Mercedes-Benz has shunned the cylinder downsizing game when it comes to its smallest engines so far, preferring to stick with at least four cylinders for all products. But the head of Daimler powertrain development, Bernhard Heil, has admitted that some of its compact hybrid models in the future will have three-cylinder combustion engines as part of their make-up.
It all comes down to packaging, as fitting a hybrid four-cylinder engine widthways in the nose of front-wheel drive cars "has its limitations", according to Heil. For bigger, rear-drive Mercs, it's not such a problem, as even hybrid fours can be fitted longitudinally, but certainly A-Class, B-Class, CLA and GLA models in years to come will feature the distinctive grumble of three pistons.
Anything else?
Heil also confirmed that Mercedes was working with Renault on a small petrol engine, following on from the 1.5-litre turbodiesel it sources from the French firm for its compact cars. However, whether it's a three-cylinder engine designed to go in a hybrid or a conventional joint venture four-cylinder, we're unlikely to see any of these powerplants before late 2016.