2012 Mercedes A-Class leaked!

Yet again, the European Patent office has sprung a leak. Detailed drawings of the production-ready Mercedes A-Class have surfaced on the web, via French website automobile-magazine.fr. And they show every curve and crease of the premium hatch.

This comes only three weeks after the Concept A, a radically-styled concept that previewed the production A-Class, made its global debut simultaneously at the Shanghai and New York Motor Shows. And elements of the Concept A's styling can be clearly seen in the showroom-ready model.

While the concept was in sleek three-door form, the drawings depict a more practical five-door hatch, suggesting that both bodystyles will be offered. Predictably, the show car's psychedelic front grille and lower air intake have been substituted for a less-dramatic upright two-bar opening with a trio of air intakes underneath. The bulkier headlights appear to feature LED 'eyebrows'.

In profile, a truncated rear, long bonnet and roof spoiler give it a dynamic stance and a look reminiscent of its biggest rival, the BMW 1-Series - a model that's due to be replaced later this year. The inticate surfacing on the side of the car is neatly reinterpreted for production, while tt the rear the light clusters wrap around the corners of the car, but are deeper than on the concept and omit the horizontal linking bar.

Under the skin, the A-Class will feature an all-new front-wheel drive platform with McPherson struts at the front and a multi-link rear axle, while power will come from the latest C-Class engines with a line-up of four-cylinder petrol and diesel units. There will also be a new 2.0-litre turbocharged and direct-injection petrol motor, which the Concept A previewed in 204bhp hot hatch form, hooked up to a dual-clutch gearbox.

Mercedes CSC

Could this be the most desirable compact executive car yet? This stunning, four-door, four-wheel-drive coupe will be the star of Mercedes’ stand at the Beijing Motor Show next week – and it’s set to make the likes of the BMW 3 Series look very bland indeed.

The Concept Style Coupe (CSC) is part of a growing family of models based on the new A-Class. In essence, the CSC is a shrunken version of the CLS – a car that took the E-Class as its basis and added a sleeker shape. It carved its own niche, and now Mercedes hopes the CSC will do the same thing.

If the shape looks a little familiar, that’s because there are shades of the F800 Style Concept (revealed at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show) in the sweeping roofline.

Although it’s based on the new A-Class, the CSC is longer, wider and lower than a C-Class. Designers have removed the B-pillar to give the CSC a cleaner profile, with frameless door windows just like on the CLS.

There’s exquisite attention to detail in the front grille, which is just like that of the Vision A concept – the car that previewed the A-Class last year. It’s made up of tiny, shiny 3D dots, which give a diamond effect. A vent at the rear does the same. The headlights shine red when the car is in standby mode, while the indicators light up in succession. Massive 21-inch alloys complete the concept’s visual drama.

Inside, the A-Class influence is strong. The dashboard is very similar, although the SLS AMG-style air vents feature bold neon detailing. They’re backlit and change from blue to yellow to red as the air flowing through them warms up.

There’s a panoramic glass roof that extends far enough back to shed light on the rear seat passengers, who also have access to a sculpted centre console complete with its own air vents. This shows the car’s importance to the Chinese market, where customers 

often have chauffeurs.

Highlight of the dashboard is an integrated iPad, while the CSC also showcases Mercedes’ ‘always on’ cloud technology, which provides Internet access even when the car is stationary. This allows the car’s software to be updated remotely, meaning fewer trips to the dealer.

Under the bonnet, the CSC features a 211bhp 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol engine with direct injection. This powers all four wheels via a seven-speed twin-clutch gearbox, and should give 0-60mph in under seven seconds and a 150mph top speed.

The CSC is the third car to use Mercedes’ new platform – after the B-Class MPV and the A-Class – but it won’t be the last. An A-Class Shooting Brake estate is also planned, as is a small SUV.

Mercedes A25 AMG spied!

The Mercedes A25 AMG has been spied outside AMG HQ in Affalterbach, Germany. These images show that the AMG version of the A-Class will get new bumpers and more aggressive side skirts, with the front-end’s larger air intakes designed to cool a much larger braking set-up.

There’s also AMG alloys and a much lower ride height, while at the rear there's a set of rectangular exhausts replacing the regular A-Class’s round versions.

The A25 AMG will have four-wheel drive, with a dual-clutch gearbox transferring around 350hp from the 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine. That’s more power than the Audi RS3 and BMW 1 Series M Coupe, which both produced 335bhp.

The A25 should beat both in the sprint from 0-62mph, with an estimated time of 4.5 seconds, while top speed will be electronically limited to 155mph. 

In terms of handling, the A25 AMG has a wider track front and rear to boost grip, while revised suspension settings and standard-fit adaptive dampers will be used.  

The A25 AMG will go on sale in 2013.