Mercedes-Benz continues the AMG-ification of its
compact vehicle family with the all-new GLA 35 and GLA 45 high-performance
crossovers. The second-generation Mercedes-Benz GLA has not been unveiled yet but
that doesn’t stop Mercedes-AMG from testing its own variants: the 35 and 45.
Carscoops photographers spotted both in Germany for the first time, thus confirming
that these hot versions are indeed coming.
As with its boxy GLB sibling and other compact
models, the main difference between the 35 and 45 versions is the grille. While
the GLA 35 sports a normal sized grille with a horizontal trim piece splitting
it half, the GLA 45 gets the larger, more aggressive-looking Panamericana
grille with vertical slats.
We can spot other styling differences as well,
despite the heavy camouflage. Those include the front bumper which gains
additional air vents in the GLA 45 and the rear bumper which features quad
exhausts on the top-dog model as opposed to the two round pipes in the GLA 35.
The GLA 45 prototype in the photos does
not feature the production rear bumper and exhausts which means development is
still ongoing and the model will launch after the GLA 35 whose rear bumper is
the finished item. As for the interior, it’s enough to look at the A-Class
cabin to know what the 2020 GLA looks like inside.
Obviously, the main differences between the two
models are the powertrains. The GLA 35 will get a 2.0-liter turbocharged
four-cylinder engine producing 302 hp and 400 Nm of
torque. The unit will be mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and
standard 4Matic all-wheel-drive system.
The GLA 45 will get a more powerful 2.0-liter
turbocharged four-cylinder engine available in two states of tune: 382 hp and 480 Nm in standard form and 421 PS and 499 Nm in range-topping S guise. The seven-speed DCT and 4Matic AWD system
will be standard as well. Expect both the Mercedes-AMG GLA 35 and GLA 45 to
debut in late 2019 and early 2020, respectively.
