A45 build quality ?

[rsk21]

Hello A45 owners

I'm at the point of deciding between a 135 and a 45 facelift.

The BMW is much cheaper and feels like a quality item.

The 45 though is quicker, more raw and I love the slightly mental edge it has, plus the facelift promises to be even more of the same especially with the additional power and front differential.

Something which is really bothering me though is the build quality. I appreciate that it's not going to feel like my CLS inside but having heard a few horror stories of squeaks and unfixed rattles I'm nervous.

So for those of who who have had / have the A45 how have you found the plastics, cabin quality etc if you have had issues with squeaks, rattles etc how good has your dealer/MB at rectifying them for you ?

 

[Giantvanman]

My son is on his second A-Class. An A200 petrol followed by a A220 diesel. No squeaks, rattles or annoyances. There seem to be many who put the new A-Class down, saying it isn't a real Mercedes or even real AMG in the case of the A45. It does not have the gravitas of the much larger and more expensive siblings but it does hold its own in the segment and is far better material wise that some larger and more expensive offerings from BMW etc that I have been in.

The only fault has been the rear off-side position lamp. The bulb is good but fails to illuminate. I gather it is a reasonably common fault as MB just switched out the entire unit when the fault was pointed out… a bad batch/poor conducting material perhaps?

He had a C180 Coupe in-between the As and in my view, the A holds its own easily. His wish list comprises of an A45. Nothing else. And for a twenty-two year old, that speaks volumes.

 

[BenzedUP]

I'd personally go for a 235i, my wife has an A45 (her 2nd A class) and there was rattle that comes from the dash, took 3 visits to the dealer before it was fixed.

I'm not a big fan, she loves the car.

 

[rsk21]

I'd personally go for a 235i, my wife has an A45 (her 2nd A class) and there was rattle that comes from the dash, took 3 visits to the dealer before it was fixed. I'm not a big fan, she loves the car. http://s4.photobucket.com/user/han2...D-40A6-909E-607374C9C1FD_zpsjismkxs3.jpg.html

Thanks

Would go for a 135 over a 2 - same engine now post facelift, a touch more practicality and a bit lighter

 

[grober]

The fact remains the A45 is not built in Affalterbach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany the home of AMG but in Hungary with the engine built in the nearby Kolleda engine plant so its an AMG "lite" model. Its 4 wheel drive with a twin clutch gearbox as opposed to the 135 torque convertor box rear wheel drive car meaning they will drive differently. With cars like this I reckon you should buy on how they drive rather than anything else.
[YOUTUBE HD]UFQRy6KCEBs[/YOUTUBE HD]

 

[BenzedUP]

Thanks Would go for a 135 over a 2 - same engine now post facelift, a touch more practicality and a bit lighter

Go for the 135i then, also the 8 speed gearbox in the BMW is better than the DCT in the A45.

 

[rsk21]

The fact remains the A45 is not built in Affalterbach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany the home of AMG but in Hungary with the engine built in the nearby Kolleda engine plant so its an AMG "lite" model. Its 4 wheel drive with a twin clutch gearbox as opposed to the 135 torque convertor box rear wheel drive car meaning they will drive differently. With cars like this I reckon you should buy on how they drive rather than anything else. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFQRy6KCEBs[/YOUTUBE HD]">YouTube Link</a>

You are right they do drive differently.

BMW funnily enough has more of an AMG fel to it in as amuch as it can be a bit of a GT if needed. Reminds me of an Alfa 147 GTA in many ways.

A45 is much more manic and dramatic.

To say I am in two minds would be an understatement.....

 

[rsk21]

Go for the 135i then, also the 8 speed gearbox in the BMW is better than the DCT in the A45.

ZF is a peach

facelift a45 apparently changed much for the better with new ratios and quicker shifts - difficulty though is that nobody outside of MB has yet driven it to confirm !

 

[c63chris]

I've had an A45 for 18 months now and it replaced my C63 from before. I'm not sure about your build,quality concerns as the C wasn't perfect either. It has a hard ride which does mean you can get resonant frequencies in the dash but my C63 did this as well. Overall the switchgear, dash etc are good. The seats creak a bit but TBH once you have it going you don't notice it. I drove both the A45 and M135i before buying. The M135i is far more sensible being quieter, softer and cheaper but the A45 had me on the up shifts and 18 months I still grin like a 3yr old. The new spec does read well and the A45 forum is full f people worrying about the value of their car when the new one hits the market.

 

[buster2011]

I have just changed from a c63 coupe to an a45 and so far it's excellent, no creaks or build quality issues at all but oddly though my c63 did!

I drove both the a45 and the m135I and I personally thought the bmw was a bit boring and didn't feel any different from the normal 1 series. Also the depreciation is terrible on them from what I have seen.

 

[rsk21]

I have just changed from a c63 coupe to an a45 and so far it's excellent, no creaks or build quality issues at all but oddly though my c63 did!

I drove both the a45 and the m135I and I personally thought the bmw was a bit boring and didn't feel any different from the normal 1 series. Also the depreciation is terrible on them from what I have seen.

Good points both.

The 20% discount on list doesn't throw the depreciation issue but works well for me

I'd agree that the A45 offers more obvious drama

It's apparently fairly easy to get a 35i to 400 BHP but then chassis/suspensions mods are needed. There no denying that the A45 is a loony right out of the box.

With regard to build quality elsewhere in the Mb range I have to say my C63 was very good, red seats aside not a massively special place to be but vey well put together. The CLS is a class up though and feels rock solid, the A (nor the BM) is ever goimg to feel like that so I just need to get my head around that.

 

[buster2011]

Yeah very true, what appealed to me was the tuning capabilities of the a45, both cars have potential of great gains but the a45 has the grip and that really did it for me.

If you go for the a45 make sure you get the aero kit or as I call it the chav kit lol, without it the car looks boring.

 

[rsk21]

Yeah very true, what appealed to me was the tuning capabilities of the a45, both cars have potential of great gains but the a45 has the grip and that really did it for me.

If you go for the a45 make sure you get the aero kit or as I call it the chav kit lol, without it the car looks boring.

That's another thing that's keeping me awake at night too !

The chav kit is both awful and essential

 

[buster2011]

I personally love the kit, it is very chav though and I do feel like I should be attending meets in the local supermarket car parks at times ha.

Is this car going to be used a lot?

 

[Peter DLM]

It must be my inner-Barry speaking, but I actually like the aero kit

I think most MB face lifts also include a hike in quality.

 

[rsk21]

I personally love the kit, it is very chav though and I do feel like I should be attending meets in the local supermarket car parks at times ha. Is this car going to be used a lot?

Daily driver which means station and airport run car with occasional weekend duties

 

[StuA45AMG]

Hello A45 owners

I'm at the point of deciding between a 135 and a 45 facelift.

The BMW is much cheaper and feels like a quality item.

The 45 though is quicker, more raw and I love the slightly mental edge it has, plus the facelift promises to be even more of the same especially with the additional power and front differential.

Something which is really bothering me though is the build quality. I appreciate that it's not going to feel like my CLS inside but having heard a few horror stories of squeaks and unfixed rattles I'm nervous.

So for those of who who have had / have the A45 how have you found the plastics, cabin quality etc if you have had issues with squeaks, rattles etc how good has your dealer/MB at rectifying them for you ?

Have a look on the A class forum, you will get loads of info from there

 

[rsk21]

Have a look on the A class forum, you will get loads of info from there

Hello

Yes have asked a q or two over there - I think I recognise your username ? Also quite friendly with CurlyTopDan whose 45 met an u fortunate demise

 

[rsk21]

It must be my inner-Barry speaking, but I actually like the aero kit I think most MB face lifts also include a hike in quality.

Peter !! I had you down as a paragon of subtle respectability

I think you are right about the facelift = quality hike bit. The A did seem to suffer a lot at first and the ones I have been in have been mixed so hopefully they have nailed the consistency a bit more for the FL.

 

[Palmball]

Reminds me of an Alfa 147 GTA in many ways.

I had three of those 147GTA's (not at the same time!) back in the mid-00's. Loved them and totally agree the M135i shares a lot of character with the Alfa.



On the A45 vs. M135i, as we know I'm a HUGE AMG fan. The missus owned an M135i 18 months ago. And I had two A45's (again not at the same time) on loan earlier this year for about 10 weeks and I did about 5k miles between them.

Here's my view....

The A45 is much faster - there's probably not much out there that is faster in the real world, it handles tidier, has better steering, looks MUCH better inside and out, sounds decent enough, has better seats (all AMG's have amazing seats!) and is more fun.

The M135i is more refined (by a significant margin), rides more comfortably (i.e. softer, a lot softer) and sounds better (the only BMW that does sound better than it's AMG counterpart) and it has a better driving position (the A45 is a bit arms out, knees bent compared to the excellent BMW, but decent enough compared to other hot hatches I guess)

On the subject of build quality, neither is brilliant to be fair - the M135i is clearly built to a price, as is the A45. There's nothing wrong with that, but you do need to be conscious of and accepting of that fact.

However, our BMW didn't rattle - sure, it felt cheap in places but it didn't rattle. In fact, it's about the only BMW I've had that didn't rattle, latest M6 included!

The A45 appears to be made of better materials and looks a lot more stylish. But the examples I had, both of which were brand new when they were loaned to me had dashboard and door trim rattles. I've also had an A250 on loan and this also had similar trim noises.

It's such as shame because if I as buying one, that would be a deal breaker for me. Having spent a lot of time in both and despite typically preferring AMG's, on this occasion the BMW's better refinement and lack of rattles outweighs the A45's undoubtedly larger fun factor. But then the face lifted M135i looks awful at the back - they've sorted the front and ruined the rear IMO - so I doubt either would be on my list again.

OP, you need to go and drive an A45 and see what you think because I am an@l on the subject of rattles and what bothers one person often isn't even noticed by others.