Usually, when ‘long load bay’ comes up in the context of pick-up trucks, the added cargo space comes at the expense of passenger room. It appears to not be the case here with the Mercedes-Benz X-Class test mule here, though, as it has the full complement of doors ahead of the cargo tray.

A larger, more amply-engined vehicle would make sense for markets such as North America, though the development unit here has been photographed with ‘X 250 d‘ badging, suggesting that the more modest, Renault-sourced 2.3 litre turbodiesel four-pot is used here in 190 PS/450 Nm guise. Though, the firm has also indicated being open to using its 4.0 litre V8 petrol unit, should there be enough customer demand.

Elsewhere, exterior details on the stretched tray X-Class appear identical to the standard production model, including the window kink along the rear doors. As such, the interior can be expected to be carried over from the standard model as well, including fabric or leather upholstery, and COMAND Online navigation with an 8.4-inch display.

If, as the images here suggest, the long-tray variant of the X-Class is just that, perhaps a debut is not too far away, and could take place later this year. So far, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has indicated that the X-Class pick-up truck is not destined for our market; could this more capacious version change some minds? What do you think of the long-tray X-Class, dear readers?