FRANKFURT MOTOR SHOW: Mercedes Concept IAA teased again

We saw the first teaser shot 24 hours ago and now the second image of Mercedes-Benz's Frankfurt motor show concept has unearthed more of its intriguing show car two days before its global reveal.

While the Concept IAA was widely anticipated to be a rival for the large Tesla Model S electric sedan, insiders at Mercedes-Benz have encouraged us to think differently.

It’s certainly not a production-ready machine, because Mercedes-Benz normally gives them the 'Vision' tag if they’re within six months of a market launch.

And while others have reported that it will be a long-range, pure fantasy concept car, our mail is that the Concept IAA (which stands for Intelligent Aerodynamic Automobile) is actually a sculpture.

This wouldn’t be a first for Mercedes-Benz, because it did something similar at the 2010 Detroit motor show with what became the CLS.

That sculpture sat on a plinth, looking for all the world like a Terminator 3-style T1000, and had clear hallmarks of the existing E-Class and the car that would sit alongside it, the sexier CLS.

The Concept IAA looks initially to be more like a liftback in its body style, and will be unveiled at pre-show event in Frankfurt on Monday night.

There is reason to believe Benz has a liftback in the works, since both Audi (A7, A5 Sportback) and BMW (5- and 3-Series GT) have examples in their production lineups.

Not only would it give Benz a body style that walks between its conservative C- and E-Class offerings and the CLA and CLS, but it could give the German car-maker a defined, recognisable shape as a pure electric car.

Benz insiders have insisted it needs this to take on the likes of Tesla, rather than following the Volkswagen Group line of simply making electric versions of existing bodyshells.