R (4.9 seconds to 60 mph) and VW Golf R (4.5 seconds), advantages the AMG holds through the quarter-mile. Though not always smooth, the transmission clicked through gears quickly and decisively. AMG includes a launch-control feature: With the transmission set to manual control and Sport mode engaged, holding both shift paddles brings up the Race launch-control option. Once selected, one foot goes on the brake while the other mashes the throttle. The system holds the engine at 4000 rpm while the exhaust snaps, crackles, and pops. Simply lift off the brake pedal to release the caged fury.

For times when drivers need to go in more directions than straight forward, the steering is weighty and quick, with turn-in assisted by brake-based torque vectoring. Our completely kitted-out test car came equipped with the AMG Dynamic Plus package. In addition to the limited-slip front differential, the Race driving mode, and the 167-mph top-speed limiter (without it, the GLA45 tops out at 155 mph), this package provides two-stage adaptive dampers that are continually adjusting based on the speed, road surfaces, and driving inputs. The GLA45’s three driving-mode settings (Comfort, Sport, and Sport+) incrementally increase the damper stiffness, but even the softest can’t mask the choppy ride motions that are also evident in the basic Mercedes-Benz GLA250. Paired with the thinly padded one-shape-fits-all AMG performance seats, this suspension transmits every bump and crack in the road directly to your backside—this is among the performance cars that never let you forget its mission.

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But staying planted in the bolstered bucket is key when exploiting the GLA45’s cornering prowess. On our 300-foot-diameter skidpad, it registered 0.98 g, with essentially little to no body roll. This thing stays flat. When it came time to stop, the GLA halted from 70 mph in 153 feet, three feet longer than the CLA needed.





Trunk Club

The GLA one-ups the CLA in interior space. The CLA’s mini-CLS “four-door-coupe” styling compromises usability of the back seat and diminishes luggage space. In contrast, the back seat in the GLA is easy to get into and roomy enough for the legs and elbows of a full-grown adult. The GLA has more headroom, too, which is the main issue with the CLA, and at 17 cubic feet, the GLA has four cubes more cargo space. The 60/40 split-folding rear bench opens up 44 cubic feet of cargo volume despite the seatback not folding fully flat. That’s better than the CLA but is still much less space than in more SUV-like crossovers. Even the Golf boasts 53 cubes with the seats folded.

That said, the GLA45’s cabin presents possibly the nicest interior of any hot hatch on the market, as it should for the asking price. Mercedes still uses its odd audio and phone keyboard in the center stack, but otherwise it’s a simple setup. Real metal trimmings are used throughout on the door panels, dash, steering wheel, and controls. An 8.0-inch display is controlled by a knob on the center console. It’s not a touchscreen, but the system can be had with modern amenities such as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.

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Our test car had enough options to increase the price by nearly 50 percent, from the $51,595 base to $71,185. The matte Mountain Grey Magno paint job alone was $2500. The AMG Aerodynamics package added $1950, and the AMG Dynamic Plus package tacked on $2800. The Multimedia (navigation, voice control, a DVD player, traffic and weather services, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto) and Driver Assistance packages (adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assist) advanced the GLA’s tech game for $2300 and $1500. The AMG performance seats upped the price another $2250, while the Harman/Kardon sound system cost $850 and the performance exhaust $650.

Because the current A-class is not sold here in America (although the next one will be), the GLA45 is the closest thing we have to a luxury hot hatch, even if it’s marketed as something else. As a $70,000 subcompact, the GLA needed to wow with its performance, and it put on an impressive display. Its spring-loaded acceleration, level handling, and over-the-top styling give it a true sporting personality. You can approximate its performance and character for half the price by forgoing the prestige badge and its more luxurious features, but there’s nothing else exactly like it.

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