Mercedes-Benz B-Class 2012 spy shots and early photos

We’re not on good terms with Mercedes-Benz any more for personal reasons (theirs, not ours), so we were sitting on these photos for a while, pondering whether they’ll try to get back at us using archaic local laws for taking photos of their prototype cars. After consulting our lawyers, we’re told these cars were in public view and reveal nothing, so we’re going ahead and showing you our own spy shots of what is now comfirmed to be the 2012 Mercedes-Benz B-Class.

Mercedes-Benz is busy testing the front-wheel-drive unsportingly-tall hatchback in Dubai and around the UAE, but they’ve also released teaser photos of the car that will debut in September at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show. We also dug up a photo of the real car from the internet, likely caught during a photo-shoot.

The new slightly-larger B-Class will debut with a 122 hp engine in the B180 and a 156 hp engine in the B200, both 1.6-litre direct-injection turbocharged 4-cylinder engines, and both surprisingly weak considering the tech. Alongside two other equally-weak 109 hp and 136 hp turbodiesel engines, all models will be available with either a 6-speed manual or a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

The heavy city-cars will also include safety systems such as adaptive headlights, intelligent cruise control, blind spot assist and a collision-prevention adaptive brake system as well, possibly making it the smallest car to feature such technology.

Keep track of updates in the Mercedes-Benz B-Class buyer guide.