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New Mercedes CLA helps Daimler to 16% profit jump

The new Mercedes CLA (pictured) help Mercedes to a 16% profit jump. There’s an argument that the move in to more compact car sales by premium car makers will see their turnover rise and their profits fall as more compact cars tend to work on smaller margins than high-end luxury cars. But Mercedes has defied that logic by posting a 16 per cent increase in profits for the third quarter of 2013, boosted by sales of the new compact coupé – the Mercedes CLA.

Toyota Prius+ gets a bit of a tweak for 2015

Toyota Prius+ gets a bit of a tweak for 2015 It’s more than three years since Toyota took the Prius and turned it in to the world’s only seven-seat MPV – the Toyota Prius+ – and more than two years since it arrived in the UK. So it’s time for a tweak or two. The cosmetic changes to the Prius+ are, by any standards, minor and consist of the normal facelift fodder with tweaks at the front – new grill design and badge and LED lights – and the back – redesigned bumper, slightly different lights and some trim round the numberplate – being pretty much it for the exterior.

Mercedes-Benz courts Renault for new Smart model based on Twingo

Mercedes-Benz is set to join forces with Renault in a deal aimed at providing its underdeveloped Smart division with a contemporary-engineered front-engine/front-wheel-drive platform as the basis for a frugal new Forfour model. The new Smart, due out in 2013, is planned to sit on a lightly modified version of the Renault Twingo’s underpinnings, complete with a 93.3-inch wheelbase. Speaking about the new car over the weekend, a highly placed Mercedes-Benz official told AutoWeek: “It’s a key component in plans to grow the Smart brand.