German car manufacturer Daimler gave its designers “a clean sheet” to bring the new A-Class to life, says Mercedes-Benz compact cars design and development head Jörg Prigl. “They didn’t need to take anything from the old A-Class.”

As the company put together the A-Class premium compact car, due to be launched in South Africa in April, Prigl says Daimler had to ask itself what it could do to “open Mercedes-Benz to new customers”.

Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) has provided a sneak preview of the car to the local press, with Prigl and MBSA president and CEO Dr Martin Zimmermann explaining the motivation behind the completely revamped A-Class. In fact, in doing so, it is rather strange to hear the ever-efficient German MBSA CEO use words such as “sexy” and “heartstopping” to describe the newest addition to the Mercedes-Benz stable.

He also brands the new A-Class as the “most revolutionary” in the Mercedes-Benz product range, clearly aimed at “new target markets in the premium market”.

“Extensive market research shows that a new and modern target market has started to show interest in the brand. The target group for our new generation compact cars definitely includes our existing customer base, as well as the new middle class and progressive mainstream individuals who have started to make the brand part of their consideration set,” explains Zimmermann.

“With our latest introductions to the compact car segment we have an opportunity to attract young and discerning consumers who are also looking for power and performance embodied in a sporty and stylish design, with all the traditional Mercedes-Benz values of safety and reliability.”

He regards the new A-Class as an important volume driver in Mercedes-Benz’s growth plan.

“To date we’ve sold more than 2.1 million [previous model] A-Classes [globally]. Sales of the new A-Class commenced in Europe in September 2012 – just five months ago – and a total of 90 000 orders have already been received. This is what I call a great start.”

Pricing for the new A-Class in South Africa will start at R275 000 for the A 180 BlueEfficiency, with current range-topper, the A 250 Sport, priced at R395 000.