2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA 250 4MATIC SUV Review, Specs, Price

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The 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class offers a happy compromise. The smallest crossover SUV in the Mercedes lineup is also the most affordable at $37,280. It may not be the best Benz, or even the Benz rolling in your dreams, but well-equipped and flush with options, the GLA250 satisfies many wants without sacrificing many others.  

The redesigned 2021 model is less of a compromise than the first generation model launched for 2015. It’s taller, wider, roomier, with a more comfy ride and better technology. The extensive—and expensive—options list limits this notion of compromise, and some of it should be standard.

The beginner Benz matures into its larger proportions with a taller ride height, wider stance, yet it’s a bit shorter in length. It looks more like a proper luxury crossover instead of a hatchover like the outgoing model. An aviator theme carries over from the mesh grille design to the turbine vents inside. 

2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA 250 4MATIC SUV Review, Specs, Price

A 2.0-liter turbo-4 returns, retuned to 221 horsepower, getting an EPA-rated 28 mpg combined with front-wheel drive. An 8-speed automatic transmission is mostly smooth though it can lurch in Sport mode when downshifting to a stop. An independent rear suspension cushions the ride quality, and it handles less like a hatch and more like a crossover. The 382-hp AMG GLA45 should right that wrong when it launches later this year. 

The reboot rights many of the wrongs when it comes to interior space and comfort. Rear seat leg room shifts from one of the worst in the class to one of the best with 4.5 additional inches of space with reclining and sliding rear seats. The seat bottoms tend to the short side, and cargo volume, while improved, forces a decision between hauling passengers or gear. 

The standard feature set is good, with 8-way power-adjustable front seats, leather-wrapped steering wheel, power liftgate, keyless entry and ignition, and a panel of side-by-side 7.0-inch screens that support Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. The 10.3-inch dual-screen size upgrade will tempt many shoppers, as will many other options that can take the price to an uncompromising $55,000 range.

Though the GLA hasn’t been crash-tested, it includes automatic emergency braking. But to get active lane control, adaptive cruise control and other safety tech that many mass market automakers include as standard, it’ll cost you another $1,700. We recommend it, given the broad blind spots on the GLA.

The first GLA250 launched for 2015 had the proportions of a hatchback more than a crossover. Now more than an inch wider, 3.6 inches taller, and with a longer wheelbase, the 2021 GLA250 grows up as an SUV yet is still cute as a bubble. The inside sports turbine-style vents and a nice mix of soft-touch and aluminum materials. 

The wheelbase grows 2 inches and with up to 20-inch wheels the profile and the stance get larger, buffer, more filled out. The face carries over the airliner vibe with a tri-star planted between wings spanning a mesh grille. The standard LED headlights are complemented by an available Exterior Lighting package ($900) that, upon startup, illuminate the periphery in sequence. Those adaptive headlights are meant more for safety, but it looks pretty cool from the cabin, too. 

The interior contrasts soft-touch dark synthetic leather with metallic surfaces such as aluminum or textured faux carbon fiber (carbon fauber?) around the circular vents, door panels, and the center console. Adjacent 7.0-inch screens can be upgraded to 10.3-inch screens that lean toward the driver. The lower panels belie some plastic pieces that remind you of the entry-level nature, but your passengers would have to look to find fault. 

2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA 250 4MATIC SUV Review, Specs, Price

The enhanced 2.0-liter turbo-4 in the 2021 GLA250 delivers capability and confidence even though it skews to the efficient side of German engineering. 

The bump in horsepower from 208 to 221 enables it to hit 60 mph in 6.6 seconds in all-wheel drive, and it handles well enough to be shifty in urban areas, despite the taller ride height. Those two attributes contribute to the GLA’s 7 for performance. 

The turbo-4 pops quick enough without much lag, so nosing out from a stop or passing on the highway is a breeze enabled by standard paddle shifters. Unlike other Mercedes’ crossover SUVs, the GLA250’s 8-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission sends power to the front wheels, not the rear wheels. It keeps most of the 258 pound-feet of torque up front until the available all-wheel-drive system calls on it to get a grip. In Sport mode, up to 30% of the torque goes to the rear wheels. 

In Sport mode, the transmission could lurch when downshifting quickly from second to first, as if it only wanted to be in first from a dead stop. All-wheel drive, or 4Matic in MB speak, comes with a standard off-road package with a hill descent that brakes itself at speeds up to 11 mph. The torque splits evenly between the axles, but we had no opportunity in taking it off-road, and the 5.6 inches of ground clearance would make us think twice.

The GLA250 rides 0.4 inches higher off the ground than last year, but the independent rear suspension and aluminum MacPherson front suspension cushion the ride and soften the cabin. It’s not meant for the autocross, but the AMG variants might be.  

Expected late this summer, the GLA will be supplemented by a 302-hp 2.0-liter turbo-4 in the forthcoming AMG GLA35 and, at the top of the line, a 2.0-liter turbo-4 making 382 hp in the AMG GLA45. The only compromise with the GLA45 will be in your discretionary income.

The second-generation 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA addresses the biggest problem with the first model: cramped rear seats. Rear leg room expands 4.5 inches, the seats move more than five inches, and cargo volume behind the second row improves. Those seats tend to the stiff side with short seat bottoms, however. But the 8-way power-adjustable front seats and overall fit and finish keeps it classy enough to earn a point for each to a 7. 

The wider, taller proportions of the 2021 GLA make for a roomier inside overall, but some of the expanded rear space eats nearly an inch of leg room from front riders. The front seats are on the compact side, but provide enough support and comfort. A multicontour seat option slightly shifts the seat position every 20 seconds or so, like a poor man’s massaging seat. It’s odd. 

Still, overall comfort is much better, and four adults of above average size can travel in relative comfort, though the cargo space grows only half a foot to 15.4 cubic feet. Trunks of mid-size sedans can handle that, but they don’t have the cute bubble shape of the GLA, nor do they have the higher ride height and broad outward visibility. The blind spot on the rear passenger side is still large, so the Driver Assistance package might be necessary. 

The redesigned GLA250 comes with the kind of standard features that uphold the luxury promise, but the extensive options list ensures that few GLA250 cabins will look the same. On the outside, LED headlights and taillights come standard along with 18-inch wheels with all-season run-flat tires. Mercedes-Benz skips trims for packages, for the most part, and the base GLA250 comes with 8-way power-adjustable front seats, leather-wrapped steering wheel, power liftgate, keyless entry and ignition, and a panel of side-by-side 7.0-inch screens for the instrument cluster and the center display. 

With Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility and the latest MBUX infotainment system with natural voice recognition, the climate, audio, navigation and other controls can be operated four ways: through the touchscreen, on the latest touchpad in the console, through steering wheel controls that we prefer, or voice activation with the wake-up prompt, “Hey Mercedes.” 

The functionality is relatively seamless, even though you might have to scroll right or left through several option pages. There’s a lot of content for the $37,280 starting price, including delivery. All-wheel drive adds $2,000. 

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