Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 vs. BMW M3
Pay Attention To The Clatter: The Forbidden Mercedes Homologation Special Meets the Legendary BMW it Inadvertently Created.
Dense morning air caresses their exquisitely crafted bodies with passing clouds of condensation, a temporary fog on paintwork as reflective as an undisturbed pond. Rear spoilers stand proudly above angular trunklids, poised and ready to deflect the fiercest of autobahn winds. Glistening in the sunlight are the three-pointed star and the roundel, badges belonging to two of the most respected names in the automotive business. Finally, someone starts their engines and they sound like a pair of clapped-out Yugos on a used-car lot. The cacophony is the sound of forged pistons and solid valve lifters. These are not normal cars. This is important stuff.
The W201 190E 2.3-16
The Mercedes-Benz W201-chassis four-door sedan, commonly known as the 190E, was a very big deal because of its very tiny size. Yes, "tiny." Were the 190E on sale today, it would be the smallest four-door sedan you could buy in America.
In the late 1970s, the idea of a subcompact German luxury car was unheard of, but American CAFE standards were looming. As a stopgap, Mercedes stuffed diesel engines into its fleet of large cars, but the company knew it needed smaller, more fuel-efficient cars to meet our requirements. Thus, the "Baby Benz" was conceived. The 190E had to be indistinguishable from any other Mercedes from its driver's seat -- that's right, the car the size of a pea would have to feel like the princess' full-size coach. To achieve that stunt, the precious W201 would be overengineered to the point of ridiculousness. (Its development is rumored to have cost nearly $4 billion in today's dollars.) And while we're on the subject of ridiculous, to make sure the world took the little Merc seriously, the W201 would be designed not just to enter the World Rally Championship, but to win.
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