Mercedes A 170 CDI

...front tyres fitted by the Mercedes dealer next week. They quoted £94/tyre including VAT.

Further update August 2009: Mileage 26000 (low for age of car) and the service indicator finally said another service was required. This is only the second service. Booked in at 0.5 days notice. Cost of basic service just under £300. I had the brake fluid changed as a precaution as this wasn't included in the service. This was extra. Also had the ...
...June. I use the headlamps as day running lights so this wasn't totally surprising. Both bulbs were easy to change. Cost from the Mercedes dealer was around £6 each. Still no faults or rattles. On a 120 mile motorway trip recently the average fuel consumption was just under 62 mpg.  ... more

I bought my A-Class in 2006 after driving Golf +, 1 series, Civic, Leon. I found footspace problems with the 1 series, Leon & Golf (I have size 11 and wear Doc's most of the time to work) The dealer MB of Milton Keynes, was very helpful in finding a car close to the specification I wanted. Picking up the car was great as you get to drive it out of the show room. I like the driving position which is fairly high so you get a good view. On the passenger side the front legroom is restriced by the floorpan shape. Room in the rear is very goos for the size of car. Knee room is better than in my last car (old model Civic.)
The engine is quiet once warm, and certainly nippy enough. You can be lazy and run it in quite a high gear if you wish. Economy varies a lot depending upon the journey and driving style. The best was 63mpg on a long motorway journey. The worst 39mpg on a short 'sprint' After 8000 miles I have not needed to top up the oil. There is a gauge which means you can check the level is OK without opening the bonnet. The variable service indicator shows another 7500 miles before a service is due, so I can't comment on the cost. I have been quoted £300 for next year's insurance - fully comp, protected no claims, MK postcode.
The Avantgarde specification means you get auto wipers and lights. These work well most of the time, although I have programmed the lights to be permanently on via the operating system. I will change this at the end of March.
Visibility is good, although the rear wiper is not very effective. As I have a 3 door, the C pillar is quite thick.
The ventilation system is very good. I have the standard semi-automatic system. You can get warm air form the heater almost from the start of a journey. I assume there is a pre heater in the system as diesels can be poor in this respect.
My car has 17 inch wheels which look good. This also comes with stiffer lower suspension, and the ride is quite firm. This may put some people off. I also tried a car on 18 inch AMG wheels and this was harder still. The steering feel is not as good as a 1 series for example, but the car does turn in to corners nicely.
Boot space is good for the size of car, but you have to fold the cushions up the get the backs flat. You do not get removable cushions as standard on the 3 door, so there is a loss of load length compared to the 5 door. Also, you have to pay extra for the variable height boot floor. (They come as part of the easy vario pack)
Some of the details I like are that you get a warning triangle, first aid kit and wheel chock in case you need to change a wheel. space saver tyre though.
The MB Mobilife warranty/recovery service runs for 30 years if you have the car serviced by a franchised dealer, so no need to join the AA/RAC.
So far nothing has broken, fallen off or rattled.
I have the iPod integration kit, which is expensive, but means I can control my iPod through the steering wheel buttons - you also get the song title in the instrument display. This is a dealer fit part and I got a discount on it as the 'deal clincher'
My car also has the 'sports kit' which gives the 17 inch wheels already mentioned, along with metal pedals, sports gear knob, sports steering wheel, sports grille, larger exhaust (all standard on the 200 Turbo) This is a good value pack, as the cost of 17 inch wheels is almost the same.
My favourite thing is at night when you unlock the car - the front foglights, interior and parking lights come on the illuminate the path to the car. It looks really good. A small point I know, and some other cars do the same. Also, when you lock the car the lights stay on for a while - this is automatic, no need to pull a lever or anything.
I also have the Alpaca grey interior. This is mich lighter than the standard black - but not if you have children in the car regularly as it does show up dirt.
The car rates 5* in the Euroncap test, and comes with all the usual safety kit (ABS, brake assist, ESP, tyre pressure sensors if you have 17 inch wheels) If you regularly carry people in the rear, there are seat belt buckle sensors so you know who is wearing their seat belt. On the Avantgarde you get projector beam type headlamps, and these are good at night.
Overall I would recommend this car as a well built and different vehicle, comparatively rare on the road.

Update: I now have 13000 miles on the clock and nothing has gone wrong apart from an intermittent rattle from the steering column area over some low speed vertical bumps. The service indicator is showing 3500 miles to the first service. Fuel consumption was 61.5mpg on a recent long motorway run.

Further update November 2008: The first (and so far only service) cost around £170 and was completed on a Saturday morning. Mileage is now around 21000. 1 fault so far - this was a leak from the rear washer tube which was not clipped to the nozzle properly. I fixed this myself. Recently some of the washer jets became clogged, but I sorted this with a jetwash. I am having two new front tyres fitted by the Mercedes dealer next week. They quoted £94/tyre including VAT.

Further update August 2009: Mileage 26000 (low for age of car) and the service indicator finally said another service was required. This is only the second service. Booked in at 0.5 days notice. Cost of basic service just under £300. I had the brake fluid changed as a precaution as this wasn't included in the service. This was extra. Also had the wiper blades replaced by the dealer, which is very lazy of me. They had menu pricing for this.
Both dipped beam bulbs blew within weeks of each other in June. I use the headlamps as day running lights so this wasn't totally surprising. Both bulbs were easy to change. Cost from the Mercedes dealer was around £6 each. Still no faults or rattles. On a 120 mile motorway trip recently the average fuel consumption was just under 62 mpg. 

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