Mercedes Starts Building the New GLA, but US Buyers Wait Until Late 2027
Series production of the new GLA is underway in Rastatt, EVs first and 48-volt hybrids to follow. American deliveries are still about a year away.
Mercedes-Benz has started series production of the new GLA at its Rastatt plant in Germany, and the battery-electric versions are first in line. The EVs are already being built in volume, while the 48-volt hybrid models join the same line before the end of the year.
That order is a reversal for Mercedes. Previous compact generations launched with combustion engines and added electric derivatives later; this time one nameplate replaces two, absorbing both the gasoline GLA and the electric EQA. According to electrive, the EQA came off the order books back in April, with the last cars finished in Rastatt by June.
Rastatt builds the GLA alongside the CLA coupe and CLA Shooting Brake on a single drivetrain-flexible line, so the plant can shift the mix between EVs and hybrids as demand moves. The site employs about 7,000 people and turned out more than 275,000 vehicles in 2025.
The production setup leans on the company's MO360 digital ecosystem, and the cars get their software over a chip-to-cloud connection from a central Mercedes server, so they leave the line with the latest MB.OS build already installed.
Mercedes is also spending a low nine-figure euro sum to convert the neighboring Assembly Hall 4.1, which takes over GLA production in 2027. The new line is being configured in a digital twin before anyone touches the real building — the same simulation-first approach the company credits for rebuilding Hall 4.0 in record time in 2023.
The supply chain stays close to home: electric drive units and axles come from the Untertürkheim plant near Stuttgart, high-voltage batteries from the Mercedes subsidiary Accumotive in Kamenz, and body and structural parts from Kuppenheim, about six miles away and now formally part of the Rastatt plant.
The GLA itself debuted on July 29. Three electric versions open the range: the GLA 200 with a 58-kWh LFP battery, and the GLA 250+ and GLA 350 4MATIC with an 85-kWh NMC pack. All ride on an 800-volt architecture, charge at up to 320 kW, and manage up to 408 miles (657 km) on the WLTP cycle — expect lower EPA figures. German prices start at €48,599, with the first European deliveries in November.
American buyers have a longer wait. Mercedes has confirmed US orders and deliveries for 2027, with the car arriving in the second half of that year as a 2028 model. Edmunds estimates starting prices around $42,000 for the hybrid and $45,000 for the EV, which would put the GLA squarely against the Audi Q3 and BMW X1.
Next up: hybrid production ramps before year end ahead of a European market launch in early 2027, and the move into Hall 4.1 follows later that year.
