Mercedes-Benz A-Class A180d diesel 4x2 automatic

Our verdict

The original A-Class came to the market in 1997 and, now in its fourth generation, remains part of Mercedes-Benz's line-up. The car tested by Green NCAP is the 180d, with Daimler's 1.5 litre, turbocharged four cylinder diesel engine. Energy efficiency is a strong point for the car, with low fuel consumption for a car of its weight. For pollutant emissions, the car has selective catalyst reduction, a three-way catalyst and a diesel particulate filter. On the whole, these work well and emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases are well controlled. Oxides of Nitrogen are the only weak point: in the Clean Air index, NO_x is elevated in the more challenging tests and emissions of N₂O, a powerful greenhouse gas, reduce the score in that part of the assessment. The indexes in these two areas of assessment reduce the average and result in an overall 2½ star rating.