Mercedes-Benz Concept GLC Coupé Goes Official

Following yesterday’s leaked photos, Mercedes-Benz has decided to go official with the Concept GLC Coupé, a pre-production study that applies the GLE Coupé formula on a smaller footprint.

Previewing the production GLC Coupé, the study combines coupé styling cues with the design language seen on recent Mercedes-Benz SUVs. It looks essentially like a smaller GLE Coupé, sporting a twin-blade radiator grille, creases on the bonnet and an aggressive-looking double-exhausts on each side. However, the LED headlights are smaller than those on the GLE Coupé.

Since it’s billed as a concept car, it rides on enormous 21-inch tyres, while SUV elements also include front and rear underbody protection, side running boards and a raised ground clearance. 

The GLC Coupé study is 4,730mm (186.2in) long, 2,000mm (78.7in) wide and just under 1,600mm (63in) high, with a 2,830mm (111.4in) wheelbase. Under the hood, it features the same engine from the C450 AMG Sport, a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 petrol unit that produces 367PS (362hp) and 520Nm (383lb-ft) of torque. The engine is linked to a 9G-Tronic 9-speed automatic transmission and 4Matic permanent all-wheel drive.

No performance specs have been revealed yet, but Mercedes-Benz says the powertrain provides the GLC Coupé with “emphatic acceleration.”

The Mercedes-Benz Concept GLC Coupé should transition to production with minimal changes, becoming the seventh SUV in the automaker’s lineup. The sporty SUV concept will share underpinnings with the upcoming GLC, the successor to the GLK.

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2016 Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe

In three days from now, we'll have a first look at how Mercedes plans to address their BMW X4 problem with the GLC Coupe Concept at the Shanghai Auto Show.

The official drawing released earlier this month strongly suggests that the study will be very close to the production car that will follow next year, but until then, our friends over at TopSpeed created a life-like render of the GLC Coupe based on the concept. 

Both Merc's sketch and this render also point to a "one designs fits all" practice, with the GLC Coupe reminding of a more compact-sized interpretation of the existing GLE Coupe that's based on the GLE (the renamed M-Class facelift) and which targets the bigger BMW X6 – much like what the Bavarians did with the X4 themselves. 

Under the sporty roofline and raised body you'll find the underpinnings of the upcoming GLC (see our Future Car renders here and here) that replaces the current GLK, with both models sharing crucial elements of their platform, drivelines and technology with the latest C-Class. 

Rendering via TopSpeed

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Mercedesc-Benz Concept A-Class

Mercedes-Benz is said to be planning a front-wheel drive sports car to rival the Audi TT. The automaker has just started developing the next-generation A-Class, which will reportedly have a coupe variant. 

Obviously, there’s nothing official yet, but German magazine Auto Bild claims the front-wheel drive sports car will exist and will be stylistically inspired by the Mercedes-AMG GT super car. The new entry-level sports car will be offered with some of the engines of the upcoming A-Class, including turbocharged diesels and gasoline engines. 

The TT rival will also be equipped with the high-performance engine currently used by the A 45 AMG, CLA 45 AMG and GLA 45 AMG. Besides the front-wheel drive basic configuration, the sports car will also be available with all-wheel drive. 

So when are we going to see a TT rival from Mercedes-Benz? If rumors are true, the automaker will unveil a pre-production concept sometime in 2017 or 2018, followed shortly by the production car.

Of course, all this raises the question of what will happen to the SLK...

Note: 2011 Mercedes Concept A pictured

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Mercedes-Benz VTR Supermini

Inspired by the more aggressive styling and proportions of the A-Class Mk3, Turkish industrial design Uğur Göküş took it upon himself to visualize a smaller model positioned between the Smart series and the A-Class.

Since "A" is the first letter of the alphabet, Göküş decided to change nomenclature and baptize his conceptual sub-compact hatch the VTR-Class.

We imagine the three-door supermini was designed to be roughly the same length as a Ford Fiesta or a Renault Clio, with a wider body for a more menacing stance.

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2015 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing Coupe

Slimane Toubal, a professional clay artist from France who has worked with several automakers around the world including Audi, Honda and more recently, at PSA Peugeot-Citroen's China office, used his free time to create his own vision of what a modern-day 300 SL should look like.

The result is a design study that is more heavily influenced by the styling of the original 1950s 300 SL compared to the current SLS AMG.

Toubal penned both a coupe with the classic 'Gullwing' style doors and a roadster model, which unlike the soft-top SLS AMG, uses a retractable hardtop.

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