Auto Channel

With the current iteration of Mercedes' M-Class touring suburban roads for nearly three years, the firm has decided to give the model a mild mid-cycle facelift.

Though we brought you the initial images of the facelifted car in December, these photos show the revised model undergoing cold weather testing in -30° Celcius temperatures in Lapland, Finland earlier today. But judging from these pictures, it doesn't seem like Mercedes is going to alienate the M-faithful. You'd be hard-pressed to see the differences if the car weren't wearing characteristic black masking tape concealing its secret face. What we can tell you is that, following from the rest of the range, the freshened M-Class will receive a more prominent front bumper and skirt plus slightly re-designed taillights when it goes public in mid-2008.

We also anticipate the new model's interior to move more upmarket and a cleaner Bluetec engine to be fitted under the hood.