Restyled back in February, the W206, which will more than likely follow the W205 in being produced at Benz’s East London plant, will reportedly incorporate tech from the still prototype W223 S-class, and based on the image captured by carscoops.com, styling cues from the E-class.

While still covered in heavy layers of disguise and with Toyota Corolla-like pre-production taillight pods, the W206, on first glance, appears noticeably shorter than the W205, while the side profile flowing to the rear is less curvy and the shoulder line flatter.

Inside, the W206 will follow the trend set by the A-class and S-class in that it will gain the dual 10.25-inch display MBUX infotainment and digital instrument cluster screens, along with a full clutch of new comfort and driver assistance systems.

Up front, motivation could come from the same range of turbo-petrol and turbodiesel engines as the E-class, some of which with the 48-volt mild-hybrid EQ Boost system and others boasting a plug-in hybrid setup. AMG version are expected to debut at a later stage.

Given the level of camouflage present, and with the W205 entering its fifth year of production next year, expect the W206 to only bow in 2020.