Mercedes-AMG A45 S

The interesting position of the Mercedes-AMG A45 S in this catalogue is not that it overwhelms every number, but that it combines several uncommon traits into one entry. Its 421 bhp places it 396th out of 600 cars for power, while its 3.9 second 0-100 km/h time is faster than 308 of the cars in the collection. This is a car whose appeal comes from how its figures align rather than from a single headline statistic.

The defining detail is the combination of an inline-4 engine layout, turbocharged aspiration and AWD drivetrain. Only 15 of the 600 cars pair an inline-4 with AWD, making this configuration one of the clearest ways the A45 S separates itself from the wider catalogue. The 2.0 litre engine produces 421 bhp and 500 Nm of torque, with a top speed of 270 km/h. Those figures place it in a distinct space: not the most powerful machine in the collection, but a car that delivers a high level of performance from a 1,991 cc engine.

The A45 S is also a reminder that rarity in a collection can be measured carefully. With 1,996 built, it is rarer than 120 of the 177 catalogued cars that have known production figures. That gives its production number context without overstating its scarcity. As a 2020 Mercedes-AMG model from Germany, it sits within a catalogue that contains 26 Mercedes-AMG cars and 197 cars from Germany, making its identity familiar within its origin while still having a specific place of its own.

At a used price of £42,000, it ranks 475th of 600 cars, meaning it is more expensive than 125 cars in the catalogue. Its cost per bhp is £100, which frames the A45 S as a focused choice within a broad collection. The trade-off is clear: the collector choosing this car accepts a lower power ranking than many alternatives and chooses instead the uncommon pairing of an inline-4, turbocharged engine and AWD, the compact numerical story that makes this Mercedes-AMG stand apart in a garage of 600 possibilities.