New Mercedes SUVs

Mercedes-Benz may have pioneered the luxury car segment in India and initially enjoyed a first-mover advantage, but BMW and Audi have recently nosed ahead. And that’s primarily down to one simple fact: Mercedes has a giant hole in its product portfolio. While BMW has the X3 and X1 SUVs and Audi has the Q5 and Q3, Mercedes has no product in the same segment.
However, this is now set to change. Dieter Zetsche, head of Mercedes-Benz Cars, revealed to Autocar India recently that Mercedes is planning the introduction of not one but two brand new SUVs for the Indian market.
The smaller of the two will be the yet-to-be-revealed GLA, which will compete with the BMW X1 and Audi Q3. Based on Mercedes’ new MFA front-wheel-drive transverse-engine architecture, just like the new A- and B-class, this space-efficient SUV is expected to take the Mercedes brand to a whole new set of SUV buyers. The styling is said to be as edgy as the new A-class, the cabin is reputed to be ‘very spacious’ and designers say some of the youthful exuberance seen on the interior of the A-class will be carried over to the GLA as well.
Unlike manufacturers like Audi or BMW, Mercedes will not build its compact SUV on an extended wheelbase. Both the new B-class and the new A-class share the same 2700mm wheelbase, and the new GLA is likely to do so too.
by autocarindia.com