Mercedes-Benz CLA

Mercedes-Benz Australia has issued a recall for 2019 model-year A-Class, CLA and GLA vehicles over concerns one of the airbags could detach while driving. "The four lock nuts for fastening the airbag may have been installed incorrectly," the company says in its recall notice.

Euro NCAP has released its latest round of safety ratings this week, with several upcoming models bound for Australia scoring five-star ratings – including the SsangYong Korando and BMW Z4.

Mercedes-AMG has revealed the CLA45 Shooting Brake, joining the related CLA45 four-door coupe and A45 hatchback in the marque’s flagship compact performance line-up – but don’t expect it in Australia anytime soon.

The next-generation Mercedes-AMG CLA45 has been spotted in snowy Europe this week, ahead of an anticipated reveal before the end of the year. Looking at this pre-production prototype, there's not a whole lot of surprises in terms of the design. The basic shape of the new CLA is there, but with beefed-up AMG bits. Up front is a more aggressive bumper and gaping Panamericana grille, while the rear sees a prominent diffuser treatment with a quad-tipped exhaust.

Thanks to rising development costs, greater market fragmentation, and the need to invest in both electric vehicles and self-driving car technology, automakers are increasingly coming together to share development costs and increase economies of scale. With that in mind, Harald Krüger, CEO of BMW, and Ola Källenius, CEO-in-waiting at Daimler, are said to be in wide-open collaboration talks between the sometimes bitter rivals.