[AMG_FAM]

Just wanted to see what people in this community do for a living and why Mercedes was the choice? Aside from getting the best or nothing 😏

I'll start off the thread:

I am self employed and own a commercial/residential cleaning business.
it's just the wife, my self and our daughter in the family.
We had to get rid of my 2018 Honda SI Coupe my first baby built it for both track and drag racing. The time came to get rid of it when we planned our pregnancy and with deleted rear seats we had to upgrade the car. Looked into the bronco before the release and was stoked until we saw the markups. Kept looking for something with AWD, some performance either off road or on and a little luxury for the wife. We looked well I mostly looked at the new Type S and wife didn't like the small space in the back for a car seat or stroller in the trunk.
Looked at MDX's and wife loved it but it didn't have any performance for me.
Looked at Tacoma's but too tall for the wife and having to strap a newborn in and out was going to be tough. Looked at 4Runners and we both didn't like the MPG'S. Looked at SRT8's lol just for fun, but now looking at gas prices here in Ca we're glad we didn't get it. Quick note: our neighbor has the Durango Hellcat and he spends $150 a week filling up. Thank you but no thank you.
Finally after looking and looking , out of nowhere i see a review for the 2021 CLA 45 AMG and i was hooked. Awd , more spacious than the type s atleast in my opinion 4 cyl with amazing performance and heck of a luxury machine inside and out. However! Too small for the wife and we go back to the drawing board until later that same day i see another review for the GLA this time, obviously much bigger than the sedan and next thing you know, wife loves it and i find one that weekend 1hr away for sticker price. We put a deposit down to reserve it , we go and make sure all we do is sign to get out in 30 min including the test drive to make sure we all loved it. We were in and out in 30-40 min and no complaints ever since. All i need left is to see how it runs against the Durango Hellcat. One thing for sure, it beats it by lengths on gas price fill ups.

 

[Christine_S]

Hi. I am a college professor. I landed on a GLA as I was finally replacing my Audi A3 hatchback and it seemed like car models keep getting bigger and I like the size of the GLA. My Audi was a 3.2l Quattro with a sport suspension, but I was on my third suspension because of how terrible the roads are around me. I wanted something that was a little more like a Subaru Outback than my Audi, more rough road and fire-road worthy. So, I landed on the GLA. This is my first Mercedes; my previous cars have mostly always been German (VW, BMW, Audi). While this car seems like a slug compared to my Audi, I'm using less gas so I should be happy. The price was great, too. I'm not crazy about how Mercedes keeps everything so close to the vest and doesn't want its drivers to be able to do anything for themselves. I am also disappointed in the after-sale relationship Mercedes has with its customers. All the issues they've let happen with the pano sunroofs? Unacceptable. I also think it's crap that they have no solution for the 3G shutdown. Other brands are upgrading the communication systems in their cars, but Mercedes is just like, "too bad..if you want a connected car you just have to buy a new one". They're not really building a relationship and loyalty for me. I keep a car for a long time, and I don't want to be a second-class citizen because of that. So, I don't know if my next car will be another MB, but that will be a long way off anyway. There's a nice community here. The Audi gearheads are downright intimidating sometimes.

 

[Ioscar95]

Hello, I am a Ironworker from LA. I had a truck but wanted something smaller, good on gas, good for trips, and my dog. The GLA 250 4matic was a perfect choice. I can hook up my bicycle to the back and put luggage on top., perfect!

 

[AMG_FAM]

Hi. I am a college professor. I landed on a GLA as I was finally replacing my Audi A3 hatchback and it seemed like car models keep getting bigger and I like the size of the GLA. My Audi was a 3.2l Quattro with a sport suspension, but I was on my third suspension because of how terrible the roads are around me. I wanted something that was a little more like a Subaru Outback than my Audi, more rough road and fire-road worthy. So, I landed on the GLA. This is my first Mercedes; my previous cars have mostly always been German (VW, BMW, Audi). While this car seems like a slug compared to my Audi, I'm using less gas so I should be happy. The price was great, too. I'm not crazy about how Mercedes keeps everything so close to the vest and doesn't want its drivers to be able to do anything for themselves. I am also disappointed in the after-sale relationship Mercedes has with its customers. All the issues they've let happen with the pano sunroofs? Unacceptable. I also think it's crap that they have no solution for the 3G shutdown. Other brands are upgrading the communication systems in their cars, but Mercedes is just like, "too bad..if you want a connected car you just have to buy a new one". They're not really building a relationship and loyalty for me. I keep a car for a long time, and I don't want to be a second-class citizen because of that. So, I don't know if my next car will be another MB, but that will be a long way off anyway. There's a nice community here. The Audi gearheads are downright intimidating sometimes.

Nice, it's my first German car and you are completely right on a few things. Especially the maintenance!
The dealer tried quoting me $500 for an oil change and fluid checks 😂 obviously i did it myself and only came out to $120 including a beer in the process. these German cars are definitely high maintenance IF you go through the dealer for maintenance and they'll push you to do it because "certified techs" are the only ones able to. Aside from that i actually have had a decent experience with customer service after the purchase to the point where i called and asked if they can fix some paint defect after owning it a month and they said yes with no questions asked. So i did like that.

 

[AMG_FAM]

Hello, I am a Ironworker from LA. I had a truck but wanted something smaller, good on gas, good for trips, and my dog. The GLA 250 4matic was a perfect choice. I can hook up my bicycle to the back and put luggage on top., perfect!

Ironworker, nice. I would definitely love to learn that trade. I actually did HVAC when I was young and being blue collar is something i enjoyed and loved. Until i got hurt on the job (falling from 20ft high) luckily i was just 19 so i somehow just had s minor fracture on my ankle. Ever since then I try to polish up my skills from electrical to plumbing doing small side jobs.this is exactly why I wanted to ask, definitely nice to check out the demographic.

 

[Hendrixhc]

Im an electronics technician working in the photocopier repair industry. Been a technician for 36 years working on lots of different bits of equipment.

I have seven cars and recently sold my FGX XR8 Falcon ( 335kw supercharged v8) to by the GLA. I bought Mercedes cause Ford no longer make anything in Australia and dont really have anything i like in the current range.

Ive found the GLA completely different to any of my other cars as it is fast, smooth, quiet and small!

 

[Huey52]

Retired for seven years now, which means my "honey-do" indentured servitude is at an end? - not a chance.

Electrical engineer working primarily on Government telecommunications programs across several Fortune 500 firms and a number of disciplines. Early on did an 8-year stint in commercial HVAC & security control systems as a designer and project manager.

I grew up with a hammer in my hand going to work with my father's residential construction company from age 12 through college, weekends & vacations (which meant precious few real vacations). btw: I attended the same college at which @Wayne later taught. Small world.

Was also a Marine Corps officer for 26 years, active and reserve. Especially when stationed in SoCal (the then MCAS El Toro) and therefore immersed in their "car culture", and availed of the excellent base automotive hobby shop, I became more interested in automotives and doing my own maintenance and modifications.

The 2018 GLA250 4Matic was/is the perfect size, aesthetic and practicality for my wife and we liked it so much we soon thereafter got a 2018 FWD for our "snowbird" FL residence. Also makes for her seamless driving experience, north or south. Still very much appreciate the "1st gen" GLA, and as the 2020+ has substantially grown in size, whereas we have not, we'll likely be keeping them for quite some time.

 

[RamaGLA]

Business student here, hopefully I will go to law school next but time might change my direction. My parents told me to get a reliable car with warranty so I don't need to worry about problems. I settled on a Mazda3 GS, but a dealer in Calgary had about 300 GLAs on the lot for 13K off, about 7k more than the Mazda. it was a no-brainer, I watched a few YouTube videos and we took it. no regrets. I hope to keep it for as long as possible, or until I can afford a real performance car on my own. this one is as close to a performance car as I can find at this price point and class, and I like it a lot more than many current MB models. new models have little steering and brake feel and fake exhaust tips. very fortunate to have this car and I take good care of it because I know how lucky I am to have it.

 

[monicameans33]

Hello! I am a litigation paralegal. My husband is a software manager. He purchased a MB CLS that was a few years old back in 2015. That was my first intro to MB.I drove my 2004 Honda CRV for 15 years. In 2019 I purchased a 2017 GLA Base Model. No upgrades. I loved my Candy Apple Red GLA 250. In 2022 I decided to trade that in for a 2021 GLA with upgrades. My two sons have their own cars so it's just me and my GLA. I drive 40 miles round trip to work about 4 days a week. I get good gas mileage. The only issue I've had so far with my 2021 is the AC not cooling and the Android Auto port not working. The dealership fixed both issues.

 

[Erwan]

Hey all. Nice thread. Has been without a car for a few years after I moved here in Sydney and that was fine. Then during covid period, had to get myself a car. Was really open to anything but wanted something fun to drive. So I browsed through different car dealers and I also didn't want to spend too much on it. I needed something small enough to park anymore around the beaches, and big enough to fit the pram and a few bags for roadtrips. And of course a car fun to own. One day I found a 2015 GL180 at one dealership, tried it and quite liked it and almost bought it on the spot. I'm actually glad I didn't!

I then looked more closely into GLAs and in a few days I made my mind about a 2015 GLA250 with AMG line. That spec is really great, looking much more aggressive externally, lower ride and lovely sporty details inside (seats, wheel, pedals). I really like the look of that generation, they have the feeling of a Crossover more than SUVs that the modern GLAs now look like.

I really enjoyed my GLA so far. Sporty enough to have fun on the road, but not too tempting either to go too wild like I would with an AMG. I retrofit CarPlay and got rid of the run flats for PS4s, as well as putting a panamericana front grille that I love. I've been much more into Mercedes and really drooling into owning a AMG car next. Especially for the roar sound! But I'm not ready yet for those prices, even second hand. And sad to see the AMG engines went from 6.2L to 4L and now to 2L only. End of an era, and I suspect that all the C63S from the previous gens will remain at very high prices for the pre-2019 models. We shall see!

 

[Huey52]

Business student here, hopefully I will go to law school next but time might change my direction. My parents told me to get a reliable car with warranty so I don't need to worry about problems. I settled on a Mazda3 GS, but a dealer in Calgary had about 300 GLAs on the lot for 13K off, about 7k more than the Mazda. it was a no-brainer, I watched a few YouTube videos and we took it. no regrets. I hope to keep it for as long as possible, or until I can afford a real performance car on my own. this one is as close to a performance car as I can find at this price point and class, and I like it a lot more than many current MB models. new models have little steering and brake feel and fake exhaust tips. very fortunate to have this car and I take good care of it because I know how lucky I am to have it.

During my turn of the century short stint with Motorola in the cable industry, and as Shaw was one of my accounts, I regularly visited your beautiful Calgary. Any time of the year it always impressed and especially side trips to Banff National Park which was/is truly breathtaking. I never did get used to it still being daylight at 10:00p in the Summer however. One visit was during a G8 summit (now G7) and the various ramp parked dignitary aircraft could be easily seen from the highway on the way to Banff (including our Air Force One). Of course I made the requisite trek to the glacier and the Fairmont Hotel.

 

[RamaGLA]

During my turn of the century short stint with Motorola in the cable industry, and as Shaw was one of my accounts, I regularly visited your beautiful Calgary. Any time of the year it always impressed and especially side trips to Banff National Park which was/is truly breathtaking. I never did get used to it still being daylight at 10:00p in the Summer however. One visit was during a G8 summit (now G7) and the various ramp parked dignitary aircraft could be easily seen from the highway on the way to Banff (including our Air Force One). Of course I made the requisite trek to the glacier and the Fairmont Hotel.

Great story, I’m glad you enjoyed your trips to Calgary and Banff, one of Canada’s best tourist destinations. 10 o’clock summers aren’t something I get used to, but it’s nice being able to stay out late and feel safe. I’m not actually from Calgary, I’m from Saskatoon, about 400 miles away. The GLA was brought on an enclosed trailer along with another car getting serviced in Calgary. Oddly enough, a lot of people where I live don’t like Calgary, not sure why. I’ve always liked it and being so close to the mountains is very nice. I’m glad someone out there likes it though 😂 next time I’ll look for the planes!

Last time I drove back from Calgary, I found this very cool abandoned service centre-come-gas station