2021 Mercedes-Benz A 35 Sedan Review

Intro
Mercedes-Benz first introduced the A class to North America in 2019. It is an excellent entry level luxury vehicle aimed at younger buyers. Now the Mercedes-AMG team has gotten their hands on the A class and transformed them into two performance vehicles. They include the A35 hatchback, which is only available in Canada, and the A35 sedan. We reviewed the A35 hatchback a couple months ago and had a blast. Thank so Mercedes-Benz Canada, this time we get to test drive the 2021 A35 sedan for comparison. Below is our unbiased review.

Exterior

Readers of my reviews would know that I am biased toward hatchbacks, and it is the same case with the A35. The sedan version looks even more understated than the hatchback, and is perfect if you prefer the sleeper look. 

Just like the hatchback, the front grill features a twin bar grille design with matte chrome slats and a giant three pointed star in the middle. The striking daytime running lights and the LED headlamps are identical to that of the A220. 

On the side, the 18” 5-twin-spoke bicolor wheel matches perfectly with the long wheelbase for a low, sporty stance. But the rear portion of the car looks a little too short compared to the long hood, making the side profile slightly disproportionate in my eyes. 

The rear of the A35 sedan features round chrome tailpipes and a large black apron. I am a fan of the rear light signature. The twin bar design is elegant and futuristic.

Honestly, without the AMG badge it is hard to tell the A35 sedan and the A220 apart. Maybe that is exactly what you are looking for if you don’t want to catch too much attention on the road. 

Interior

I chose to do the photoshoot of the car at night to showcase the stylish RGB LED mood lights. No other manufacturer does it as well as Mercedes. It really feels like the interior of a night club once the sun goes down. 

You will certainly notice the brushed aluminum dash trims and the back racing stripes once you step inside. An AMG logo can be found within the left portion of the black stripes. It is amazing how effective a simple upgrade like this makes the interior of the A35 sedan feel more sporty.

Beside that, the AMG style steering wheel and AMG racing seats are what sets the A35 apart from its non-AMG sibling. The front seats are covered in ARTICO man-made leather with red highlight stitching. The seats are supportive, and quite comfortable even for longer drives. Seat warmers are standard, but you won’t be able to add a heated steering wheel. This would be a nice feature to have during our brutal winters in Canada. 

The rear seats offer decent legroom and somewhat limited headroom. Rear passengers enjoy dedicated air vents behind the center console but there are no dedicated climate controls in the rear cabin. 

Infotainment

The A35 sedan features the same excellent Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) infotainment system as the A220. Standard A220 gets two 7” displays but the A35 upgrades the screens to 10.25”. The $3300 premium package also unlocked features such as Apple Carplay, Android Auto, wireless charging, and Burmester Surround Sound System. 

The left digital instrument cluster display sits right in front of the steering wheel and displays important vehicle information like the speed, fuel economy, and the trip information. The right center media display, which is also a touchscreen, sits right on top of the center console. It is multi-functional, and can be configured to show pretty much anything the user desires. 

The second part of the MBUX system are the touchpads on the steering wheel. They are similar to the small touch pads on an older blackberry. I love the fact that you never have to take your hands off the steering wheel to access pretty much all functions of the car.

There is another way you can control the many functions of the car without taking your hands off the wheel. That is via the LINGUATRONIC voice assist. It is a natural language smart assistant that functions like the Apple Siri or Google Assist. Simply say "Hey, Mercedes", or press the voice command button, and you can ask the A35 to make a phone call, plot a new navigation route, close the roller sunshade, or change the interior light. The voice assistant can control basically anything that is not safety related. The system is smart enough to understand commands like "I am cold" or "I am hungry" to raise cabin temperature, or to find the closest restaurant.

The final part of the MBUX system is the track-pad that is located in the center console. There is a padded resting place for the wrist, which allows the fingers to scroll through the display menu or to hand-write inputs. I am not a big fan of the touchpad. I prefer rotary command dials similar to the ones found in BMWs and Mazdas, but the touchpad of the A35 is responsible and accurate. 

There are 5 USB C ports in the car. You will need the provided adapter if you are still using USB A charging cables.

Safety and Driver Assistance

As with most Mercedes-Benz vehicles, while the A35 comes with some standard safety features, many of the more advanced features are optional. Standard features include:

• Active Brake Assist
• In-vehicle, one-touch calling features
• ATTENTION ASSIST
• LED Daytime Running Lamps
• LED taillamps
• LED High Performance Lighting System
• Rearview camera
• Adaptive braking technology
• Electric parking brake
• Body structure
• Advanced Tire Pressure Monitoring System
• Rain-sensing windshield wipers
• Heated windshield washer system
• Antitheft alarm system with remote panic feature

The following features are optional:

• MULTIBEAM LED headlamps
• Adaptive Highbeam Assist
• Blind Spot Assist
• Vehicle Exit Warning
• Traffic Sign Assist
• Active Parking Assist
• Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC
• Active Steering Assist
• Active Blind Spot Assist
• Active Lane Keeping Assist
• Active Lane Change Assist
• Evasive Steering Assist
• Active Brake Assist with Cross-Traffic Function
• Active Emergency Stop Assist
• Enhanced Stop-and-Go
• Active Speed Limit Assist
• Route-based Speed Adaptation
• 360 camera 

The A35 has yet to be rated by NHTSA and IIHS at the time of writing.

Driving

The A35 sedan is powered by a 2.0L inline-4 turbocharged engine that produces 302 hp of power and 295 lb.ft. of torque. The engine power is delivered to the 4MATIC AWD system via an AMG tuned SPEEDSHIFT dual clutch 7-speed automatic transmission. 0-100km/hr happens in just over 4.6 seconds. 

The transmission is quick to shift and quite responsive to the paddle shifter inputs, but it stumbles occasionally at lower speeds. We noticed the same thing when test driving the A35 hatchback. 

 The AWD system, on the other hand, is excellent. It is front wheel biased, but can send up to 50% of the engine power to the rear. The torque vectoring system helps improve cornering agility and vehicle handling in different weather conditions. 

 The AMG calibrated 4-wheel independent suspension is tuned toward the firmer side. There is very little body roll in corners and barely noticeable pitch and dip during acceleration and braking. On the other hand, larger road disturbances do make their way into the cabin. Some drivers might find it too harsh for daily drives. On highways and in fast corners, the A35 sedan feels planted and well balanced. The steering wheel is nicely weighted and provides meaningful feedback.

There is a dedicated AMG Dynamic Select dial. It lets you transform the car’s character by choosing between Comfort, Sport, Sport Plus, and custom modes. Leaving the car in Sport and Sport Plus modes gives you a firmer steering feel and quicker drivetrain response. It also tends to hold the gear longer than you would like sometimes. 

The AMG A35 Sedan is rated for 9.8L/100km city, 7.6L/100km highway, and  8.7L/100km combined. It is slightly more efficient than the hatchback version. Our one week spirited drive returns a fuel economy figure of 10.5L/100km.

Cargo Space & Storage

Interestingly, the A35 sedan has a larger seat-up cargo capacity on paper. There is 420L of trunk space compared to A35 hatchback’s 370L. In practice, the hatchback configuration provides greater storage flexibility. The 40/20/40 split rear seats can be folded to access additional cabin space. Under the trunk floor is a tire inflation kit.

In cabin storage options are above average, The storage bin under the split-fold armrest is decently sized, and there is a dedicated storage tray for your smartphone in the front center console. The side door pockets are deep and wide, especially the front ones. For rear passengers, two more cup holders can be found in the folding center armrest. There are also two mesh pockets behind the front seat backs.

Verdict

Just like its hatchback sibling, the A35 sedan provides a great entry point to the AMG family. The base price is very reasonable, and the car certainly provides the luxury and performance you would expect from an AMG. I personally prefer the hatchback form factor, but buyers in the states will have to settle for the sedan, or upgrade to the GLA 35. 

Test Vehicle

2021 Mercedes-AMG A 35 4MATIC Sedan 

MSRP

$49,800 CAD base,  $55,500 CAD as tested

Color

Designo Patagonia Red