A $111k compact crossover offering family-hauling capability along with a raucous turbocharged performance engine might seem a strange brew, but it leaves a good taste.

Price: $111,760.
Powertrain: 1991cc four-cylinder direction injection turbocharged petrol, 225kW/400Nm, 4Matic four-wheel-drive, eight-speed DCT, 0-100kmh 5.3 seconds, fuel consumption 8.3L/100km, CO2 173g/km.
Vital statistics: 4634mm long, 1834mm wide, 1658mm high, 2829mm wheelbase.
For: Spectacular performance, impressive drive assist tech.
Against: Borderline seven-seat practicality, expensive.

JUST recently Mercedes took a medium car and drove it for more than 1000 kilometres without need for replenishment.

Excited by that? Had it been fossil-fuelled, particularly diesel, you potentially wouldn’t be.

The reason why this generated headlines was because not a drop of the bad stuff was consumed. They did it on electricity; another breakthrough on the road to a new future.

Mercedes is already committed to the electric car business. The EQXX – officially still a research prototype yet easily envisaged as a production choice - that clocked 1008kms and had another 140 in reserve is a next step, proof of capacity to build a proper, ultra-long-range EV.

Bear in mind there was no hyper-miling silliness with this. The feat was undertaken at regular speed limits, save for a stint of fast-lane cruising at up to 140kmh on an autobahn, on a cold, wet and windy day. Yet with astounding energy usage. The overall low of 8.7 kWh/100km wallops that of current eco champs. A Hyundai Kona, for instance, will clock13.5kWh/100km. At best.

Box ticking efficiency is important. Excitement also sells.

Mercedes-AMG’s ambition within the electro-sphere is as far-reaching as the parent’s and it has already dipped its toe into the pool of hot EVs. The EQS 53 and EQE 53 AMG models already signed for NZ are enhanced editions of what are respectively the electric versions of the S- and E-Class sedans. AMG confirmed last year that more pure-electric performance models will launch, with 43-branded models set to feature. And an EQS sports utility is also en route. AMG would find that irresistible.

Large premium models are first because their platforms are most ideal for battery placement and also because they present highest profit returns.

Ultimate Benz ambition, all the same, is to electrify all sizes. Later this year we will achieve the EQB, the first of several products on the smallest underpinning behind the three-pointed star. The A-Class and C-Class are basically in the same family. What’s to bet they won’t follow suit, in time.

EQB has relevance in today’s story. It’s effectively the electric spin off of the GLB, a conventional fossil fuelled model of which the AMG GLB 35 tested here is … well, the most electrifying. Though, of course, that’s in respect to how it performs, not how it motivates. The AMG GLB 35 drinks from the high-octane end of the forecourt.

Quite probably, the AMG GLB 35 might stand as one of Affalterbach’s final dice throws in the petrol game and could be one of the more enigmatic.

Sure, AMG has a reputation for giving almost anything a go and has made hot-rodding SUVs a speciality. Also, Mercedes’ goal seems to be to insert the esteemed performance badge into every corner of the marketplace it can possibly carve out.

Yet even when bearing those factors in mind, the GLB seems an unlikely candidate for performance radicalisation, given it’s such a ‘homely’ car that so obviously puts practicality first. It’s basically what we used to call a ‘people carrier’. Those always seemed the kind of car least likely to go all GT.

On top of this, all that enhancement comes at no small expense. The regular GLB is only just within an everyman budget but the AMG-ised car certainly won’t be on the same shortlist as, say, a Volkswagen Tiguan even in its R spec.

This is a $106,300 car in factory form. A vision pack (adaptive headlights, multibeam LED, panoramic sunroof), cosmos black metallic paint, 20-inch twin spoke matt black alloys and a driver assistance pack (active distance assist Distronic with cross traffic assist, lane change assist, extended auto restart in traffic, route-based speed adaptation) added another $5460 to the sticker.

Well beyond the expectations of the customer base? Here’s the thing. As much as logic suggests the buyer base would view that kind of spend as just another reason for signing up for the far more sensible $82,100 GLB 200 or $96,800 250 4MATIC, the dealership that held the press car for me reckoned this flagship was the more favoured seller. I guess when you have that kind of money to burn, you might as well buy the one that delivers the most heat.

Maybe purchasers see it as a way to bring some snap-crackle-snarl rebelliousness to the school run seriousness. Sure the ride is firmer, the steering sharper and it’s a punchy wee thing all round, yet in respect to practicality and primary purpose, it has just as much ‘chairs in a box’ practicalities as the less-expensive offer.

In respect to that, you need aware while this car is no waster in respect to space utilisation, neither is it a Tardis. Even though it rides on new large iteration of the A-Class architecture, with a 100mm wheelbase extension over the donor hatch, GLB is probably the smallest sensible packing for a three-row format.

What keeps it real is good design. Yes, it’s tight in the back, but hardly for emergency use only, and the remainder of the cabin certainly isn’t anti-adult. A lot of clever thinking (and using Volkswagen’s Tiguan Allspace for benchmarking) delivers decent head and legroom, excellent outward visibility and good stowage solutions, notwithstanding that when running full occupancy, the luggage space remaining is miniscule. Stow the back pair (neatly, into the boot) and it’s much more convenient. Either that, or buy a roof pod.

In addition to it delivering an adaptable cabin, at AMG level it achieves all the latest tech and a garnish of premium status and quality. So much so, that it’s almost too good for the role intended.

Touch surfaces use high-quality materials, buttons and knobs have a satisfying tactility and reassuring clicks and it’s beautifully trimmed, with cushy seats. Before letting the kids in, you’d do well to pre-check for sticky little fingers.

AMG's approach has been restrained too and, as I’ve said about most modern-day Mercedes cars, I love the full-width MBUX infotainment system and steering wheel mounted thumbpads that operate it.

The A-Class family is a very modern design, and Mercedes puts a lot of emphasis on sophisticated safety and assistance technology. As standard the GLB comes with a pop-up bonnet to protect pedestrians, lane-keeping assistance, plenty of airbags, a driver fatigue detection system, top tether Isofix child seat mounts for the second and third rows of seats and automatic emergency braking. The AMG has a full suite of active driving assistance features, too, plus the surety of 4MATIC all-wheel-drive.

Hoping into the test car was a second time stint; the first was more than two years, so pre-Covid, in Spain, when the GLB itself was brand new. We were told then the AMG was coming, but a little bit later than the mainstream models. Quite a bit later, as it transpires. Thanks to coronavirus.

Funny thing about that first taste – it was on the famous Costa del Sol; Spain’s most sun-drenched beach frontage, which was simply drenched. The AMG model was the star of the all-wheel-drive 4MATIC selection; everything all-paw simply shone the hunkered and honed flagship was an eyebrow raiser.

Okay, so I know what you’re thinking now. In the A-Class range, the AMG A35 is an amusing wee thing, but ultimately is thumped by the the A45 for absolute ferocity.

Here’s what I know. Back in Spain, someone asked whether this car would come out with the ‘everything at 11’ drivetrain. The guy from AMG just chuckled and suggested what they’d created now was quite enough.

He’s right. Given the kind of car it is, you get quite enough performance flavour from the engine, the special chassis and suspension tuning, fat-as tyres and beefed brakes. Probably more than enough, if you’re going to treat family members to your enthusiasm. Kids, pack sick bags.

There’s plenty of snap eagerly channelled through the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. It maintains the hatch’s simple-to-use launch control to help it post a sub-six second 0-100kmh time, tweaking into the sports modes releases delicious exhaust barking and, for those daft enough to dare find it, the top speed is an altogether ludicrous 250kmh. The engine develops its maximum outputs in all settings, but you'll need to switch the driving mode into Sport or Sport Plus for the proper expected AMG sharpness.

Not only is it considerably quicker than the standard version and will, if driven aggressively, evidence much higher lateral limits. The surety exceeds what you expect from a family chariot. So, it must be said, is the ride comfort. The young ‘uns will have to put up with firm and … erm … firmer.

The upshot is seriously good body control at pace and you can sense the levels of grip and traction at hand. There’s a lot of the latter, thanks to the 4Matic four-wheel drive. It's superfast in operation so you don't really feel it dividing up the power. Only 50 percent goes to rear axle at most anyway so the rear end is tidy rather than overtly mobile.

It’s certainly a surprise package: You could imagine the looks it would get if, say, you rocked up with a consignment of passengers at a track day, dropped them off at the pitlane entrance then promptly shot out onto the track for a couple of hot laps.

Drive with exuberance and there’s also impact on fuel consumption; but even in relaxed operation it takes a bit of effort to zero in on the cited official economy. That’s just part of the scene when you buy into performance.

Or is it? Being a bit of a strange creation is not itself an inhibitor to this car deserving a place in the AMG garage, but total reliance on petrol does likely make it a short-termer in the overall grand plan. The electric equivalent of the GLB is already in production and likely to land here very soon. Yes, they’ll see alongside each other, but only for a while. Battery replaces fossil fuel, not the other way around. But it’s easy to imagine AMG doing something with even an EQB. Electric, after all, offers even more instant stonk than this engine and, while the battery car always has to battle weight, I could imagine a battery-dedicated car being just as cheeky and characterful.

In the here and now, you can buy into a product that is still more enjoyable than it probably should be and is certainly out of the ordinary for much more than having a snorty exhaust note.