The first official photos of the long awaited 2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe have made their way online, roughly a month prior to its public debut at the Geneva Motor Show.

Sadly, those of us in the U.S. will have to wait until September to purchase the new Mercedes Coupe, which will enter into direct competition with the BMW 3-Series and the Audi A5 when it hits the market. Sources at Mercedes-Benz have suggested that pricing of the new C-Class will closely resemble prices seen on similarly powered C-Class Sedan’s.

Based on the same mechanical package as that of the C-class sedan, with which it shares its 113-inch wheelbase, the new C-class coupe retains the same basic styling cues as its four-door big brother, however the coupe offers a more sporty two-door layout and a 1.6″ lower roofline. To finish the coupe off, Mercedes outfitted the C-Class Coupe with B-pillars, a feature not seen on the Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe.

Two standard versions of the C-Class Coupe are planned for sale in North America including the entry-level C250 CGI with a 201-hp turbocharged 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine and the C350 CGI with a 302-hp naturally aspirated V6 engine – a model that should boast a 0-to-62-mph acceleration in 6.0 seconds. The Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG coupe, scheduled to debut at the New York Auto Show in April, will join the other coupe models at its launch. The exact details are still scarce, but the sources at AutoWeek suggest that the C63 AMG coupe is in line to receive a new 422-hp naturally aspirated version of AMG’s new 5.5-liter V8 featuring cylinder shutdown and automatic stop/start. By contrast, the facelifted C63 AMG sedan continues with AMG’s older 457-hp naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8.