(March 6, 2012) GENEVA — Mercedes-Benz revealed the third-generation A-class on Monday prior to the opening of the Geneva motor show.

The five-door hatchback, set for European sale in September but not planned for the U.S. lineup, uses a two-box design that gives it a more conventional silhouette than the out-going A Class. This puts the A-class into direct competition with the new Audi A3, the BMW 1-series, the Volvo V40 and Europe's perennial best seller, the Volkswagen Golf.



Mercedes says it is opening up a whole new chapter in the compact segment — markedly emotive in design, with powerful engines ranging from 109 horsepower to 211 horsepower. At the same time the new model underlines that for Mercedes-Benz safety is not a question of price — the standard specification includes, among other things, the radar-based Collision Prevention Assist system.

"A is for Attack: the A-Class is a clear statement of the new dynamism of the Mercedes-Benz brand," explains Dr Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG. "It is completely new, down to the last detail. In automotive development, it's not often you get the chance to start with a clean sheet of paper. Our engineers and designers have made the very most of that opportunity."

Design and dynamism are obvious characteristics of the new A-Class even at first glance, simply in the way it sits up to six inches closer to the road than its predecessor. The radical new design idiom that was so enthusiastically received upon its first appearance with the "Concept A-CLASS" has been rigorously applied for the series-production model.

With their fresh interpretation of the classic two-box design, the Mercedes designers have created an emotive exterior with a pronounced sporty flair. "Applying the new dynamic style of Mercedes-Benz to the compact class was a challenge that we thoroughly enjoyed," explains Gorden Wagener, Head of Design at Mercedes-Benz. "The almost sculptural lines of the A-Class are very typical for Mercedes. The feature lines, particularly along the sides of the car, then give the A-Class structure and tautness."

Dimensionally, the new A-class is greatly altered over the model it replaces. Length is up by 19.2 inches to 169.0 inches, width increases by 0.6 inch to 79.1 inches and height drops by 6.4 inches to 56.4 inches. A claimed coefficient of drag of 0.26 puts the car at the top of its class in terms of overall aerodynamics.

The A-class eschews the under-floor-mounted gasoline and diesel engines used in the first- and second-generation models. They are replaced by a range of four-cylinder engines, all offered in other Mercedes models or sourced from alliance partner Renault. The gasoline engines use a combination of turbocharging and direct injection.

Sources: Mercedes-Benz, AutoWeek