This almost never happens, but a set of photos showing a brand new concept car have leaked out ahead of the vehicle’s official reveal. This time it’s the turn of the Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class.
Due to premiere at 2013 Auto China in Shanghai, the crossover stands 1.57 metres tall, 4.38m long, 1.97m wide, 1.57m tall and has a wheelbase of 2.69m, making it a similar size to the Audi Q3 and BMW’s X1.
Styling-wise, it resembles an A-Class on anabolic steroids, with a beefed-up radiator grille, more aggressive front fascia, rugged plastic wheel arch trims, sill cladding, roof rails and an imposing rear bumper panel with rectangular exhaust outlets. Staying at the rear there’s also a large roof spoiler and pretty c-shape tail-lights – which we hope won’t disappear on the production version. The 20-inch five-spoke alloy wheels, wrapped in 255/45 tyres, complete the look.
This GLA 250 version uses a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, which transfers its 155 kW (211 hp) to the 4MATIC all-wheel drive system via the 7G-DCT dual-clutch automatic transmission. Expected to be in production-ready guise for the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, it will share drivetrains with the A-Class, including a halo GLA 45 AMG version using the same 265 kW (360 hp) unit as the A 45 AMG.
[Source: Mercedes-Benz]