The long awaited Mercedes A45 AMG will finally be revealed at the next Geneva Motor Show, raising the bar for hot hatches rather significantly. Initial details leaking out of Affalterbach are all very heartwarming, and the numbers they are mentioning are truly amazing.

The A45 will have a 2.0 liter turbocharged engine developing 354 horsepower and 450 Nm of torque. That power is distributed between all four wheels using a sophisticated AWD system with a Haldex clutch and a 7-speedual-clutch transmission, similar to the one used in the SLS.

Top speed will be normally limited to 250 km/h, but if you go for the AMG performance package – which also adds a couple of visual features such as a big rear wing – it will be raised to 270 km/h.

The A45 AMG has a different chassis than the standard A Class, with a 25mm lower suspension, revised cambers, and an electronic torque vectoring system. The car also gets big AMG brakes and big AMG wheels (18-inch standard, 19-inch available). Obviously, this being an AMG car, a sport exhaust system is fitted as standard.

Mercedes A45 will be the most affordable AMG car when it goes on sale in Summer 2013, with an estimated price of 45,000 Euro.