The Mercedes-Benz C-Class convertible has been spied for the first time, giving us an early look at the fourth body style that will be spun off the upcoming mid-sized model.
CarAdvice’s spy photographers captured the heavily disguised C-Class convertible prototype in the early stages of development near one of the luxury car maker’s testing facilities in Germany.
The spied test car is seen wearing a hard roof panel, though the production car will trade the temporary cover for a conventional folding fabric roof like that of the E-Class convertible.
The convertible is set to be the final body style to join the expanded next-generation Mercedes-Benz C-Class line-up. Expected to launch by 2016, the soft-top will follow the sedan and wagon – due at the beginning and the end of 2014 respectively – and a new coupe tipped for 2015.
Spy shots of the sedan captured late last week confirmed the new C-Class will inherit key styling elements from the new S-Class, including its prominent grille, swept headlights and tail-lights, long bonnet, and its distinctive character lines running between the wheel arches at the upper and lower edges of the door frames.
If, as expected, the new C-Class range follows the lead of the E-Class line-up, the convertible should borrow heavily from the design of the sedan.
