SPY PICS: Mercedes X-Class pick-up for Frankfurt
Pre-production version of Navara-based Benz ute has been spotted testing in chilly parts of the northern hemisphereIt's not an update of the Nissan Navara, and nor is it the Renault Alaskan under test.
No, the German registration on the subject of these spy pics gives the game away: this is the Mercedes X-Class pick-up being tested in Arctic climes ahead of a global launch at Frankfurt in September.
The X-Class and the Alaskan are both based on the Navara, and it looks like the engineering team that has been testing the new Benz has gone to some effort concealing the brand identity.
Compare the front of this pre-production vehicle with the concept car revealed late last year and it's clear that someone has been distancing the pre-production model from the design study. Where is the traditional-style Benz grille, or those slimline headlights from the concept?
Yet Benz has already said that the production X-Class will be visually aligned with the show car.
Mercedes-Benz Australia has confirmed that the X-Class will go on sale in Australia next year, and based on precedent, it will probably be significantly less than 12 months after the vehicle's premiere in Frankfurt.
The prestige importer has been reportedly crunching the factory hard on price, which suggests the X-Class will be much like the Vito van – competitively priced without being a bare-bones offering.
There'll be a V6 variant available in Australia, to go head to head with Volkswagen's Amarok V6, at the very least.
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