[Mr Buck]

Made the most of a gf and child free day by paying Merc a visit this morning. Mainly to pick up brochures for the A45 AMG to see exactly how much I'd have to pay for one if I opted for it. I was initially disapointed when I was told by the salesman that there would be a 2-3 week wait for them.

The tables then turned as he then told me that they have one outside the showroom and he also asked if I'd like a look around it. moments later he pulled up in it, and directed me to an open space on the forecourt, stopped at got out, whilst discretely popping off a bit of an exhaust note in the process.

First opinions on seeing the car in the flesh is that I still hold firm on the fact thats its more visually pleasing than the BMW. My first reaction was to climb into the driver side and start touching bits and bobs (as you do) and I was impressed by the quality of the cabin. Even the visually tacky looking carbon look dash felt very much a solid bit of kit. The seats in it really are something else tbh, talk about contour hugging. The test car was also equipped with the optional Alcantara wheel, which felt great in the hands and was lovely and chunky.

After a further look round the more boring aspects of the car he then asked if I'd like to go for a quick ride in it. I instantly met him with the response I felt may hinder that proposition by saying I didnt have my license to hand and that I was also just 24. I think his overwhelming desire to have another little drive in it himself ruled out any chance of him not taking me shotgun in the little AMG.

Anyway we ended up pulling out of the forecourt for a quick 10 minute salvo in the A45 with me passenger but still happy. I knew based on the location of the dealership in my area that we weren't in for anything particularly brilliant in terms of testing this car out but never the less I was interested to see how it goes. And my god it does that! Instantly out on to a 200m straight before the first round about and the young salesman puts the accelerator to the floor to avoid being caught in the wave of traffic that approached the junction we merged from. The first thing I noticed is how despite having the wheel slightly tilted to turn out of the junction how well it held the road when he mounted the pedal with his foot and how the car didnt end up in the barriers ahead. As we straightened up he gave the car a bit more as it upshifted, and where it didnt hurl me back as quick as the BMW once we passed 2000rpm I soon saw what a splendid job AMG have done with this 4 cylinder unit.

As I thought the route he took didn't involve any winding B roads and was over before I got a true feel for the car but in the series of straight 50 roads we bulleted down it was pretty clear to see how fast this little AMG is. In truth I think it felt quicker than the M135i I tested earlier this month, certainly in a straight line. Once its passed 2200 rpm it just goes and goes.

I left it with the salesman as we sat down back in the showroom that a test drive would definitely be in order within the next week or so. I couldnt obviously make any definite judgements of whether it was better to drive than the BMW given how short the run out was and also that I was shotgun to the salesman in the driving seat.

Despite not collecting any official Mercedes booklets for the car, the salesman did email me a list of optionals and the UK pricing for the car. Which I would be happy to email to anyone whose interested in seeing them, whether your interested in making the switch, or simply out to reassure yourself of how much money you saved sticking to BMW.

In conclusion to what I've seen this morning I would like to mention a few negatives which I noticed about the car, especially in comparison to the BMW which is still well in contention for me personally. The exhaust note on the Merc for me isnt as throaty or as cool as on the BMW. The ride of the Merc did feel like so many reviewers said it felt, in that it was very hard. Going down the straights on a road surface that was certainly less than perfect and I did feel a lot more feedback from the road than I did in the BMW. Finally, where I do absolutely love the AMG bucket seats and they do hug you better than the BMW sport seats, the actual seat isn't as comfortable as BMW.