With the reveal of a Concept A sedan at Auto Shanghai, Mercedes-Benz provided an outlook of the next generation of compact vehicles and a potential, new body type.
The Concept A Sedan show car specifies the evolved Mercedes-Benz design language. Thanks to its purist, surface-focused design featuring reduced lines and gaps, the show car is hot and cool at the same time. The Aesthetics A sculpture already demonstrated that the upcoming compact class generation marks the dawn of an even more rigorous implementation of the design idiom of sensual purity.
The current compact vehicle generation is crucially contributing to Mercedes‑Benz’s most successful and rejuvenated appearance ever to make 2016 the sixth year of records in succession. More than two million compact vehicles have been sold around the globe since 2012. In addition to the contemporary design language, innovative assistance systems, connectivity, and driving pleasure, model variety is a crucial factor for success: with the A and B‑Class, CLA and CLA Shooting Brake, as well as the SUV crossover GLA five differently positioned variants are available on the market.
The Concept A Sedan has been designed with the proportions of a dynamic, coupe-like and simultaneously compact, premium sedan. This aim is emphasized by the traditional three-box design featuring short overhangs, especially at the rear, as well as the slim greenhouse that has been offset towards the rear. Additional sedan characteristics are the relatively vertical C‑pillar, larger side windows and the higher beltline.
The muscular-seeming wheel arch design featuring a reduced arch dimension emphasizes the exclusive 20‑inch wheels. The light alloy wheels radiate technical precision with their sporty aero-wheel look featuring a structured surface between the spokes. The door handles of the show car are flush with the body, while the outside mirrors, in a contemporary reinterpretation, stand proud of the beltlines.
The striking front expresses self-confidence: this is crucially highlighted by the deep Pan-Americana grille tilted towards the front, featuring vertical chrome inserts and a star in the centre, as well as the stretched bonnet with Powerdomes. The large, lower air inlet featuring a diamond grid structure and a striking trim strip in dark chrome is also amongst the most eye-catching features.
The headlamps with their eyebrows as a typical feature of the brand as well as the striking grid structure on the inside guarantee a confident look – and a simultaneously high recognition value. The structural sculpture that has been broken down in detail represents a technically based counter pole to the sensual exterior – stimulating contrast is one of the six guiding principles of Mercedes-Benz design. The grid structure in the lamps has been coated with UV paint and it is exposed to ultraviolet light.
This unusual lighting technology is also used at the rear: the striking tail light image has also been designed as a structural sculpture. In line with the evolved design philosophy the lines and gaps at the rear have been reduced. As a contrast to the paintwork the rear bumper features a diffuser-look lower part trimmed in black and a chrome trim strip that emphasizes the width and underlines the car’s premium appeal. The integrated exhaust deflectors are finished in dark chrome. Additional features of the roadworthy show car are dark privacy windows all-round as well as a large, panoramic glass roof.
