Photo: SB-Medien
It took Mercedes-Benz quite a while to put the prototype for the A-Class together, but the B-Class was ready almost overnight. There was something familiar about during the first sighting yesterday, and now our hunch looks pretty much confirmed.
Hiding under a tarp somewhere in Stuttgart, the B-Class III is seen here with most of its production panels. The only pieces that are missing are the front and rear bumpers.
Several elements line up perfectly with the outgoing model, things that are expensive to change. For example, the S-curve of the rear door has stayed intact, as has the thin piece of the fender that connects it to the wheel arch.
The A-pillars are identical, and the headlights cut into the front fender in the same way, though they have a different design. What's not the same is the outer skin, as we can see less pronounced creases on the doors.
Mercedes had done this before with the C-Class Coupe/CLC, and more recently when they presented the "all-new" GLE. The B-Class's segment is shrinking in the face of increased crossover demand, so they need to cut corners here and there.
The engine range will be almost entirely different since most of the current mills will be discontinued or updated anyway. However, we're concerned about what will happen to the interior.
Keeping the current button-heavy layout while the A-Class uses the panoramic screen sounds like a really bad idea. So too does combining old and new technology, but looking a what they did with the GLE, this is the most likely outcome.
In any case, the B-Class is not the kind of car you buy to go drag racing. There's nothing wrong with the current architecture either, especially since it's somehow slightly lighter than that of the BMW 2 Series Active Tourer.
Considering the readiness of this white prototype, it could be unveiled at the same time or even sooner than the A-Class, which is the way things were with the predecessors. That would be one heck of a surprise!
Several elements line up perfectly with the outgoing model, things that are expensive to change. For example, the S-curve of the rear door has stayed intact, as has the thin piece of the fender that connects it to the wheel arch.
The A-pillars are identical, and the headlights cut into the front fender in the same way, though they have a different design. What's not the same is the outer skin, as we can see less pronounced creases on the doors.
Mercedes had done this before with the C-Class Coupe/CLC, and more recently when they presented the "all-new" GLE. The B-Class's segment is shrinking in the face of increased crossover demand, so they need to cut corners here and there.
The engine range will be almost entirely different since most of the current mills will be discontinued or updated anyway. However, we're concerned about what will happen to the interior.
Keeping the current button-heavy layout while the A-Class uses the panoramic screen sounds like a really bad idea. So too does combining old and new technology, but looking a what they did with the GLE, this is the most likely outcome.
In any case, the B-Class is not the kind of car you buy to go drag racing. There's nothing wrong with the current architecture either, especially since it's somehow slightly lighter than that of the BMW 2 Series Active Tourer.
Considering the readiness of this white prototype, it could be unveiled at the same time or even sooner than the A-Class, which is the way things were with the predecessors. That would be one heck of a surprise!
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