Mercedes’ AMG A35 is a treat on wheels

The vehicle offers sharper handling, a richer cabin and more kit, plus better performance

The A35 sedan packs a whopping 306 hp turbo-petrol engine, all-wheel drive and a number of suspension and chassis upgrades over the regular A-Class Limo to make it sportier. So, what is it like? Starting with the engine, this 2.0-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine is a development of Merc’s M260 unit, and it uses a twin-scroll turbocharger to boost torque at low speeds. Power is sent to all four wheels via Merc’s own 7-speed dual-clutch automatic, and the four-wheel-drive system allows up to 50% of the power to be sent to the rear. The A35 even gets uprated suspension components to help deal with the power better. Up front, it now gets the addition of a lower wishbone along with a custom strut brace used to enhance stiffness, and the shell of the car even gets underfloor stiffening. At the rear, AMG uses a new subframe to stiffen up the rear suspension mounting points.