2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA vs 2018 Land Rover Discovery Sport Comparison

Performance

Comparing the performance between the 2018 GLA and the 2018 Discovery Sport is not as easy as simply matching horsepower numbers. While the base engine on the Discovery Sport is, at 237 horsepower, stronger than the GLA’s 208-horsepower powertrain, the Land Rover also weighs nearly twice as much as Mercedes-Benz! In a straight-line, drag-race style comparison, the 2018 GLA actually hits 60 miles per hour over a second faster than the Discovery Sport, and has a higher listed top speed. And while both models offer a tightly-tuned suspension that makes taking corners at speed easy, the steering on the GLA offers more feedback. Together, these factors easily make the 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA the car of choice for enthusiasts out of our two competitors.

Infotainment

The rise of the compact crossover has been paralleled by the rise in popularity of another, unrelated consumer item - cell phones. Now, unlike a decade ago, playing nicely with the latest cell-phone models is pretty much a requirement for all cars, and even more so for luxury ones. Both the Land Rover Discovery Sport and the Mercedes-Benz GLA are equipped with crisp and responsive touch-screen infotainment systems that easily control everything from climate control to the optional high-end audio systems. However, one thing that the GLA has that the Discovery Sport does not is integration with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. These features allow you to easily use your cell phone application on the car’s touchscreen. The absence of such a feature costs the Land Rover the technological edge, making the 2018 GLA the better car for drivers that want to keep their cell phone data close at hand.

Safety

As relatively low-volume vehicles, neither the Discovery Sport nor the GLA go through the more rigorous kind of crash testing that the mass-market vehicles go through, but are nonetheless very carefully equipped with the latest word in safety technologies, including a forward collision warning system with automatic emergency braking. This system detects when an accident is possible and applies the brakes to try to prevent it, all faster than a human reaction time could allow. On the 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA, this innovative feature is standard on all models, while the 2018 Discovery Sport makes it an option. This makes the GLA a slightly better choice between cars that are otherwise evenly matched when it comes to keeping you safe.