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Is a Mercedes A160 or A170CDI a good buy for a single mother of two who needs a good, reliable low maintenance car as a first time buyer. I also need to be able to use it everyday, so low petrol consumption should be an advantage. I have always been told MB are good strong cars but I see most of the A160 and A170 2000-2002 are on second-hand sale. Just wanting something stylish and big enough for the kids and me. As a fan of A-Class please advise on which ones generally I can buy as second-hand cars?

Asked on 17 October 2009 by

Answered by Honest John

No. Avoid the first generation of A Class like the plague. They are deeper money pits than any other small car and come from the time when Mercedes quality was at an all time low. They are needlessly complicated and ridiculously expensive to fix. For example a replacement automatic transmission can be £5,000 in the UK, which is three times what a year 2000 A Class is worth. The current A Class since 2005 is fine. What a small Mercedes should be.

Tags: buying used cars small cars

Dear Honest John,

Please help me choose my next car. I would like it to have:

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