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2018 GLA "facelift"

10541 Views 22 Replies 14 Participants Last post by  YYZGLAguy
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2018 Bringing Changes....

Have just been advised that our 2017 Canadian AMG45 slated for March produciton is not happening and that a "refreshed" 2018 will come in its' place. Dealer has no idea of packages, pricing or anything. Seems that either January or Februatry will be the run out for the 2017 MY. Our dealer seemed surprised and pointed out that they knew a refreshed GLA was coming but did not believe it would happen until at least May. produciton/July delivery. One of the reasons given was GLA sales are not great and higher quality trim is needed to compete with the BMW X1 and Audi Q3 plus there is a new version of COMMAND that is supposed to be a material improvement (had better be as current verison of COMMAND is at least one generaion behind the pack in my view). He also indicated there are rumours that the AMG45 will get a bit more power to compete with the RS3 that is coming Canada shortly.


Has anyone else got information as to when the refreshed North American GLA will be forthcoming, what the changes really are or seen the Dealer Order Guide for either Canada or USA?
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Usually August/September time is when the production begins for next year's model.
Very interesting piece of information YYZGLAGuy! Welcome to the GLA forum. Please keep us posted with what you're hearing, that definitely gets our interest!
hi all

2018 Mercedes GLA gets styling and feature updates in regular and AMG strengths - Autoblog

looks like the gla has had a nip and tuck...a bit of botox here and there and a bit of collagen... looks good!
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Looking forward to seeing it later today at the Detroit Auto Show.....
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Here is an update on the 2018 GLA from the DAS (via Automobile magazine)>>
2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class First Look | Automobile Magazine

For those looking for any hp increases it will not be... 250 remains 208 hp and the AMG45 remains 375 hp.

To me it is more of Right_mr notes... nip and tuck for now.
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Well I'll be the first to say...I Don't like it. Too much flash, too much color for my taste..it yells LOOK AT ME!!
I don't see anything that would make me want to trade my '15 GLA250. I see a few limited cosmetic changes at best, or a cheapened up cost reduced version at the worst.


MB had over two years to work cost reductions since initial launch. Some of that is just beating up or leveraging the parts vendors to reduce component pricing, but part are engineering changes that may or may not be to the vehicle owners benefit. I know how this works because I've been an engineer in the automotive industry for 40 years. After a series of design cost reductions and specification changes, the product still functions, but with much less safety margin.
It's already all over instagram since last night. Search for #gla45. I gotta say the amg at least to me seems more tame now. Now sure about the new wheels. Maybe they will grow on me.

The led headlights are a very welcome edition the drl have the huge reverse C like in the face lift w204.

Mb didn't give the amg the new signature curled lip treatment which is odd.

New tail lights got rid of the circles.

For the 45 the rear bumper is a little disappointing. The space between the paint and the diffuser now have significant black plastic with no detail. The old bumper have the fake mesh.

New aero front lip but no new fins, spoilers or diffuser.
One thing i am excited about is the new version gets a 360 parking cam as an option. Now i wouldnt be surprised if merc said this 360 cam cant be retrofitted to a pre-2018 model but i'd very much like a 360 cam on my car/suv/vehicle thingy. That was one of the big disappointments for me with the 2017 model. Especially as here in the UK, it's all about parking in really tight spaces. I'll be enquiring whether merc can do a retrofit for me and the cost. I'll keep you guys posted. The other two bits i was a bit less enthusiastic on was that the driving assistance package on the gla was a bit crap vs costing the same on a c class pack which had active steering assist (steer the car for a few seconds) and active lane keep assist (brake one set of wheels to pull you back in the lane if you depart accidentally) etc for the exact same price.

A heads up display option too would have been nice especially as I find the speedometer on the 45 is about as useful as a chocolate teapot.
Well, I will confess to a bias toward the 2017 45 since that is what Pam and I have, but I am envious of the LED headlights (the current lights are marginal in the mountains and in the snow and in general ... hopefully the new ones are dynamic and can be retrofitted), the 360 camera (that I believe would help Pam but I doubt that this could be added), and the hands free hatch (what a pain to find a third hand when walking up to the car).

A heads up display (future?) as mentioned might be nice, but possibly distracting. I'm still not sure about that.

Progress or not, change is inevitable!!!
Well, I will confess to a bias toward the 2017 45 since that is what Pam and I have, but I am envious of the LED headlights (the current lights are marginal in the mountains and in the snow and in general ... hopefully the new ones are dynamic and can be retrofitted), the 360 camera (that I believe would help Pam but I doubt that this could be added), and the hands free hatch (what a pain to find a third hand when walking up to the car).

A heads up display (future?) as mentioned might be nice, but possibly distracting. I'm still not sure about that.

Progress or not, change is inevitable!!!
Hopefully the US reg are more relaxed for the 2018, the Intelligent light system (ILS aka moving headlights) already exist for the 15-17 bixenons but not implemented due to regulations or cost cutting.

Its going to be less plug and play if ILS is involved ... i think. looking at the new LEDs head lights for the CLA they are NOT ILS
Also no one is mentioning MB totally copied Brabus with the lower vertical grills for the 45 lol
I dig that new "canyon beige" color! I'd take that with the standard chrome/silver trim and those nice thin spoke wheels on the 45. Not a fan of the black wheels on the 250 though... too much like an XV Crosstrek. And I'm disappointed in the taillights. The rings in the old ones were more distinctive.
I like the changes, they are a nice direction but certainly nothing that makes me wish I would have waited.

The around view and hands-free hatch would be very useful but not necessary. Given the small size and the rear camera with front and rear sensors, parking is pretty simple. LED would likely be pretty expensive and at least for me not worth it. I like the new styling but it's break even for me in terms of current to new.

Somehow, they still kept the horribly ugly door pins. I guess we'll have to wait for the full update for that massive upgrade.

All around a nice refresh, I guess we won't see a full new model until 2020 or 2021?
I like the changes, they are a nice direction but certainly nothing that makes me wish I would have waited.

The around view and hands-free hatch would be very useful but not necessary. Given the small size and the rear camera with front and rear sensors, parking is pretty simple. LED would likely be pretty expensive and at least for me not worth it. I like the new styling but it's break even for me in terms of current to new.

Somehow, they still kept the horribly ugly door pins. I guess we'll have to wait for the full update for that massive upgrade.

All around a nice refresh, I guess we won't see a full new model until 2020 or 2021?
typically a manufacture will use the same frame/model for 6-8 years

sorry to break this to you but even the 100+ thousand dollar E63 comes with plastic pins
typically a manufacture will use the same frame/model for 6-8 years

sorry to break this to you but even the 100+ thousand dollar E63 comes with plastic pins
So since the 2014 was the first year then it would be a 2020-2022, somewhere in there? That will make for a perfect time to upgrade with my lease.

I knew the C-class had them as well, was not aware even the E63's also had them. That's a shame, I'm ok with plastic, just don't make it look like a piece of licorice twizzlers. It's an easy enough thing to change I guess, there are a bunch of OEM and ebay/amazon options for that.
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