2024 Mercedes-AMG A45 S review: Excess in brilliance

There are some amazing statistics in the spec of this car: a 2-litre engine producing 416bhp, a sub-4sec 0-62mph time and a 168mph top speed to name but three. But all pale beside the big one: this is a hot hatchback that costs £63,280. Put another way, a Porsche Cayman and over 10 grand spare in your back pocket. Put a third way, almost exactly twice the price of the entry level A-class from which it is derived.

It’s a shame. Because this is one of those cars I really shouldn’t like. It’s so far from the simple, lightweight, affordable formula that created the genre it feels like it doesn’t belong. But it’s brilliant. The engine and gearbox are superb, the former not just powerful, but responsive and sonorous too, the latter whip-crack fast. The chassis has that same skateboard feel of my old Renault 5 GT Turbo, despite weighing twice as much. Hooning around is fabulous, and when you’re done being an idiot, it’ll cruise quietly and comfortably home.

I have also spent a bit of time in an A35, which is a diet version of the same car, shorn of 100 horsepower yet when equipped like the A45 S, still costs over £50,000. It’s nice enough but I really can’t see the point. The A35 is merely an expensive hatchback while the A45 S is an out-and-out road warrior that just happens to come in hatchback form. The price may be silly, but the car to which it is attached is anything but. AF

Mercedes-AMG A45 S

• Price £63,260
• Engine 2 litres, four cylinders, petrol, turbocharged
• Power 416bhp
• Torque 368lb ft
• Weight 1550kg
• Power to weight 268bhp per tonne
• Transmission Eight-speed double clutch, four-wheel drive
• 0-60mph 3.9sec
• Top speed 168mph
• Economy 30.8 mpg (WLTP)
• CO2 208g/km (WLTP)
• Verdict Absurdly daft, absurdly fun