[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by Vintage1

Finally, it's an A220 CDI, both petrol and diesel Mumbai on road 26 lakhs, only the petrol will have a panoramic sunroof. Rest of the internal features are the same. For a small amount, the power/torque can be increased without affecting warranty.

A220cdi? Where? The price is a bit high, but in Euros for an India spec car its hardly a lac or 2 cheaper.

[Bluebeem]

Originally Posted by Vintage1

Finally, it's an A220 CDI, both petrol and diesel Mumbai on road 26 lakhs, only the petrol will have a panoramic sunroof.

This is official? Isn't the launch end of the month

[Vintage1]

It's semi-official..from the dealer ie indicative price. It's definitely a 220 diesel and 180 petrol

[ajmat]

At the end of the day, the A class is purely a lifestyle choice. If Mini's sell at Rs 35L+ and outdated VW Beetles sell for the same price as a Superb - why not take a chance?

Who will buy it?

Quite possibly

• Young aspiring couples
• People looking for a small prestige self driven car
• May be old people like me who wants a bit of flash for less cash once our kids are independent

As for horses - 106 might be low but then one needs to see how well optimised the car is in terms of gearing etc.

A class vs Jetta vs Golf vs 1 series vs S40 - frankly one cannot assume a winner, you need to go test and decide which one is for you!

[speedy]

Originally Posted by Vintage1

Finally, it's an A220 CDI, both petrol and diesel Mumbai on road 26 lakhs, only the petrol will have a panoramic sunroof. Rest of the internal features are the same. For a small amount, the power/torque can be increased without affecting warranty.

I think you got something wrong here. Mercedes has only the A180 and 180 CDI in India for 25 Lakhs, nothing about the A220 CDI at all from the dealership.

[Vintage1]

Confirmed with Shaman. It is indeed a 2.2 for the diesel. Maybe a call to Amar Sheth of Shaman might put all doubts to rest.

[Mpower]

Very interesting and risky move.

The A & B classes are not sold in the USA because of concerns that it will harm the brand's high end & aspirational image.

Keep in mind they can easily sell x100 more cars in North America but have still not succumbed to the temptation!

[spyder918]

Got a snap from the brochure of A-Class UK, check the the detailed dimensions as below (even more useful and meaningful for those who understand the engineering graphics)

[vij]

Originally Posted by iliketurtles

Gorgeous car on the whole, and that grille! Ooh la la. But that pricing (if it is north of 20L) will definitely kill off a lot of interest in it. How many people will shell out the dough for a 20L hatchback? Car-buyers in our nation are very value-conscious, and I'm not sure how much value there is in the A Class. If you can spend that much on a smaller car, you can (should) stretch your budget a bit more and go for a proper sedan. That's just how many will see it. Let's see how the A Class goes, should be interesting

Its almost 4.3m - not your average hatch... this is a sedanish-hatch if you will... And its a Merc which means they can ask 20L+ for this and it will sell!

[premjit]

I for one really hope that Merc reaches out to a large number of buyers who shell out the list price. Would be quite interesting to see what the pre-worshipped prices for the A class would be 2 years down the line, one the novelty wears off and the Audis and BMW's come in with their offerings, as well as their financing plans.

Imagining a 2 year old sparsely used A class selling at 40% of the initial price. Now that would be a steal, A Diesel Automatic Hatch.

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by premjit

I for one really hope that Merc reaches out to a large number of buyers who shell out the list price. Would be quite interesting to see what the pre-worshipped prices for the A class would be 2 years down the line, one the novelty wears off and the Audis and BMW's come in with their offerings, as well as their financing plans.

Imagining a 2 year old sparsely used A class selling at 40% of the initial price. Now that would be a steal, A Diesel Automatic Hatch.

40%! That sounds very dreamy for a diesel car in India as a depreciated value in 2 years. I think it might be more like 60 - 65%. If it really does get to 40%, I would be first in line!

[Bluebeem]

Originally Posted by ajmat

At the end of the day, the A class is purely a lifestyle choice. If Mini's sell at Rs 35L+ and outdated VW Beetles sell for the same price as a Superb - why not take a chance?

Who will buy it?

Quite possibly

[*]Young aspiring couples[*]People looking for a small prestige self driven car[*]May be old people like me who wants a bit of flash for less cash once our kids are independent


As for horses - 106 might be low but then one needs to see how well optimised the car is in terms of gearing etc.

A class vs Jetta vs Golf vs 1 series vs S40 - frankly one cannot assume a winner, you need to go test and decide which one is for you!

I think there is very little doubt that this car is going to be a lifestyle choice. Unfortunately in india "lifestyle choice" would mean it'll sell a really small number of units. If I remember correctly, the mini sold approx 50 units lay year.

What Mercedes is trying to do is make this car a runaway success and help turn Merc's tables in india. I assume runaway success means they expect to sell at least 2500-3000 units at least. Many think this could give similarly price sedans a run for their money (I don't think so). I think in that case too, it would need to do significant numbers to pose any threat.

Originally Posted by vij

Its almost 4.3m - not your average hatch... this is a sedanish-hatch if you will... And its a Merc which means they can ask 20L+ for this and it will sell!

The B class is actually larger, but still a failure. So was the R class. Now that I think about it merc has failed miserably with all their attempts of any fastback/hatchbacks in india.
I think it's the positioning and perception more than the actual dimensions. Its a hatchback because its positioned as one. Only those who are very seriously considering this car would ever reach a stage or make the effort of actually looking at the dimensions. Also it's not the most spacious car in the market. So I assume on the inside it'll feel like a hatch only.

[urajkumar]

Gosh! This thread has certainly has seen some hot arguments! Kudos to Merc to have shaken the market and BHP'ians out of their slumber.

Nonetheless here is my 2 bits since we are a joint family with a wide array of cars at home (Merc E series, Skoda Superb, Innova, i-20 and santro) & most of them have been bought into the argument. With today mad rush at office to get parking space, i have been waiting for the Ecosport only because its as good as sedan but less than 4 meters which makes it easy to park. I am sure there are many who want a smaller car but with all the bells and whistles to tell everyone that they have "arrived" in life (yet still finding it easy to park @ office / shopping etc). Something their wife can drive for grocery shopping but yet look a class higher among her friends. Something their teenage son/daughter can drive to college & still look cool (the B class cant do that with its looks but the A can)

Also the competition in this segment is only Beetle & Mini at the moment which i am sure will be blown away by the A. The BMW 1 series looks terrible and i doubt if it can challenge the Merc A. Audi is still waiting and watching the game saying "India is not ready for a premium hatch". Audi have been right so far & only time will tell if their so far successful strategy will continue to help them.

So if u ask me, i am desperately hoping it works! If i had a budget of 25 lakhs, i would close my eyes and buy the A-class today. However the key to success in India is the pricing which as always decides the fate in our market. Lets wait and watch as the months unfurl.

[samyakmodi]

Originally Posted by S2!!!

to an extent but then the C-Class MT was sold at a time when the chauffeur culture was just about picking up and most of the people who bought these cars preferred automatics as that was a status symbol then (and obviously because the cars were mainly self driven then). Now with people hiring chauffeurs for all sorts of cars (including Nanos), a person would probably be concerned more with back-seat comfort and probably gizmos rather than an auto-tranny.

Also I'd like to point out that there are maximum cars in the 13-25 lakh range which come with a manual transmission alongside an automatic option and have been warmly welcomed by the masses - Altis, Cruze, Jetta, Superb, Fortuner, Passat to name a few. The manuals would be lighter on the pocket to run and maintain (DSG failures for example).

Hence, coming back on topic I'd still love to believe that somewhere in the distant future a manual option in either the A or the 1-series is introduced and the right list of features at the rights price would definitely bring them that much closer to the masses.

i beg to differ here my friend

no matter what anyone has to say - the ease of driving an automatic is a major selling point nowadays. there are only a handful of petrolheads who still prefer manual over auto - and that too is changing with the paddle shifts.

if a person is really "price conscious" he would anyway wouldn't be interested in buying a mercedes to start with. manual transmission i agree would bring down the price in the lesser than 20 lacs - but then it would just be a marketing gimmick of having a 3 pointed star so cheap.

the point is - this car would be primarily be for only 3 kinds of people i feel
1. an executive who is doing real well and stays in a city where traffic is a major hassle
2. a young businessman who wants to gift a nice car to his wife - who also would let him drive the car every now and then
3. a rich businessman who wants to gift his kid a flashy car.

if you are thinking that a mercedes if made cheaper would appeal to more people - yes it would. but not the "price conscious" types. the cost of maintaining these cars hurts - and it hurts big time.
heck even whenever my laura goes for a service - it sets me back by about 15-20k. this is when there is nothing wrong with the car. the parts are damn expensive - and price goes up the higher you go in the "premium" category.

this car would do well as a rich man's toy - other than that - i have my doubts

[sgiitk]

Any idea as to what may be the annual service and maintenance costs? Now Merc is entering a more cost conscious segment.