What is the fuel consumption of the Mercedes Benz GLA?
By
Vroomouk
In this article, we review the latest Mercedes Benz GLA 250 and answer the most asked questions: what is the MPG of Mercedes Benz GLA 250? Which engine is used in the GLA 250? And should you buy the Mercedes Benz GLA 250?
What is the fuel consumption of the Mercedes Benz GLA?
Mercedes Benz GLA is the smallest SUV sold by Mercedes Benz and the fuel consumption in the city is approximately 28 miles per gallon. On the highways, the fuel consumption is 35 mpg, much better thanks to the new 8-speed dual-clutch transmission.
Mercedes Benz launched the second generation of the GLA with the model series H247 in 2019. The new GLA is bigger than the previous model and offers a comfortable sitting position in the back seat with ample headroom.
With a fuel tank capacity of more than 12 gallons, Mercedes Benz GLA 250 can cover more than 300 miles in one fuel tank of gas. Like the old GLA 250 which had a 4matic all-wheel-drive system, the new GLA 250 is available in front-wheel drive as well as an all-wheel-drive but the fuel economy of the 4 Matic models is less than the front-wheel-drive model.
The suspension setup in the front remains unchanged from the previous GLA. There is a Macpherson strut connected to the steering knuckle and a lower control arm. On the rear, however, it’s a completely redesigned suspension setup. There is a dead axle connecting both rear left and right wheels and the suspension now rides on a set of trailing arms connected to the vehicle body. This gives the GLA much better stability in the back, especially at high speeds.
The interior design of the GLA is now much in line with the latest Mercedes Benz styling with a 64 light ambient illumination system and a 10-inch dual-screen setup. MBUX is a piece of standard equipment with the Mercedes Me connect.
Which engine is used in the GLA 250?
The first generation of the GLA used a 2.0 litres M270 petrol engine. The power output of the M270 engine is 208 bhp and 350 Nm of torque. The top speed of the first generation was 230 kmph with the 0-100 kmph achieved in under 7 seconds.
The second generation of the GLA launched in 2019 has an M260 petrol engine. It is also 2.0 litres in displacement but there is also Camtronic in the intake side of the engine. Camtronic is a Mercedes Benz variable valve lift technology that shifts the intake camshaft to a more aggressive high cam profile. A higher cam profile means the valve opens more and allows more air into the cylinder. The power output of the M260 is 221 bhp and 350 Nm of torque.
Like the M270, M260 also has camshaft adjustment for both intake and exhaust camshafts which can advance or retard the opening and closing of intake as well as exhaust valves. Thanks to the camshaft adjustment the torque curve of the engine is very wide with maximum torque generated as early as 1800 rpm.
The turbocharger is wastegate controlled but the actuator of the wastegate is completely electric and controlled by the engine control unit via pulse width modulation signal. The intercooler is still liquid-cooled with an air bypass valve to compensate for the different driving conditions.
The engine and cylinder head are made up of aluminium alloy. Cylinder walls are lined with Nanoslide coating. Nanoslide is an extremely thin coating applied to the inner surface of the cylinder to reduce friction between the piston. Twin-wire arc spraying (TWAS) is used to spray an extremely thin coat of iron-carbon alloy on the cylinder walls. The friction between the piston and piston rings is reduced by almost 50 per cent.
The engine oil pump is driven by the crankshaft and oil pressure can be regulated between 4.0 to 6.7 bars.
The fuel system is direct injection and fuel injectors are directly mounted in the fuel rail. A single high-pressure fuel pump generates a fuel pressure of 200 bars; it is driven by a spring-loaded cam roller on the exhaust camshaft. There is an independent vacuum pump driven by the intake camshaft and the intake manifold vacuum is fully utilised to improve the cylinder charging.
There are 4 valves per cylinder with integrated output stages in the individual ignition coils. Ignition coils are also capable of multi-spark mode. Spark plugs generate an ignition voltage of 15000 to 45000 volts in a Mercedes Benz petrol engine.
Multi spark mode is active during the warm-up phase and instead of discharging the ignition coil completely, it is changed again in small intervals. This results in multiple sparks which increase the combustion temperature and the engine can reach the operating temperature more quickly.
M260 like its predecessors, M270 uses an open deck engine block design. The water pump can be shut off with the help of a vacuum-operated shut off valve during the warm-up phase. The engine also idles at slightly higher engine speeds and variable valve timing increases valve overlap between the intake and the exhaust valves.
Due to the valve overlap, there is internal exhaust gas recirculation as the exhaust valve remains open during the suction stroke. This reduced the overall NOX emissions and there is no need for additional external exhaust gas recirculation systems.
Despite the Camtronic and twin-scroll turbocharger, the top speed is now reduced to 200kmph and 0-100 kmph takes almost 8 seconds. This is due to the increase in overall weight and dimensions of the new H247 GLA.
Should you buy the Mercedes Benz GLA 250?
Even if the new GLA is slightly slower than the old model, it has better interior space and an updated suspension setup. The handling is significantly better than the old model, the biggest improvement however is in the gearbox department.
The new GLA used Mercedes Benz 8 speed dual-clutch transmission; there is one more additional gear compared to the 7-speed DCT. The new transmission is so much better than the old 7-speed DCT, gear shifts are much faster and the common customer complaint of sluggish downshift in the 7-speed gearbox is non-existent in the 8-speed DCT.
Downshifts are now very fast and precise, and an additional auxiliary oil pump built into the electronic valve body supports the main oil pump. The transmission oil filters are also located at the bottom of the gearbox, which makes the job of replacing the automatic transmission fluid very fast and less expensive.
The new GLA 250 is a good car and worth buying if more ground clearance and headroom is your priority.
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Conclusion
The fuel economy of GLA 250 was always the best in the class and with the launch of the new model Mercedes Benz offers better interior space and latest features. Advanced driver assistance systems like active brake assist and active blind spot assist come as standard.
