Mercedes A-Class

The entry-left compact Mercedes was introduced in 1997 with a special "Sandwich" feature in which the engine and transmission slide underneath the vehicle instead of the cab in the event of a head-on accident.

Production W168-Class started in 1997. Front engine, front wheel drive layout is quite unusual for Mercedes. To date, approximately 1.6 million units have been sold worldwide.

One innovation of the W168 is a frontal-impact absorption system called "Sandwich" (see patents DE4326 9 and DE4400132 in the name of Mercedes-Benz). In the event of a violent frontal impact, the engine and transmission would slide underneath the floor below the pedals rather than entering the passenger compartment.