Mercedes A-Class hatchback (2013-2018) - Practicality & boot space
Compact shape makes the Mercedes A-Class feel less spacious than rivals
As one of the few hatchbacks in the Mercedes range, the A-Class offers much more flexibility than the brand’s more conventional saloons. Its boot can carry taller items than a saloon’s, but you do need to negotiate a narrow boot opening to get items in. All Mercedes A-Class’ come with five doors, making them much more practical than the three-door Audi A3 or BMW 1 Series. If you want a different body style, your options are the Mercedes B-Class MPV, the Mercedes CLA saloon and the Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake estate.
Mercedes A-Class interior space & storage
The downside of the A-Class’ sporty looks is that the low roofline makes it feel quite claustrophobic inside – something not helped by the black trim on the seats, doors and roof lining. The Audi A3 is more spacious, especially if you go for the five-door A3 Sportback version, and it feels much nicer inside.
Getting into the back seats can be a bit of a squeeze, because the Mercedes’ doors don’t open as wide as some other models’. There should be no such problems for the front seats, thanks to wide-opening doors and lots of space. There are also plenty of storage cubbyholes and cup-holders.
Boot space
Load capacity falls short of the best in class – the A-Class’ 340-litre boot is smaller than what’s offered by the the BMW 1 Series (360 litres), Audi A3 Sportback and Volkswagen Golf (both 380 litres). Folding down the rear seats frees up a total load capacity of 1,157 litres. Annoyingly, to do that you have to remove the parcel shelf completely, plus the high boot lip and small (for a hatchback) boot opening make getting large items in trickier than it should be.
