Mercedes A 180 CDI ECO SE & B 180 CDI ECO SE launched

Mercedes has replaced the A 180 CDI SE and B 180 CDI SE with more frugal versions in the new Mercedes A 180 CDI ECO SE & B 180 CDI ECO SE.

The key to the wallets of many car buyers – especially those who have to pay BIK on their company provided cars – is frugal official economy, which means low CO2 emissions and lower tax bills.

So Mercedes has decided to drop the current A 180 CDI SE and the B 180 CDI SE and replace them with new versions offering better economy credentials- the A 180 CDI ECO SE & B 180 CDI ECO SE.

Available from January 2014, both the new eco A and B Class have been subjected to weight saving measures and tweaks to the aerodynamics and powertrain to yield emissions of 92g/km for the A Class and 98g/km for the B Class.

That’s been achieved by using an aerodynamic grille element, underbody panelling and lowered suspension together with longer ratios for higher gears, better energy recuperation and a lightweight fuel tank.

The result is an A Class that gets official economy numbers of 78.5mpg and 92g/km and a B Class with 74.3mpg and 98g/km and, despite the tweaks, performance that remains the same as the outgoing 180 CDI SE models.

That means that the A and B Class will get free road tax and BIK rates of just 13 per cent (for the A 180).

As well as the new frugal A and B Class cars, Mercedes has also revealed that the 4WD 4MATIC option available on the CLA 250 will also become available in January 2014 on the A and B Class, with the A 250 4MATIC AMG Sport costing £28,895 (£30,905 for the Engineered by AMG trim) and the B 220 4MATIC from £28,135.

All the new models are available from January 2014 production, with the A 180 CDI ECO SE costing from £21,965 and the B 180 CDI ECO SE from £22,950.