Mercedes-Benz GLA: The Unexpected Offroader

Basem Wasef

It's a cool afternoon in the rugged countryside just outside of Granada, Spain, and Mercedes-Benz's new GLA is aimed sharply downhill as it negotiates a 30 percent grade. The nav screen displays relevant terrain data and front wheel position while the driver—none other than Daimler Management Board Member Prof. Dr. Thomas Weber—casually steers the petite SUV while discussing the world's voracious appetite for compact crossovers.

What is this city slicker sport 'ute doing with its nose buried into the earth and a rear wheel dangling in mid-air? Curiously (and unlike the GLK, Mercedes-Benz's last SUV introduced Stateside), the new GLA will be offered in the U.S. with an available offroad package, a surprising option for this otherwise road-focused ride. Perhaps more notably, any GLA equipped with 4Matic all-wheel drive will include hill descent control and an offroad transmission mode, unexpected items in a class of vehicle usually known for its reluctance to depart from paved roads and venture into the wild.

Basem Wasef

While more capable offroad than you might expect, the GLA's underpinnings suggest concessions made to dirt despite a generally road-biased focus. For instance, offroad footing is enhanced through electronic, not mechanical, means; there's no low gear to speak of; and despite nearly 50,000 miles of testing which included off-pavement conditions, this is hardly the sort of ride you'd pick for a Moab excursion—especially considering it's based on the same front-drive based MFA platform also used on the landlubbing CLA small sedan.

For clarification on the GLA's mission, we checked in with Mercedes-Benz product planner Dr. Helmut Groesser, who told us that hardcore offroaders would, indeed be better served with a GLK. Or a G-Wagen. Or, in his words, "... a Jeep Wrangler," a reference that single-handedly quelled any lingering suspicion that a hopped-up GLA might someday make its way into the Baja 1000.

Absent of any further explanation of the GLA's unforseen soil-traversing capabilities, we decided to finally accept this particular skill set as a pleasant Easter Egg of functionality within a segment that otherwise seems destined to disappoint enthusiasts who love driving both urban roads and gnarly trails.

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