2015 Mercedes GLA appeals to a new generation of active buyers

The new 2015 Mercedes-Benz GLA is the first Mercedes compact SUV and quite possibly it’s the sportiest compact SUV on the planet. We’ve been covering the new Mercedes GLA and believe it will be a big hit for the German automaker. It’s the right size at the right time as a new generation of buyers are looking for a premium compact SUV.

Mercedes hit all the right areas with the GLA. It features a new progressive design, functional for everyday use, with an eye towards recreation on the weekends with all-wheel-drive. Mercedes enters the growing premium compact car market with the new GLA and it will be the fourth of five new compact models from Mercedes-Benz. It will compete with the BMW X1, Audi Q3 and Range Rover Evoque.

If the new GLA is as popular with younger Millennial buyers as the new A-Class, and CLA-Class, it's sure to fly out of dealer showrooms. Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars said, “We launched our offensive in the compact car segment here in Frankfurt in 2011. The motto was, ‘The pulse of a new generation’. Two years later, I often have a higher pulse rate – when I look at the sales figures. With a plus of almost 19 percent, Mercedes-Benz was not only the fastest growing premium brand in August, but for the whole year, too.”

Mercedes is growing fast around the globe and has made good decisions by entering the premium compact segment. Dieter Zetsche went on to say, “We have not least our new compact models to thank for that. Since the start of the year, they have achieved a sales increase of more than 60 percent against the previous year.”

The GLA is a perfect size for city commuting and will be used for a young active generation on the weekends for trips to the beach and mountains. The GLA is the first Mercedes SUV to offer as an option the new generation of the 4MATIC all-wheel drive system with fully variable torque distribution. It’s ideal for a new Millennial generation and Mercedes calls it “the trekking shoe in the Mercedes line-up.”

It will come with a host of new engines for the global market. It will feature gas engines with 1.6 and 2.0 liters of displacement and extends initially from 115 kW (156 hp) in the GLA 200 to 155 kW (211 hp) in the GLA 250. In addition, buyers can chose two diesel variants, the GLA 200 CDI with 100 kW (136 hp) with a maximum torque of 300 Nm, and the GLA 220 CDI with 125 kW (170 hp) and 350 Nm.

The all-new 2015 Mercedes-Benz GLA can be ordered at the end of November in Europe and will reach U.S. shores next fall.