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Mercedes-Benz is close to unveiling its new GLA-Class crossover, and our spies have managed to capture some close-up photos of prototypes undergoing testing. This ground-up redesign brings with it a new platform architecture intended to modernize and more closely align both its engineering and its aesthetics with the the company’s new, post-EQ styling era.
The next-generation Mercedes-Benz GLA will ride on the same platform as the new CLA-Class, and should follow in its mechanical footsteps, offering a single, “unified” body shape for both its gasoline and electric variants. That means that apart from some unique bumpers and perhaps some other adjustments to reduce body openings, the general styling on display here should be broadly reflective of what you can expect to see on the showroom floor whether you want the gasser or the EV.
While this prototype is still extensively camouflaged, we can see more body detail in these higher resolution images. It appears that the new prototype is finished in black paint, as evidenced by the small patches peeking through on the rear bumper. The rocker cladding appears to incorporate part of the GLA’s disguise, making it difficult to say exactly what Mercedes has in mind for the final product there.
Here’s the new, high-quality gallery. The pics we received a few weeks ago are still at the bottom of the post, if you’d like to try to spot any differences we didn’t.
We expect to see the new GLB-Class debut at roughly the same time, riding on the same platform. The two fill very different roles for Mercedes, so we’re not surprised to see the tiny runabout stay in its lane, so to speak. The larger, three-row GLB is about as close to a minivan as you can get without sliding doors, while the little two-row GLA offers a sportier hatchback profile in exchange for giving up quite a bit of interior utility.
Its new body appears as though it’ll be more streamlined than the current GLA’s. While we can see some hood and side panel creases on this prototype, they’re so distorted that they could simply be there to help camouflage its final shape. Meanwhile, the rear end appears less smoothed off than the current car’s; that might help make it look less like a four-wheeled sneaker.
You can browse the full gallery of spy pics in the widget below.
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