Automotive News is reporting that Mercedes-Benz is going to drop their smallest model, the A-Class. The A-Class had a rather ignominious entry into the world in 1997 when an early production model was tested by some Swedish journalists in a common test there known as the “Moose Test”. Essentially it is just a double lane change obstacle avoidance maneuver. Unfortunately for Mercedes, the A-Class failed miserably, rolling over.
Mercedes quickly responded halting sales for a time and doing a “crash” development program to add electronic stability control. From a crash safety standpoint the A-Class had a unique design with a sandwich double floor that allowed the engine to slide under the floor in the event of a frontal collision. The A-Class platform was Mercedes first front wheel drive car and has been used as a test bed for battery and fuel cell development. The third generation model was due in 2011 but it now looks like it may be canceled.
[Source: Automotive News – Sub. req'd]
https://www.autoblog.com/2007/07/02/mercedes-benz-may-discontinue-the-a-class/
2007-07-02T08:02:00+00:00