The Mercedes A-Class is a luxury compact car that first appeared in 1997 with a tall and short body that was unusual for the time. While the second generation evolved from the first A-Class, the latest third generation has a completely new design, looking more like a standard compact hatchback, which was designed to take on the BMW 1 Series and the Audi A3. An AMG performance version of the A-Class was released in 2013 that included a 2 liter turbocharged engine, all-wheel drive, and AMG sports suspension.