Mercedes-Benz has started testing the next-gen CLA Shooting Brake ahead of its debut next year. A spy video released on YouTube channel walkoART shows the redesigned model undergoing testing in Sindelfingen, Germany.
The familiar proportions are an instant giveaway of what’s hiding underneath the camouflage. With an emotional yet purist design, the next-gen Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake will blend seamlessly into the evolved Sensual Purity design language for the three-pointed star’s compact family.
A marked improvement on the inside is a given, with a strong reminiscence of the latest A-Class and B-Class’ avant-garde interior design. MBUX will make way for a significantly higher level of digitalisation. Seamlessly merged 12.3-inch virtual instrument cluster and 12.3-inch central display in the style first seen on the Mercedes S-Class in 2013 will make the cockpit look a lot more futuristic than today’s model.
The next-gen Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake should come with a wide range of turbocharged engines having displacements ranging from 1.3- to 2.0-litre. It is safe to assume that Daimler will offer the all-new M 282 1.3-litre petrol unit co-developed with Renault and available in 136 PS/200 Nm and 163 PS/250 Nm versions as the entry-level option. Expect this unit with 6-speed manual and 7-speed automatic transmission choices.
Other options may include the M260 2.0-litre petrol unit (224 PS/350 Nm), the OM 608 1.5L diesel unit (116 PS/260 Nm) and the OM 654q 2.0L diesel unit (150 PS/320 Nm and 190 PS/400 Nm). Select configurations should come with the 4MATIC AWD system.
As for the AMG variant, we expect two models, going with the new strategy adopted for the A-Class: 35 and 45. The former should sport an uptuned M260 engine delivering 306 PS and 400 Nm of torque. It may have a 7-speed automatic transmission and the 4MATIC AWD system as standard. The latter may pack an all-new 2.0-litre mill dishing out over 400 PS and a newly developed all-wheel drive system.
Also See: Mercedes Benz A-Class Sedan - 2018 Paris Motor Show Live
The 2020 Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake could debut in the second half of 2019, a few months after the 2019 Mercedes CLA that year.
