The A-Class was a serious break from tradition for Mercedes-Benz, which specialised in medium to big rear-drive cars for most of its long history. This was a small car, and it was front-wheel drive.

Mercedes-AMG may be currently offering the world’s most powerful hot hatch, the A45 S, but it wasn’t always like that. Back in the late ’90s, the German company didn’t have a single hot hatch on its ...