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NEWS
Rendered: A-Class three-door
Mercedes-Benz preparing three-door coupe and cabrio versions of new A-ClassThe third-generation A-Class hatchback officially goes on sale in Australia on March 1, but motoring.com.au has learned Mercedes-Benz is also preparing three-door ‘coupe’ and two-door cabriolet versions of its smallest model.
Seen here in a Carparazzi rendering, the sleek three-door is expected to be launched as part of a midlife makeover for the mould-breaking new Benz hatch in 2015, with the closely related convertible to follow in 2016.
It is unclear whether the new entry-level coupe, which is likely to open the A-Class range in Europe, will be sold in Australia, or if the first A-Class cabrio will be offered here.
Either way, engine options for both models are expected to echo those of the five-door, which launches here next month in 1.6-litre petrol A 180 and A 200, 1.8-litre diesel A 200 CDI and range-topping 2.0-litre petrol A 250 Sport guises.
Mercedes-AMG has just announced details of its first four-cylinder model, the A 45 AMG hot-hatch, which will debut at next month’s Geneva motor show with a cracking 265kW/450Nm turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol four.
The same engine would make the three-door A-Class, which is expected to be marginally lighter than the five-door, even quicker than the ballistic A 45 AMG, which is claimed to accelerate to 100km/h in just 4.6 seconds.
Though Mercedes-Benz remains tight-lipped about the A-Class coupe and cabrio at least three years before their global launches, they will effectively bring the number of Benz models derived from the German car-maker’s new MFA modular compact platform to seven.
The current B-Class was the first MFA-based model to appear, followed by the new A-Class and the all-new CLA-Class compact front-drive sedan, which goes on sale here later this year. Two further distinct new models will arrive in the form of the GLA-Class compact crossover and, perhaps, a CLA Shooting Brake wagon.
Mercedes’ answer to BMW’s UKL and Volkswagen’s MQB platforms, the front- and all-wheel drive MFA chassis architecture will also form the basis of an all-new compact model from Infiniti, previewed by the Etherea concept.
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Written byMarton Pettendy
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