Test drive Mercedes W168 A 32 K: unique with a V6 compressor and 300 horsepower

One of a kind instance of the first A-class

In 2002, HWA's Special Purchasing department installed an AMG C6 V32 compressor in the A-Class at the request of the customer. The result is a truly unusual 354 hp sports car.

The fastest Mercedes A-Class of all time boasts many things, but not the image and respect that inspire others along the way. It doesn't matter how fast you drive on the highway - no one will give way to you when they see you in the mirror with this car. Especially if you catch someone driving 200 km/h down the highway. In such situations, drivers of powerful limousines simply press the gas pedal a little more, completely ignoring you.

354 h.p. and 450 Nm in the tiny A-class

Naturally, these features of the perception of the machine by other participants in the movement do not in any way change its almost insane character. One step of gas is enough to stick to the backrests, and by the way 354 hp. and 450 Newton-meters delivered to the road are unexpectedly reliable. The acceleration is brutal, as is the hiss of the compressor six.

However, not everyone can enjoy the weird feeling of driving this car, because the A 32 Kompressor is produced in one piece for a very special customer.

The machine is the work of the HWA company from Afalterbach. Afalterbach? It is quite right that the sports department of Mercedes - AMG is located here. And yes, the acronym HWA comes from the name of Hans-Werner Aufrecht, the founder of AMG.

Real transplant instead of simple tuning

At that time it was the competition department of the then concern Daimler-Chrysler. He deals with particularly difficult cases for which AMG does not have a suitable recipe. For the Projekt A32, the standard setting simply wasn't enough - much more serious measures had to be taken, and the price is a topic about which there is complete silence to this day. Instead of one of the standard four-cylinder engines, a 3,2-liter V6 is installed under the hood, which, along with the entire front axle design and five-speed automatic transmission, is borrowed from the C 32 AMG.

Due to major design changes at the front, the dashboard has been widened and the front seats moved back seven centimeters. Between the front-wheel drive transmission and the rear axle, which is also borrowed from the C-Class, is a specially designed propeller shaft.

Yes, you read that right – the A 32 is rear-wheel drive, so any traction and handling issues are foreign. If you turn off the traction control system, it is easy to make the rear wheels smoke a lot and leave spectacular marks on the pavement. The measuring equipment showed 5,1 acceleration times from standstill to 100 km/h. In those years, it was a time identical to one Porsche Carrera with a manual transmission - provided that the driver was an athlete. The rear-engined car does a great job with the clutch and manual transmission.

Suspension and brakes from the C 32 AMG

The biggest challenge for the engineers working on the project was not so much to deliver massive power, but to ensure that the A-Class remained stable on the road, even under extreme driving. Unbelievable, but true - in fast corners, the car remains surprisingly neutral, and the brakes are like a racing car.

With the ESP system disabled, well-trained pilots can pull off impressive skids and, more surprisingly, even the suspension comfort isn't that bad. Some bumps are only felt at low speeds - the higher the speed, the better it starts to ride - in fact, its running gear is at a level that other A-Classes can only dream of.

CONCLUSION

In terms of handcrafted quality, the A 32 is an outstanding achievement - the machine is made with amazing precision. In general, the car feels one hundred percent meets the high criteria of Mercedes. We're especially fascinated by the little red button on the center console that the HWA folks made us not try. But because the button activates the fire extinguishing system installed in the already crowded engine compartment.