The 2019 Mercedes-AMG A45 is set to take the fight to Audi's RS3 with an all-new engine pumping out at least 300kW of power.
Tobias Moers, the man in charge of Mercedes' high-performance arm, says AMG will respond to Audi's 294kW hot hatch by besting its power output.
"You have to be at a certain level," he says.
"We have to do something. And we're going to do something.
"You have to achieve 400 horses, (300kW) that's for sure."
Mercedes-AMG redefined expectations with the original A45, a car that extracted 265kW from a heavily turbocharged 2.0-litre, four-cylinder engine. Now producing 280kW, Moers says the current car is "at the limit" of what its hardware can offer.
So his team committed to an all-new engine for the A45 - as well as its CLA45 and GLA45 siblings - likely to make it into a new model in 2019.
While it is possible Mercedes could follow Ford's Focus RS by offering a drift mode in the next A45, Moers says there is "nothing confirmed" in that regard.
Mercedes is rumoured to reveal a concept version of its next-generation A-Class at next week's Shanghai motor show - in a new four-door sedan body style.
While a successor to the existing car is "still a little while" away and it is "too early to talk about the details", Moers says his team has been working on the next-generation car for some time, linked in with Mercedes' passenger car arm from the start of the program.
"You have to be aligned really early so that you can put everything you want in the plan," he says.
"We have a clear understanding what we have to do."
2 Comments
Roger Ng | 2017-04-14 20:42:44
The new A series (from 2016 onwards) is almost perfect. Two things that could improve this car (and more power is not one of them) are: (1) a spare wheel - the run flat tyres fitted standard to my A250 aren't. I got a flat tyre on Thursday at 4:50pm. I refuse to use the goop they provide because tyre repairers swear that it ruins the tyre. As no repair outlets are open over Easter, it means the car is next to useless. I'll be buying a spare and a jack as well. (2) For god's sake MB, treat us like overseas markets and give us a longer warranty. If your cars are as reliable as you say they are (and so far I have no reason to doubt that) then back it up like Kia does. Otherwise, as a second car (or first if you're young and single) it's perfect.
CRH45 | 2017-04-15 06:14:01
Support Roger Ng's comments; what might be OK in Europe does not apply in Australia. This is especially the case where tire make and sizes might require several days wait even in a regional centre like Mudgee. MB do offer a space saver or collapsible spare as an accessory but it takes up boot space and costs over $2,000. Another issue with the A Class AMG's is NO towbar.