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Mercedes-Benz A 45 AMG To Bring 245kW And AWD: Report

If we told you that Mercedes-Benz is planning a 245kW all-wheel-drive version of its new A-Class hatch for late 2013, would you hold off on that hot-hatch purchase for another year?

New reports out of Europe this week suggest the new model will be

Mike Stevens

23:5612 June 2012

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Mercedes-Benz A 45 AMG To Bring 245kW And AWD: Report

If we told you that Mercedes-Benz is planning a 245kW all-wheel-drive version of its new A-Class hatch for late 2013, would you hold off on that hot-hatch purchase for another year?

New reports out of Europe this week suggest the new model will be known as the A 45 AMG; not the A 25 AMG, as previously reported.

Earlier claims of an engine producing more than 240kW have supposedly also been confirmed, with Britain's Autocar taking the 245kW figure from an unnamed AMG insider.

That power is expected to come from the same 2.0 litre turbocharged four-cylinder driving the new 155kW A 250.

Earlier reports by the same magazine 'confirmed' more than 250kW, derived from a wrung-out 2.0 litre version of the E 250's 1.8 litre 150kW turbo engine.

If these new details are accurate, the AMG-enhanced A-Class will go head-to-head with Audi's 250kW all-wheel-drive RS 3 hatch, and BMW's new rear-wheel-drive 235kW M135i.

According to Autocar, the RS 3 is exactly what AMG had in mind with the development of its new small hero.

"Our goal right from the start was to match the output of the larger turbocharged 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine used by the RS 3," AMG development boss Tobias Moers is quoted by magazine.

Watch for more details on the new A-Class AMG car to filter out over the coming year.