A cycling team in Spain has filmed the brand-new 2013 Mercedes-Benz A-Class while either making a promo spot or shooting some picture for print material. The video was taken on Jan 26 by bike team OGOTT, as they were cycling from El Golfo to Playa Blanca when they stumbled upon the brand new Mercedes-Benz A-Class. As you can see in the video, it’s a very clear shot of A-Class, revealing all the front and side details. We are very surprised that it looks almost identical to the prototype, even the beautiful and futuristic grill was kept.

Concept A-Class

The principle of inductive charging has long been understood, where a charge is conducted without any physical connection between the power source and the component being charged. In this case, a modified A-Class E-Cell will be used. The experiment will place a charging coil in the E-Cell which will interface with a charging coil in the floor. The E-Cell will merely have to park over the coil for it to be charged. The experiment will be held over the course of three months together with a mix of other electric vehicles equipped with more conventional conductive charging circuits.

While Nissan showed an Infiniti Etherea in concept form that impressed the crowd at the 2011 Geneva show, not much detail could be gleaned from the pretty concept car. Now, it’s been revealed that the Etherea is going to be built on a platform that will be shared with Mercedes’ upcoming A-Class.

The new MFA platform is a front-wheel drive one, which means that the Etherea compact will be such.  In line with worldwide trends, expect hybrid and diesel powerplants to be included with the gasoline engine variants. Infiniti EVP Andy Palmer says that they went to Mercedes for the MFA platform because as a luxury brand, they need “much better torsional rigidity, much better NVH than you would put into a mass brand. If you have a product that handles like an A-class or a B-class, with that level of NVH, with that level of torsional rigidity, but you can do it at a cost which is closer to where a mass brand would be, then you’re in a very good place from a competitive point of view”.

With this upcoming model as well as Mercedes’ A-Class, expect this segment of the car market to heat up considerably in the next couple of years.

Gary Savage, Managing Director for Mercedes-Benz Cars in the UK said that, “Both visually and technologically, Concept A-Class provides an exciting insight into the potential future of the Mercedes-Benz compact car range, and a tantalizing glimpse of some of the features that we’re confident would influence future customers in this highly-competitive sector.”

The shopping mall locations are the places where Mercedes feels a compact car with luxury features will make a strong connection with the market the carmaker is after.

Scheduled for production in 2013, Mercedes-Benz will be introducing the latest generation A- and B-class models. In the case of the A-Class, the new generation will see no less than seven body variations, which will be made available in all major markets, including the U.S.

The A-Class platform will also serve the B-Class, which will see a crossover competitor aimed at BMW’s X1. Additionally, there will be CLC-class variants that will be in similar in size to Toyota’s diminutive Corolla.

But before you think that Mercedes-Benz is moving downmarket, these German- and Hungarian-built baby Benzes will be considerably larger than the models that they will replace. Whereas the current A-class is slightly shorter than a Mini Cooper, the upcoming A-Class will actually be almost 2 feet longer than the Mini. And if the 2-door A-Class concept shown at the NY Auto Show is any indication, the interior will be anything but drab.

Four powertrain types will be available for these upcoming models, from a gasoline/electric hybrid, to fuel-cell variants, a few diesels and on to a 340 hp biturbo four cylinder AMG variant. Drive will be front- or all-wheel drive, depending on the powerplant. Expectedly, we will find Mercedes’ 7-speed automatics, but stick shifters can opt for an equally excellent 6-speed manual.

By the looks of it, Mercedes is covering all its bases in this segment, and has even announced that if the European plants fall short of demand, the company has its China plants to make up the shortfall.

Mercedes-Benz continues development of the new A-Class hatchback, and even though current spy shots are disappointingly drab, the public has been promised that the concept shown at the Shanghai Auto Show is a good approximation of what the final product will be.

The upcoming A-Class is Mercedes’ counter to the BMW 1-series and Audi A3, and it’s clear that the luxury car maker will have to offer a more exciting vehicle to wrest sales from its German rivals. Although the production car still has the show car’s narrow glasshouse and rakish windshield profile, the biggest change for the production A-class is the addition of rear doors. The interior is expected to carry upmarket trim based on the C-Class.

The new A-Class’ core engine is a 2-liter gasoline powerplant, which in hot hatch form will produce a little over 200 horsepower. But the mainstream production versions should produce closer to 150 horsepower, mated to a dual-clutch transmission and mounted transversely. Diesel engines will also be made available varying power levels. Down the line, it’s safe to expect AMG versions, as Mercedes’ performance division has intimated.

All this will be underpinned by the new MFA platform, which features strut suspension in front and a multi-link setup in the rear.

Under the hood, the new A-Class features the 4-cylinder petrol and diesel engines presently found in C-Class models. The core will have a 2.0L petrol unit which is anticipated to perform at 204bhp. While diesel engine’s core will have 2.2L with power to reach up to 180bhp.

Check out the photos below from Autocar.uk.

As you can see, the patent images resemble the actual Concept A-Class that was shown off last month, but one can clearly see that the concept design was watered-down by a lot. It’s 5-door hatchback, instead of the three on the concept. The head and taillights have also been replaced with more traditional ones found in today’s cars.

source: AutoScoops.be

According to Mercedes’ design director, Gorden Wagener, the Vision A concept car is identical to the production version of the new A-Class that will be launched next year. Apart from the fact the the production car will be a five door, other difference will be in changes to the window line, headlights and grille. Otherwise, what you see in the Vision A concept car will essentially be carried over. Wagener has also stated that the show car’s swooping roofline would stay the same, as well as the large display screen seen in the interior. This electronic display is just an indicator that the A-class is likely to have the ability to download applications for the car’s systems and the driver’s infotainment needs.

Motive power for the new A-Class would be composed of transverse-mounted 4-cylinder turbos, with differing power levels to be made available based on various engine displacements. Stop-start technology will be standard, as well as a manual transmission. A dual-clutch transmission will be optional and a slushbox will not be offered.

As has been widely rumored, a hot hatch AMG version will also appear, to be powered by a specially tuned turbo four. All-wheel-drive is still not a done deal, as the drivetrain increases the car’s weight by 60 kilos.

Mercedes has revealed its version of the hot hatch in the form of the new A-Class that has been massaged by the company’s in-house performance arm, AMG.

This concept A-Class was shown at a preview event just before the start of the Shanghai Auto Show and is being touted as another step towards capturing an important segment in one of its most important markets, China. The new A-Class concept is a significant design departure from the previously utilitarian-looking A-Class.

With the hand of AMG all but confirmed, we can assume that the division’s clever engineers will deliver on the rumored 350 horsepower for this baby hot hatch. Additional rumors include the inclusion of an all-wheel-drive drivetrain, which would be a natural progression, given that the new A-Class reportedly shares the platform of an upcoming small 4X4 being developed by Mercedes. Mark Fetherston, a senior designer at Mercedes-Benz has confirmed that the upcoming new A-Class will retain 85 percent of the styling of the Concept A when it is launched in 2013.