The newest crave in the U.S. involves small sedans equipped with
miniature turbocharged engines for thrust. The newest candidates for the
positions hail from Germany in the forms of the Audi A3 and Mercedes
CLA250. They claim to be the entry-level vehicle for the up-and-coming
individual. What the actual up-and-coming individual looks like, I have
no idea, but both automakers are catering to a younger crowd. However,
there is one major problem with both vehicles – the price.
They’re both highly attractive vehicles, especially when considering
their starting price of under $30,000. Now that amount of money can go
pretty far with American, Japanese and Korean vehicles. That price gets
you a fully loaded Ford Focus ST, Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-Spec, or a
Honda Accord Sedan EX-L. Of course the choices are plentiful, but the
idea is that there are other cars that offer more than the German twins.
However, their starting prices of $30,000 soon become eclipsed when you
start checking off some options.
With the ability of technology, I was able to build both cars on their
respective websites. Both the A3 and CLA250 that I built came out to
$44,000 – without checking off every available option. With a fully
loaded A3 the price remains $44,000, but the CLA250 jumps to a
staggering $48,000. That is a lot of money for an entry-level vehicle.
That amount of money will land you into a Chevy SS, Lexus IS 350
F-Sport, or an Infiniti Q50S. The bump up to nearly $50,000 drastically
changes the competitors for the entry-level cars.
The next item on the list for the A3 and CLA250 involves
the fact that they are regarded to as the entry-level car. I understand
that their respective marketing groups want buyers to know that they
are the cheapest cars to buy. However, it comes off as tacky if
anything. Everyone else sees the exact same commercial as you, so they
know exactly what you’re driving - the cheapest car available.
The A3 and CLA250 may be entry-level vehicles, but they come at a steep
price. For $30,000 you can get your hands on German engineering, with no
creature comforts what so ever. Or you could go down the road of
reliability, with some options as well, and buy anything else other than
German. In the end, I’m not quite sure who would opt for the Audi and
Mercedes. I suppose if you want the newest technology in a good-looking
package for a cheap price and you have to go German, then sure. However,
if you value your money, want any options and don’t want to pay
thousands for brand name, look somewhere else. On the other hand, if you
have copious amounts of money in the bank and are looking for a car for
your spoiled child right after high school, Audi and Mercedes have the
perfect answer for you.
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