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New A-Class on sale

Friday, 18 Jul 2008 14:11
95 per cent of an A-Class is recyclable
The new generation of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class is now on sale and is being touted as safer, more economical and even greener than before.

More than 125,000 of the vehicles have been sold in the UK since it first launched in 1997, making it one of the best selling models in the range.

The design has been revised and new technical developments have improved safety levels, with crash responsive lighting and adaptive brake lights now included.

All models have new infotainment systems with Bluetooth connectivity and the engines are now more fuel efficient as a result of three new 'BlueEfficiency' models.
From March 2009, an ECO start-stop function will be available on the A150 and A170 with manual transmission and the three-door A160 CDI will benefit from an optional BlueEfficiency package that improves the fuel consumption of the Coupe by more than 11 per cent, to 64.2 mpg.

All models will now feature larger exterior mirror housings and the door handles are now painted in the vehicle colour for all model variants.

The Elegance SE and Avantgarde SE lines have seats which are upholstered in a combination of Artico man-made leather and fabric and are available in three colours.

With fuel consumption figures between 42.8 and 64.2 mpg, the new-generation A-Class is pretty economical to run. Thanks to the introduction of an optional BlueEfficiency package for the three-door A160 CDI, the fuel consumption of the direct-injection diesel engines has been improved by more than 11 per cent or 6.6 mpg compared to the previous model.

The ECO start-stop function lowers fuel consumption and exhaust emissions by automatically switching off the engine during idling phases. ECO start-stop will be available from spring 2009 for the A150 and A170 when twinned with the five-speed manual transmission and will both be badged BlueEfficiency.

When travelling at low speed, the driver only needs to shift the manual transmission to neutral and apply the brakes. The engine is then switched off, and the ECO display appears in the instrument cluster.

The A150 BlueEfficiency (95 hp) achieves 48.7 mpg, resulting in 139 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometre. In city traffic, the new ECO start-stop function can result in fuel savings of up to nine per cent.

The environmental compatibility of vehicles is not only assessed on the basis of standardised emissions and fuel consumption measurement, but takes into account the entire vehicle lifecycle of the vehicle.

An environmental audit, which analyses over 40,000 processes, is the basis of the environmental certificate according to the stringent international ISO standard 14062.

Mercedes-Benz is the world’s only automobile brand to have received this accolade. The assessment reveals that CO2 emissions are around seven per cent lower than the figure for the preceding model of 2004, and nitrogen oxide emissions have been reduced by 13 per cent.

A total of 95 per cent of the A-Class can be recycled, so it already meets the EU regulation coming into force from 2015 and renewable raw materials are used during production, including the use of flax, olive stones, cotton, coconut fibre, wood veneers and abaca fibres.

The A-Class is available with new information, communication, navigation and entertainment systems in the form of Audio 20, Audio 50 and Comand.

Audio 20 incorporates a radio with twin tuner, colour display, a Bluetooth interface for a mobile phone, a telephone keypad, a CD-player, automatic volume adjustment and a connection for external audio units in the glove compartment.

Audio 50 is also equipped with a Europe-wide DVD navigation system and a DVD drive, while the COMAND features HDD navigation, a music register, a slot for SD memory cards and voice control.

The Linguatronic system operates the telephone, audio and navigation system by convenient whole-word commands so the driver can simply say what they want.

A-Class drivers can also benefit from the new optional media interface, which enables the driver to connect an MP3-player, USB stick or other external audio.

The media interface enables the driver to charge and/or control the device through the infotainment system via keys on the multifunction steering wheel and see the titles of music tracks in the instrument cluster and on the colour display in the centre console. Connection of an iPod or similar requires a suitable cable, which is available from the Mercedes-Benz accessories range.

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