The next-generation Mercedes-Benz C-Class is set to hit the global stage next year.
While spy shots of disguised prototypes have been doing their rounds for a while now, a YouTube subscriber has caught one of these prototypes in action, as you'll see in the video below.
Though the car is still relatively well-disguised, the car's shape is laid bare and we can see hints of the new E-Class in the frontal styling and some SLK influences at the back.
Now that the CLA has entered the picture, the C-Class is no longer burdened with the task of being the entry-level Mercedes sedan, so you can certainly bank on the new model being bigger and more feature-packed.
Whether there will be a C180 model remains to be seen, but you can expect the remaining four-cylinder models to inherit the advanced new 2-litre turbopetrol engine found in the latest E-Class. The lean-burning direct injection motor should mirror its bigger brother in offering 135kW and 300Nm in the C200 model and 155kW/350Nm in the C250.
The new C will reportedly also inherit Merc's new twin-turbocharged 3-litre V6 motor, which pushes 245kW and 480Nm. Expect to see a C400 badge on the back of this Audi S4 rival.
As for the big boss, there's no indication that Mercedes is following BMW down the six-cylinder road, meaning that AMG's 5.5-litre twin-turbo V8 will find its way into the C 63 in one form (of tune) or another.
The new C-Class is likely to make its first appearance in sedan form at the Detroit Motor Show in January and it'll be followed by estate and coupé versions later in the year. Convertible and MPV models are also said to be part of the eventual line-up.
The sedan will once again be built in East London for local consumption and export, with the Eastern Cape plant being one of just four C-Class manufacturing facilities around the world.