Mercedes-Benz’s schedule changed significantly in late 1982. By launching a brand-new entry-level version called W201 inside and also Baby Benz colloquially, the Stuttgart-based business made its automobiles obtainable to a much wider target market and considerably enhanced its yearly sales.
The initial W201 saw the light that awaits at the end of a manufacturing line in December 1982, the suggestion of increasing the Mercedes range towards the bottom had ricocheted with the firm’s research and development division for numerous years. In 1948, Mercedes established a 145-inch long two-door car with a Ponton-like style. It really did not get to manufacturing. Mercedes tried once more in the 1950s: its board offered an entry-level design the green light in 1953, and a number of prototypes were constructed, but the task reached a dead end. It took several more tries (as well as pressure from regulators to improve the variety’s typical gas economic climate score) prior to the W201 came true.
In the early 1980s, the blocky W201 looked totally misplaced parked alongside a W126 and a W123 in a Mercedes display room. And also yet, in hindsight it blazed the path that later additions to the firm’s portfolio adhered to. The W124 released in late 1984 (as well as later on developed into the first-generation E-Class) appeared like a jumbo-sized W201, and this angular design language permeated the R129-generation SL As the W140 that ended its job as the initial S-Class. Charm is in the eye of the beholder; you might conveniently say there’s absolutely nothing sexy about a W201 but you might just as quickly say it’s identified by a classy design that’s fairly basic, pure, as well as practical.
From the driver’s perspective, the W201 felt like the scaled-down Mercedes car that it was. The seats were created with a focus on convenience, the instrument cluster was clearly readable, and the majority of the controls were organized on the facility stack. With that claimed, going from, claim, a W123 to a W201 called for getting a brand-new routine: the emergency brake was a bar situated on the facility console as opposed to a pedal.
In the United States, the W201 made its launching as a 1984 design with two offered engines. The most inexpensive member of the array (which, subsequently, ended up being the most economical Mercedes) was the 190E powered by a 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 113 horsepower and 133 pound-feet of torque, though those figures enhanced to 120 as well as 136, specifically, for 1985. Next up was the 190D, whose naturally-aspirated, 2.2-liter four-cylinder diesel engine developed 72 horsepower and 96 pound-feet of torque. Rear-wheel-drive as well as a five-speed handbook transmission came conventional despite fuel kind, as well as customers that really did not want to change could pay added for a four-speed automatic.
Pricing started at $22,850 for the 190E and also $22,930 for the 190D, numbers that represent about $65,600 and $65,800 in 2022. In comparison, Volkswagen billed $6,530 (around $18,800 in 2022) for an entry-level Rabbit that year and also a 2022 C-Class beginnings at $43,550.
The W201 was an immediate hit, as well as its success motivated Mercedes to introduce additional versions in the 1980s. The 1986 version year brought a 16-valve, 167-horsepower advancement of the 2.3-liter four-cylinder as well as a 2.5-liter, 93-horsepower five-cylinder diesel. In 1987, the very first six-cylinder-powered W201 landed in American display rooms as the 190E 2.6. It utilized the W124’s 158-horsepower straight-six. The array expanded throughout the Atlantic too, and also Mercedes also took the W201 auto racing in a bid to uncrown the initial, E30-based BMW M3.
Fuel or diesel, four, 5, or 6 cyndrical tubes, and also automatic or hands-on; there were various ways to configure a W201. What never transformed was the body style: throughout its job, the version was exclusively provided as a four-door sedan. Mercedes explore several various models, consisting of a pillar-less two-door convertible (received our gallery), yet none were accepted for manufacturing.
Many versions of the W201 brought the 190 nameplate (on its own to mark a carbureted engine, complied with by an “E” to mark a fuel-injected gasoline engine, or adhered to by a “D” to designate a diesel motor) however there was one exception. In the very early 1990s, Mercedes marketed a stripped-down, entry-level variation of the W201 called 180E on the Australian market that was powered by a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine.
W201 manufacturing ended in 1993 after about 1.87 million devices were constructed. The sedan passed the lantern to the original C-Class, which was called W202 internally and also became the very first compact Mercedes supplied as a station wagon. While the 190 was thought about an affordable, robust, and also disposable auto for lots of years, it’s gradually yet certainly ending up being sought-after by enthusiasts around the globe and also worths are consequently increasing. Many were driven right into the ground so locating a clean, clean example has actually become easier said than done.
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