- Mercedes-AMG’s electric GLA SUV has stripped away much of its camouflage.
- Expect an AMG take on Merc’s new jumbo grille and three axial flux motors.
- A passenger-side screen is likely to be optional even on this top-spec GLA.
Mercedes only revealed its new 2027 GLA baby SUV in July, but AMG clearly isn’t interested in letting the regular crossover enjoy the spotlight for long. Our latest spy shots show the electric AMG GLA testing with much less camouflage, giving us our best look yet at what could become a 671 hp (680 PS) family missile.
Most of the disguise has disappeared, leaving camo only around the areas AMG doesn’t want us studying too closely just yet. Up front, expect a more aggressive lower bumper and an AMG-specific interpretation of Mercedes’ new grille that’ll help differentiate it from regular Mercedes GLAs optioned with the AMG Line trim.
Related: The Base 2027 Mercedes GLA Reminds You Of Your Cheapness One Star At A Time
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The rear gets the now familiar star-shaped taillights, a roof spoiler and probably some kind of diffuser similar to the setup used on the new AMG CLA 45. Otherwise, the body remains recognizably GLA, which means this should be one seriously discreet way of embarrassing sports cars. Inside you’ll find a pillar-to-pillar digital dashboard, but only if you tick the option box for the optional passenger-side screen.
Mercedes hasn’t revealed what’s powering the prototype, but its recently launched electric AMG CLA 45 gives us a very large clue. That car uses three axial-flux motors, one driving the front axle and two powering the rear, producing up to 671 hp (680 PS) and a frankly absurd 1,297 lb-ft (1,758 Nm) of torque. In the CLA, that’s enough for 0-62 mph (0-100 km/h) in 3 seconds without rollout, and the taller and slightly heavier GLA won’t be much slower.
Bigger, 94 kWh Battery
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Ordinary CLAs and GLAs come with a choice of 58 or 85 kWh batteries, but since the CLA 45 gets an upgrade to 94 kWh, the GLA 45 is likely to follow suit. That might allow it to match the 345 – 400 miles (555 – 643 km) of electric range claimed by the current GLA flagship, the non-AMG GLA 350 4MATIC Electric.
AMG should also bring over much of the CLA 45’s chassis wizardry, potentially including adaptive damping, variable front-to-rear torque distribution and individual rear-wheel torque vectoring.
And because silently generating 671 hp apparently isn’t dramatic enough, the CLA 45 offers AMGForce S+, complete with simulated combustion-engine noises, fake gearshifts and seat shakers designed to make those imaginary shifts feel more convincing. We’d be surprised if the AMG GLA 45 missed out on that theatrical silliness when it debuts in the next few months.