LA MOTOR SHOW: Mercedes-Benz Concept GLA 45

Its small GLA SUV isn’t even on sale yet and the German premium giant has shown a thinly-disguised AMG version in Los Angeles.

While it’s officially a concept car, the reality is that Benz’s AMG division will stuff the soft roader full of the same powertrain as the A 45 AMG hatch and the CLA 45 AMG sedan.

Its design is more aggressive and more distinctive than the standard GLA, with a deeper front air intake, bigger wheels and a pair of hot exhaust pipes.

The chassis is closely related to the small front-drive architecture underneath the A-Class and the CLA sedan, which made transferring the AMG technology an easy decision to make.

It will have 265kW in its “concept” form, along with 450Nm of torque, which Benz claims will drive it to 100km/h in less than five seconds.

Given that the CLA 45 AMG makes the sprint in 4.5 seconds thanks to the efforts of its all-wheel drive system and its 2.0-litre, turbocharged four-cylinder engine, that’s probably not an outrageous claim.

With up to 1.8 bar of turbo pressure, the 140 bar of peak pressure inside the engine forced AMG to mass produce parts normally considered the domain of racing cars, like sand-cast engine blocks, forged steel crankshafts, sand-cast aluminium crankcases and spray-guided direct fuel injection.

The concept arrives with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, too, along with a viscous-coupling centre differential to distribute its drive around all four wheels.

“With the Concept GLA 45 AMG, we are setting a stake firmly in the ground of the strongly-growing market segment of compact SUVS,” AMG board chairman Tobias Moers said at the show.

“Our customers -- a young target group who set great store by styling, dynamism and independence -- can now start looking forward to a dynamic high-performance car.

“The most powerful four-cylinder engine in the world and the AMG Performance 4Matic all-wheel drive system add up to make the Concept GLA 45 AMG a unique proposition.”

Plans are to show the official production version of the GLA 45, which is aimed at young males, at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

Besides performance, it will boast fuel economy below eight litres/100km on the NEDC cycle.

While the production car is more likely to ride on 19-inch tyres than the concept car’s 255/35 R21 rubber, AMG sources say it will largely carry over the front apron and the optional LED headlights.