Mercedes A-Class first gen - TopGear magazine

[peterawlins]

Hi all,

I work for TopGear magazine and I’m trying to find an early first-generation Mercedes A-Class for a photoshoot.

Every issue we write a Progress Report, where we pitch the current version of a car against its earliest (or greatest) iteration. We’re looking for someone with a first-generation A-Class so we can get some pictures and do a compare/contrast of it alongside the current model.

Dates are still to be confirmed – in the first instance I’m just trying to see if I can find one, ideally in/near the Oxfordshire (UK) area. Is there anyone on here who’d be able to help?

Feel free to message me with any questions and look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks in advance!

Peter

 

[NJSS]

Welcome Peter - Good luck.

 

[noogieman]

Are you going to mention in the article how 1st generation MB A-class flunked the swedish elk test back in 1997?
MB in Germany cr@pped their pants when their car bombed at the elk test.
MB then tried to blame swedish testers with all kinds of cr@p why their car failed.

Would be nice of you if you mentioned this in the article about the small roll over issue.

Here's a teaser before dinner.

Dagen då Mercedes A-klass slog runt

Det är tisdag förmiddag den 21 oktober 1997. En liten blå Mercedes A-klass stävar mot Bromma flygplats för att utföra ett undanmanöverprov. Ett rutinuppdrag, men det blev inte så...

teknikensvarld.expressen.se

 

[fabes]

But didn't they then adapt the A classes after that point?

Not many elks on the road outside of Sweden, mind you....

 

[grober]

But didn't they then adapt the A classes after that point?

Not many elks on the road outside of Sweden, mind you....

The original A class had a double skinned floor.[It was rumoured at the time that this was designed to house batteries for electrical propulsion- needless to say we were still in the era of milk float electrical propulsion so this was abandoned- although an electrical prototype did surface in the mark 2 version.] This resulted in a vehicle with a relatively high centre of gravity. Mercedes had tried produce vehicle with a good ride quality with relatively soft suspension which was to prove its undoing as it lacked roll stiffness when fully laden. Hence the elk test disaster. They rectified it by lowering and stiffening the suspension springs and rollbars but this gave the early models the ride characteristics of a skateboard. Further development lead to a much better mark two version with a slightly longer wheelbase.

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[Bobby Dazzler]

The original A class had a double skinned floor.[It was rumoured at the time that this was designed to house batteries for electrical propulsion- needless to say we were still in the era of milk float electrical propulsion so this was abandoned- although an electrical prototype did surface in the mark 2 version.] This resulted in a vehicle with a relatively high centre of gravity. Mercedes had tried produce vehicle with a good ride quality with relatively soft suspension which was to prove its undoing as it lacked roll stiffness when fully laden. Hence the elk test disaster. They rectified it by lowering and stiffening the suspension springs and rollbars but this gave the early models the ride characteristics of a skateboard. Further development lead to a much better mark two version with a slightly longer wheelbase.

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Accept third party cookies

It was an innovative design. It was developed in anticipation of alternative propulsion methods - electricity was one, fuel cells another. There were prototypes of both rocking around but neither made it to mainstream production. In the meantime it did enable some flexible packaging with ICE.

I rather admired the first generation A-Class but never did own one. I sometimes find myself searching eBay and AutoTrader for an A210 LWB.

 

[Smart320]

Had one of those for a few months , great little car

 

[grober]

​

Mercedes-Benz A-Class E-CELL (2010–)​

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class E-CELL was introduced in September 2010 and debuted at the October 2010 Paris Motor Show.[28][29] The E-Cell has a range of 200 kilometres (120 mi) capable of developing a peak output of 70 kW (94 hp), a continuous power rating of 50 kW (67 hp) and a maximum torque of 290 N·m (214 lb·ft). The Mercedes A-Class E-Cell can accelerate from 0–60 km/h (37 mph) in 5.5 seconds, and its top speed is 150 km/h (93 mph).[28][30]

Tesla Motors, as part of its collaboration with Mercedes-Benz, built electric powertrain components for the E-Cell. The 36 kWh battery contains approximately 4,000 individual lithium-ion cells.[28][31][32] Mercedes has developed a modular system for electric vehicles with battery and fuel-cell. This system allows the efficient use of shared parts in all the brand's electric vehicles. Thanks to the modular approach the electric drive of the A‑Class E‑Cell is also used in the B‑Class F‑Cell, and the energy storage units in the A‑Class EV are the same as the battery in the Smart fortwo electric drive.[28][30]

A limited production of 500 A-Class E-Cell electric cars will be built, for trial purposes, at the Mercedes Rastatt plant, near Stuttgart beginning in September 2010. As part of a demonstration program, the cars will be leased to selected customers in several European countries, including Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Daimler is not planning to sell the electric version outside Europe.[28][30][33]

 

[Jobsworth]

It was an innovative design. It was developed in anticipation of alternative propulsion methods - electricity was one, fuel cells another. There were prototypes of both rocking around but neither made it to mainstream production. In the meantime it did enable some flexible packaging with ICE.

I rather admired the first generation A-Class but never did own one. I sometimes find myself searching eBay and AutoTrader for an A210 LWB.

Well it’s funny you should say that. Peter posted the same request on the Mercedesclub site, and I’ve put him in touch with a customer of mine who has a mint black A210 LWB with under 60,000 miles. It’s looking hopeful at the moment that they can make the dates work because I’d love to see it featured. Would make an interesting comparison to an A45…

 

[Piff]

I had one back in the day. Bought from France for about £14k when the uk price was about £18k
W plate avantgarde with the opening roof 170cdi.
Fantastic family car. All seats removable (except drivers).
Collected a 6’ x 3’ pool table in it. Family trip to Scotland included my golf clubs slid under the rear seats.

 

[neilrr]

How much is TopGear magazine magazine offering to pay for the use of someone's car?

Surely a massively profitable franchise such as Top Gear wouldn't be on the scrounge.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

How much is TopGear magazine magazine offering to pay for the use of someone's car?

Surely a massively profitable franchise such as Top Gear wouldn't be on the scrounge.

Often magazines and TV production companies pay reasonable expenses and provide lunch rather than pay for the use of a car.