2015 Mercedes GLA-Class officially bound for Frankfurt

Forget spy shots, design sketches and teaser videos, here is the 2015 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class. As part of the rapid expansion of its small car offerings, Mercedes-Benz has pulled the cover off this new compact crossover that we'll be seeing up close and personal at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Sharing a platform with the new A-Class and CLA-Class, the GLA will be the fifth SUV/crossover in the Mercedes lineup when it goes on sale in the US in the fall of next year.

From early prototypes of the GLA, the lineage to the A-Class has been obvious, especially when it comes to styling cues like the shape of the C-pillar, the headlights and the front fenders, but everything else seems to have been beefed up to give the GLA a stronger CUV stance. In terms of its size, the GLA is slightly bigger than the A-Class with dimensions that make it a little longer than the Range Rover Evoque as well as lower and about a foot narrower; based on the info provided from Mercedes, the GLA is very similar to the size of the current Kia Sportage (although that is obviously positioned in a different CUV segment).

There are only four pictures of the GLA's interior that show just the front portion of the cabin, which appears to be a direct carryover from the A-Class. Mercedes will first launch the GLA250 4Matic, which uses a turbocharged and direct-injected 2.0-liter inline four-cylinder engine producing 208 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque, paired to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. Performance should be quite impressive – Mercedes promises a 0-60 time of 6.4 seconds. In 2015, front-wheel-drive versions of the GLA250 will go on sale, but there is still no official word on the GLA45 AMG. Scroll down for more details about the 2015 Mercedes GLA-Class from the official press release.

Courtesy of autoblog.com - http://aol.it/14ejy71