In 1989, Mercedes-Benz built 502 copies of a very sporty sedan called the 190 E 2.5-16 Evohis homologation car for the 190 E-racer in the German touring car series (DTM). This is the same series that convinced BMW around the M3with which BMW drivers won the DTM drivers’ championship in 1987 and 1989 (there was no manufacturers’ championship at the time), and the first Evo was the car Mercedes was used to return to factory motor racing after giving up all such activities in the wake of the Le Mans crash in 1955.MB started supplying Peter Sauber (with engines for Group C racing in the mid-80s.) Mercedes drivers couldn’t hold the big trophy aloft with the Evo, so in 1990 and 1991 Mercedes made its first attempt with the 190 E 2.5-16 Evo II. Thanks to the DTM having introduced a manufacturers’ championship by then, Mercedes driver Klaus Ludwig drove the Evo II to both trophies in 1992 and the 502 road versions became rare collectors’ items. While Evo I values average somewhere in the low $100s, Evo II sales average about $300,000 according to Classic.com.
This is one of the reasons why a German firm called HWA chose to create a modernized version of the Evo II on a standard Mercedes 190 E chassis, that of the plain beige four-door that filled taxi fleets in Germany at the time. The other reason is that HWA stands for Hans-Werner Aufrecht, the gentleman who put the “A” in AMGWhen AMG was still a separate company, Aufrecht worked with Mercedes on the Evo I and Evo II, and his independent HWA company continued to prepare Mercedes race cars even after Mercedes completed its takeover of AMG.
Based on the sedan’s specs, it’s probably best not to consider the HWA Evo as a restomod, as nothing has been restored and everything is a modification. The only parts that remain from the 190 E’s bodywork are the cant rails (the structural member that runs across the doors between the A- and C-pillars) and the C-pillar. It’s best to think of this as a current-day re-imagining of what an Evo III might look like, using modern components. Start with the engine. In place of the sedan’s high-revving, Cosworth-tuned 2.5-liter four-cylinder, the HWA Evo is powered by Mercedes’ M276 twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 from cars like the 2014 AMG E43 which Mercedes recently replaced with its twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six. HWA buys the M276 new, disassembles it to balance the rotating assembly, installs a dry sump so the engine can sit lower in the chassis, and bolts on a HWA-programmed ECUFinal output for the standard version is 444 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque; an Affalterbach package bumps that to 493 horsepower, to move a car that should weigh about 3,220 pounds. Shorter ratios in the six-speed manual transmission give the standard car better acceleration, but a slower top speed of 168 mph. The longer legs in the Affalterbach package bump the top speed to 189 mph.
Side note: When Motor Trend asked HWA why they went with a six-cylinder when the original had to make do with a four, we were told that a V8 would be too difficult to fit in the bay, and HWA’s chief engineering officer Gordian von Schöning said, “At first, we were really pushing for a four-cylinder engine because we thought this was something that AMG promotes, and we could probably get it to 500 horsepower. But customers said a four-cylinder engine wasn’t special.”
The body has been stripped down and reinforced with aluminum and high-strength steel for rigidity and improved crash protection. The front axle has been moved forward two inches, the rear axle 1.2 inches, which helps deliver a 50:50 weight balance. HWA has used Evo II-spec glass, which is thinner and lighter than the windows on the regular sedan. The new carbon fiber The body panels are bonded to the bodywork and swell below the beltline to such an extent that the HWA Evo is 23 cm wider than an Evo II.
KW shocks connect to a race-spec multi-link suspension at both ends, the base car offers manual shock adjustment, the Affalterbach package gives drivers electronic suspension controls in the cockpit. Six-piston front brakes Fit 15-inch brake discs behind 190-inch wheels, while at the rear four-piston calipers clamp 14-inch brake discs behind 20-inch wheels.
Inside, front-seat passengers sit in Recaro seats and look at digital gauges that mimic the original displays.
HWA is putting the one car it has built so far through a year of testing and development. Once it’s done, HWA will build one car per week, up to 100 in total, 75 of which have already been sold for €714,000 ($765,000 US) each. After that, we hear there are plans for HWA to come up with a modern interpretation of the AMG Hammer.