A-Classe Concept from Mercedes-Benz at the Shanghai Expo

BMW better watch their back because they have a proper competitor for the 1 Series. We are talking about the new concept for the A-Classe from Mercedes-Benz, a compact hatch, not the well build monovolume that Mercedes had always designed the A-Classe to be.

The sportiness trend defined by a big grille is also present in the A-Classe. This is not commonly found on compact cars and in this case it it visible that the heritage from the SLS had a big impact. With this aggressive look defined by the front bumper, headlights, the fans of Audi A3 and BMW 1 Series should consider the A-Classe from Mercedes also.

The back of the Mercedes-Benz A-Classe Concept also inspires aggressiveness but in a mannered way. The back-lights give the care the serious attitude that it needs while the hexagonal double exhaust offer a very visible effect.

One feature that we liked a lot were the rims. Modeled just like the pales of a jet turbine, the rims are seriously contributing to the general desired image of this concept.

The interior offers a clean, minimalistic approach, with a lot of digital controls, lighted up by a splendid, red light back color, just enough to give the interior a classy and muscular look.

A big rotary button is present on the central dashboard, which is a sign that there is a complex multimedia system installed in the vehicle. Even though the chassis is a coupe, the trunk offers a lot of space just like you would see in a hatchback.

For propulsion, Mercedes-Benz A-Class Concept is relying on the new Mercedes platform, named MFA (Mercedes Front-wheel-drive Architecture), under the hood of this concept there are 210HP obtained from a 2,0 liter, 4 cylinder-engine. This kind of power is available by the use of a turbo compressor on a direct fuel injection engine and an automatic transmission.

The series model of the Mercedes-Benz A-Classe is expected to be released next year, in no less than 4 variants.

Peugeot SXC concept to be presented at the 2011 Shanghai Expo

Since Peugeot has a design studio located in China, it would be just a matter of time until we see a new creation released by them for the Chinese market, and with the new Peugeot SXC, that time is now


The desire of a SUV in China has rised dramatically after the continuous positive economic growth and more and more people are looking to confirm their status. The response from Peugeot is an elegant, spacious and muscular looking SUV. The designers have put their attention into offering a touch of sportiness to the front side of the SXC whilst keeping the brand recognition present.




The SXC may seem like a SUV-coupe (eg. BMW X6) but really it has more similarities to a crossover. The aggressive side come from the sucide doors and the practical-sport rear side.
Features that we like are the complete replacement of the rearview mirror with mini-cameras, the aerodinamic roof top with fluid lines, the massive air intakes on the front bumper and the 22 inch rims.

The interior looks like the dashboard of a spaceship. The steering wheel remainds us of the F1 cars but here is where the resemblance ends. The driver and pasaggers are sorounded by Tactile and 3D displays. Every command is digital while the seats offer a great relaxing/gaming position.
There is plenty of room for the 4 passagers of the SXC with it's dimensions of 4.870 length, 2.035 withd and 1.610 height.






The Peugeot SXC is powered of course by a hibrid engine based on the HYbrid4 tech. This means that it has 2 engines: One under the hood with internal combustion and one electric engine on the rear axle . The front one is an 1.6 liter petrol engine which outputs 218 HP helped by a turbo.

The electric motor, a 95HP sends his power to the rear wheels, thus the SXC enjoys a maximum power of 313HP, electrically controlled so that 2 modes of operation are available:
A 4x4 mode for hard terrain, and an electrical mode for the common use.
Taking this into consideration the engineers at Peugeot have obtained a 5.8 liters/100 km and CO2 emmisions of 143 g/km, a great consumption ration for an SUV/Crossover