Mercedes AMG GLA45 - The Art of Balance

Picture this: Before you is a project car. And in front of it – is a control panel with 3 adjustable sliders: 1 for performance, 1 for comfort, and 1 for practicality. As you push up on the performance slider, you notice the comfort & practicality sliders move downward. So you try to adjust them and… well… you can see where I’m going with this. In the world of project cars, very rarely can you have your cake and eat it too. Generally speaking, building a car is a bit of a balancing act. It’s the age-old robbing Peter to pay Paul scenario. Give & take. Measure twice; cut once. And throw a few Hail Mary’s until you hopefully/finally end up with something that checks all your boxes. Devin Herndon’s 2016 Mercedes AMG GLA45 is a perfect example of the point I’m trying to make here.

Why a Mercedes AMG GLA45…

First off, Devin never intended for this car to turn into a track weapon. It was more of a natural evolution/progression. But at the time of purchase – the 2016 AMG GLA45 AMG checked all the right boxes.

Performance? It has a 2.0L turbocharged 4-banger making 375hp. And it’s AWD. Check.

Comfort? It’s an AMG-trimmed Benz, so you can bet on nice amenities & creature comforts throughout. Check.

Practicality? Well as previously mentioned, it’s AWD, so it can handle the usual Mother Nature stuff. And being a 4-door crossover with decent ground clearance, it makes for quite a handy daily-driver and/or family car. Check.

So in theory, all the sliders are level & happy with the Mercedes AMG GLA45…

But we car enthusiasts aren’t the type to leave good enough alone, and Devin’s no different. ‘Stock’ was not in the cards for this unsuspecting little hot hatch. Sidenote: Devin wasn’t always into Euros. In fact, he was originally a Ford guy. His dad was/is big into Mustangs & drag racing. When I first met Devin at a Toys for Tots car event a decade ago, he was driving a yellow Focus ST. Over the years, I watched Devin transform his Focus ST from a slammed commuter, to a pseudo time-attack car. Eventually after landing a job with suspension-builder Fortune Auto, he decided it was time to slip into something a bit more ‘refined’. And that’s where the AMG GLA45 comes into focus (no pun intended). It was supposed to be the comfortable/fun daily driver that allowed him to keep building the Focus ST. But after taking the GLA to the track and besting his Focus’s time right out the gate… the sliders started to adjust. As you might know…

AMG cars tend to depreciate at a rather alarming rate…

That’s bad for sellers… but good for buyers! Devin was able to purchase this lightly used example (only a few years old with 40k miles) for less than HALF of what it sold for new. This meant that he had remaining funds to turn up the heat on this little sorority girl’s car.

Starting with the go-fast bits…

Devin installed a K&N intake filter and a GFB VTA bypass valve (for maximum suck & blow… lol). A custom center-exit exhaust featuring a full muffler delete was constructed. And the AMG GLA was finished-off with a Weistec tune to ensure the power was optimized within safe parameters.

Being built for time-attack, footwork on the Mercedes AMG GLA45 was of upmost importance…

Luckily, since he works at Fortune Auto, Devin had access to some of the best suspension components available. The centerpiece of his suspension is a set of Fortune Auto 510 Series coilovers, featuring adjustable camber & caster plates. To help with getting everything dialed-in, a set of Godspeed adjustable rear camber arms & adjustable rear toe arms were added to the mix. Extra stopping power is provided through a set of Paragon R7 brake pads up front… and Hawk DTC-30 pads in back. Putting the power to the ground is a set of Titan 7 TD6 wheels measuring 19”x9.5” all-around… and adorned with a set of sticky 255/35/19 Yokohoma A052 tires. Devin’s running 10mm spacers up front. And there’s also that set of Industry Garage aerodiscs installed on the rear wheels for cooling annnd style. Speaking of style…

There’s no denying this Mercedes AMG GLA45 makes people double-take…

Whether it’s parallel-parked on the street, or running at the track, a modded-out GLA doesn’t really process. And that goes for car lovers and/or just normal pedestrians & passer-by’s. Staring at the front of the car, a Panamericana front grille and a retrofitted Trackspec Motorsports hood louver (for a Corvette) were installed to help keep the under-hood temps in check. A full CJM Industries custom aero package was fitted. The aero package includes a front chassis-mount splitter, air dam, front endplate, rear wing, side extensions, fender louvers, and wheel spats.

Other bits include ZL1 tow hooks, DTM-style side mirrors (featuring custom billet housings), and a rear bumper-cut with custom under-paneling for airflow. Tying everything together is a custom livery designed and installed by Andy Vasconcellos of AutoGraphics LLC. It not only pays homage to his employer, but also to all the other companies that offered support in this atypical build.

Finally, we move into the cockpit of the AMG GLA45…

Devin Herndon splits his time between driving to work and driving to the track. So with that in mind, he runs a Cobra full-containment seat affixed to a Planted seat bracket… topped-off with a Schroth 6-point harness. A custom 4-point roll bar (fabricated by Matt Purvis & Jay Stilwell) was added to stiffen the chassis & keep Devin safe. Other safety-related equipment includes an RSPro rollbar harness collar & RSPro fire extinguisher with quick-release.

So, can you have your cake and eat it too?

Well, yes actually. Despite its aggressive aero & flashy livery, Devin claims the AMG GLA45 is still relatively well-mannered on the street. Because these cars are pretty stout out the box, not much was added under the hood to negatively impact it’s day-to-day drivability. And outside of the seat/cage, the interior maintains all the OEM creature comforts. Also – with the GLA being a four-door hatchback, Devin can still pack it full. So there you have it folks – go have your cake and eat it too. That saying will never truly make sense to me; who has cake & doesn’t eat it? But in a sea of copy/paste time attack builds, Devin’s Mercedes AMG GLA45 makes sense, while also… not. And that’s the fun of it. That’s the beauty of building something different that actually works… and works well! Stay weird y’all.