Mercedes-Benz 320A

The Mercedes-Benz 320A was a cabriolet built by the German manufacturer Mercedes-Benz between 1938 and 1942. It was lower, longer and broader than its predecessor, the Mercedes-Benz 290 of type W18 whose production began in 1933, and was shown for the first time at the Berlin Auto Show in 1937. Former race driver Max Sailer led the design, and its sporty look owed something to the luxurious 540K. After Germany introduced a law in 1938 requiring low octane fuel, Mercedes-Benz enlarged the W18 engine to 3,405 cc with a lower compression ratio, kept the power and speed of the earlier car, and paired it with a redesigned four-speed gearbox with overdrive until war halted production in 1942.