2018 Mercedes-Benz A-Class Digital Instrument Cluster Spied Lit, Looks Massive

On the outside, the A-Class never ceased to be an attractive car. That being said, the new one seems to take the best bits and build onto them, though the test vehicles haven't really shown us that much from underneath all that camo so far. The little we've seen, though, suggests we're looking at a down-to-earth version of the EQ A Concept shown at this year's Frankfurt Motor Show.

That means a more aggressive front end with thinner headlights and bigger radiator grille, and perhaps a slightly longer hood. Unfortunately, the rear design isn't anything close to the concept's, with the taillights opting for a different shape though the light strip might still show up from under all that wrapping, as unlikely as it might be.

The biggest change, however, and probably the most important as well, is going to take place on the inside. The aging dashboard design with rather poor-quality materials for a premium model is getting a complete makeover, and it looks promising. Gone is the myriad of buttons replaced with a clean design and hopefully better trim.

The center console is dominated by the three turbine-styled air vents with a strip of buttons controlling the HVAC system sitting underneath them. Thanks to the gear selector sitting on the steering column in pure Mercedes-Benz fashion, the rest of the console has an airy feel, though we can't yet make out the details.

Somewhat disappointing is the very large bezel of the two displays. They attempt to mimic the S-Class design but more cheaply, and unfortunately the result shows it. We'll reserve final judgment for when we'll see it in person, but large piano-black surfaces have always been fingerprint magnets. Plus, the two displays seem a bit lost among all that dark surface. It all hangs on what Mercedes designers have managed to do with all that space in between that now appears to be completely dead.

On the other hand, the digital speedometer looks massive. It's the first time we get to see it in action, and the simulated dial is huge. We can see it includes other information such as fuel level, trip info or gearbox status, but we're curious to see how they've integrated the sat nav directions as well. From what we can see so far, Audi's Digital Cockpit does a much better job. Still, that bezel might be replaced by larger displays on a more expensive A-Class, in which case we'd be looking at a real mini S-Class dashboard.

It won't be long until we learn everything there is to know about the 2018 A-Class as Mercedes-Benz's new hatchback is expected to debut during the first half of 2018. The most likely venue is the Geneva Motor Show in March, especially if we consider Europe is the main market for the A-Class.