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STORY

The "Baby Benz" was the first compact saloon from Mercedes-Benz. It came out in 1982 and eventually led to the whole C-Class. The W201 was designed under Bruno Sacco and did not look cheap. It had a patented five-link independent rear suspension, so successful that Mercedes used it on its larger cars for decades.

A few months after the launch, three lightly modified cars ran non-stop on the Nardò bowl in Italy in 1983 and set world endurance records at an average of nearly 250 km/h. The most powerful version was the 2.3-16, with a sixteen-valve head developed by Cosworth. It turned an ordinary saloon into a real sports sedan and became the basis of a strong DTM programme.

Nearly 1.9 million were built through 1993. They repaired Mercedes' finances and shaped the brand's future.