Álvaro Koke

Mercedes 190E 2.5 16 Evolution: DTM legend with some rally origins

When Mercedes, AMG and Cosworth came together to create a car that broke the mold

If there is something that has characterized the Mercedes-Benz brand since its beginnings and has accompanied it throughout more than a century of life, that is the luxury and high level of finish in all or the vast majority of its models. The quality of the materials, both inside and outside, is usually very high, ultimately being the brand with the silver arrows that established the foundations of what a Premium manufacturer should be – in fact, Mercedes has laid many bases, starting from the origins of the automobile in that Benz Patent Motorwagen of the late 19th century. Also robustness, especially in the 70s, 80s and 90s. But perhaps sportiness was something that was not so common to find in the beautiful cars of the silver arrows firm, focusing more on cars for businessmen or executives.

Now, with more than 100 years of history, an exception had to appear here or there to prove the rule. One of those exceptions is the Mercedes-Benz W201, known commercially as 190. Nicknamed Baby Benz by the motoring press of the time, a car that was received with skepticism by enthusiasts of the brand, given that it had a more youthful appearance, somewhat tacky, compared to the stately floor plan of other models. An appreciation that would disappear with the passage of time, since its behavior was dynamic, but still it was also comfortable. This goodness came from a multi-link suspension, highlighting the detail that it had five arms in the rear axle. An ‘exaggerated’ car according to some, as it had been developed from the mid-seventies to the early eighties.

The most basic versions of the 190 had carburetors (there were also diesel versions and a turbodiesel, difficult to find today), but the real star here was the 190E with electronic fuel injection, which considerably increased performance. In those years Mercedes had flirted with rallies and had even won some in the WRC, as was the case with the 450 SLC 5.0 driven by the legendary Hannu Mikkola. So the 190E, with a shorter wheelbase, could be an interesting weapon for rallying.

Now, by the time the 190 came on the market in the mid-eighties, the world of rallying had changed a lot, a lot: the Audi Quattro was already at its best with its five-cylinder turbo engine and, more importantly, all-wheel drive. the four wheels that made rear-wheel drive cars obsolete (with permission from the Lancia 037). So Mercedes, still eager to race its 190E, found its place in touring car racing. First the 2.3 16 arrived with the M102 engine developed by Cosworth, but evolutions soon had to be made (to stand up to the BMW M3 Sport Evolution E30). And boy did they arrive: in the form of the 2.5 16 Evolution.

Mechanics of the Mercedes 190E 2.5 16 Evolution

This car was presented at the 1989 Geneva Motor Show, standing out above all for its width compared to the more common 190E, new side skirts and front lip, but above all for an imposing rear spoiler instead of the spoiler that Mercedes had used in the most civilized 2.3. It must be remembered that at this time they worked closely with AMG, but it was not within Mercedes itself but was an independent preparer (this did not happen until the beginning of the 21st century). Inside, the Evolution had a switch to control the height of the suspension and thus be even more effective on circuits – everything necessary to stand up to the M3 E30 Sport Evolution.

The M102 engine was originally a two-valve per cylinder engine, but Cosworth modified it to have four valves per cylinder, in addition to changing the piston heads and other elements of the four-cylinder engine, keeping it naturally aspirated. The result was that in the 2.3 the power was raised from 130 horsepower to just over 180 while in the 2.5 16 Evolution it exceeded 200 horsepower. An improvement that does not seem like much, but by reducing the stroke and increasing the diameter – that is, making an engine with a more square ratio – it was possible to get more juice out of the engine and be able to take it to much higher revolutions. A characteristic very typical of naturally aspirated competition engines, as seen years later with rally Kit Cars.

If 200 horsepower seems not enough, AMG even launched a modification kit, called PowerPack, which improved the ignition and fuel management system, as well as the air intake, exhaust outlets and camshaft. This PowerPack raised the power to 232 horsepower, about 30 horsepower more than the version that came out of the dealership. About 502 units of the 2.5 16 Evolution were manufactured since it was what was required as a minimum to homologate a car in the DTM.

Evolution II

A year later, at the 1990 Geneva Motor Show, Mercedes showed the public the 2.5 Evolution II, taking advantage of the sales success of the Evolution I. In fact, it was so successful that when Mercedes unveiled it, all 502 units (again, necessary for the homologation of the racing car) were already reserved. This Evolution II already incorporated the AMG PowerPack so that it came out with 232 horsepower, the suspension height switch and other goodies. Now, the biggest change to the Evolution II was the revision of the aerodynamic assembly, a larger rear spoiler and a spoiler on the rear glass. This set managed to reduce the aerodynamic coefficient to 0.29 while increasing aerodynamic grip. Something that left BMW stunned – it is said that, as a result of this, they redesigned their wind tunnel.

After turbo engines were banned in the DTM after the 1989 season, in 1990 the 190E 2.5 16 Evolution and Evolution II raced in the hands of drivers such as Kurt Thiim, Klaus Ludwig, Frank Biela or Bernd Schneider, most of them racing for AMG Mercedes, although Alain Cudini and Jacques Laffite (former F1 driver, like Schneider and Jochen Mass) raced with Snobeck. On two occasions he also raced with this car none other than Michael Schumacher in the same 1991 in which he debuted in Formula 1 with Jordan, while the following year they signed former F1 world champion Keke Rosberg. In 1992 Ludwig won the DTM title ahead of Thiim and Schneider. Olaf Manthey, later founder of Manthey Racing, also drove it on occasion.

This car was an example of how incredible it was to have special homologation cars on the market, given that its meaning was to have a basis on which to homologate the competition car to race with Group A specifications in touring car races – especially in the original DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft) against the BMW M3 E30, which also had its Evolution version. Later, the DTM would radicalize, giving way to the era of supertouring cars in Europe, some even with turbo and four-wheel drive. Unfortunately, homologation specials are no longer unnecessary today since the regulations allow the tokens to come from conventional mass-produced cars. The most recent exception would be the Toyota GR Yaris, originally intended for the homologation of the GR Yaris WRC of the World Rally Championship, which never competed.

One of these units can be seen in the first part of the Cars & Pizza RoadTrip that has taken us through various parts of Germany, including museums dedicated to motorsport. The first part of the RoadTrip is available at this link.

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