Welcome to the big launch of the most important new Mercedes-Benz in year – in Wakefield.

That’s right. Bosses at the posh marque could have opted for St Tropez or Marbella, but ee-bah-gum, West Yorkshire was chosen.

Are things tight at the company? Not at all! This was simply an exercise in making sure we in the North could be looked after as much as our friends South of Watford. So it was that the Hepworth Gallery (well worth a visit) was chosen. We tested the new A-Class in former pit villages and flat countryside in West and South Yorkshire as we got to grips with what is after all a monumental decision by Mercedes-Benz to go back to basics in terms of car design.

That original A-Class was very successful after an inauspicious start. Remember the infamous elk test in 1997 when a Swedish journalist overturned one? If you have forgotten, Mercedes-Benz haven’t. I’m sure their executives still wake up in a cold sweat.

The A-Class went on to confound its critics by selling a huge amount of cars by reinventing our image of a premium small car. It was a cross between a people-carrier and a mini-estate which was loved by some and never quite understood by others. Significantly, none of its main rivals such as Audi or BMW sought to imitate it.

Having said that, some 2.1 million models of the first two generations of A-Class were sold.

So it’s a brave move to tear that up and revert to what Mercedes-Benz do best with the new third generation: simply making it into a premium hatch, albeit a superlative premium hatch.

If the original A-Class divided opinion, this new A-class will prove more universally popular.

More mainstream? Definitely. It certainly looks more likely to win sales from Audi A3 and BMW 1 Series than the A-Class.

Mercedes-Benz, it seems, has got the hang of instilling the qualities from its upmarket cars into its smaller offerings.

So, how does A-Class measure up? It costs from £18,945 for the basic A180, with SE versions starting at £20,125, Sport models at £21,240, AMG Sport at £24,015 and the similar-but-different ‘Engineered by AMG’ brand from £28,775.

The car is shorter and sportier than the arguably ugly original A-Class and it seems to have gone down well with 70,000 cars ordered even before its official launch date. They come with a range of four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines. I guess Mercedes have been brave in recognising that the old A-class was in need of a proper replacement rather than a minor tweak. The compact premium car game has moved on.

In fact, the only thing it shares with the original A-Class is its name. Longer, lower, wider and much more aggressive-looking, the new A-Class is taking the fight to the competition in a surprisingly bold way.

The entry-level is the 180 CDI diesel, which in basic spec with a manual gearbox dips below the magic 100g/km mark that fleet buyers and company car drivers demand. It’s also offered with a seven-speed automatic gearbox.

Anyone who has driven any Mercedes of the last three years or so will be instantly at home in the A-Class, bar the odd colour display that sticks out from the dashboard rather than being built-in. The point is that the A-Class feels every inch a Mercedes in the same way that its bigger brothers all do. It doesn’t feel like the cheap option in the range.

There’s massive grip from chunky tyres, balanced handling, an incredibly tight turning circle and a good range of colours.

The available spread of engines and trims covers all the key ‘business buyer’ and early-adopter bases for now. The pick for enthusiasts at the moment is the 208bhp turbocharged petrol A 250 Sport, with fabulous red styling details and super seats.