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What If Mercedes-Benz Went Crazy and Made an Even Smaller Car than the A-Class?

With Mercedes-Benz currently exploiting the Renault-Nissan partnership in the most bizarre way, using the Renault Kangoo as a basis for its Citan van and the Nissan Navara for its future pickup, anything can be expected.
Mercedes-Benz sub-A-Class model 3 photos
Photo: Theophilus Chin
Mercedes-Benz sub-A-Class model renderingMercedes-Benz sub-A-Class model rendering
The Germans are currently plugging any gap they can find or create with niche models, so why not the one between the A-Class and the smart forfour as well? After all, that’s a very lucrative segment - at least in Europe it is - and Audi already has a foothold there in the shape of the perky A1. And then there’s BMW’s MINI Cooper, but at the rate that model is growing, it will soon rival the S-Class.

So, even though small cars and premium aspirations don’t usually go together that well, Mercedes-Benz could one day decide it was time to conquer that segment as well. It could go for a new smart forfive model (we’re just thinking out loud here) or invent a new smaller X-Class, where "X" is a letter of Mercedes-Benz’s choosing.

It wouldn’t be that hard either if the Germans stroke a deal with Renault and used the Clio platform, which offers plenty of potential. At least that’s what Theophilus Chin, self-proclaimed "automotive manipulator" did when he came up with this rendering. He also chose the letter "O" to denote this smallest of Mercedes-Benz classes, probably thinking it resembled a zero. Which it obviously does.

But if (and it’s a big "if," so big you could probably see it in some of Curiosity’s next pictures if it turns its camera towards the Earth) Mercedes-Benz did decide to do it, it would certainly not look like this. This is nothing but a classic case of "Honey, I’ve shrunk the GLA," and there’s no reason whatsoever for Mercedes-Benz to make its hypothetical smallest hatchback resemble a crossover. Plus, it doesn’t even look that great. Take away the GLA’s width and low stance and you’ve got yourself an uninspiring car.

And what do they lately say to uninspiring cars at Mercedes-Benz? Not today. Not today.
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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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