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In the early 2000s, Mercedes-Benz was a study in contrasts. The automaker was going all-in on AMG performance models, stuffing big naturally-aspirated V8s anywhere they would fit. But it was also continuing to move downmarket with small front-wheel-drive hatchbacks. One incredible build brought these two worlds together.
In 2009, trainees at Mercedes’ assembly plant in Rastatt, Germany, turned a B-Class hatch into a snarling V8 monster using the engine and drivetrain from the contemporary AMG parts bin. As recounted in an Instagram post from the Mercedes-Benz Museum, the car, dubbed B55 by its builders, could go burnout-for-burnout with the factory AMG stuff of the day.
Mercedes-Benz
Introduced in 2005, the B-Class was mostly sold outside the U.S. We did get an all-electric version of the second-generation model, badged as the B-Class Electric Drive and then B250e, but it was only sold in California and a few other states. The B-Class is still around, sporting the same distinctive high-roof styling as the previous two generations.
According to a press release from the time of the car’s reveal, the B55 was the brainchild of Rastatt plant manager Peter Wesp and vocational training foreman Andreas Würz. Wesp wanted to do a project with the trainees based on a B-Class, which was built at the plant, and Würz then pulled out a tape measure and determined that a V8 would fit in the small hatch. Trainees were challenged to do the swap without extensive modifications to the body shell, and the finished B55 was indeed very much a sleeper.
A diesel B200 CDI that had already been set aside for training purposes was used as the basis for the build. In went a naturally-aspirated 5.5-liter V8, rated at 388 horsepower and 391 lb-ft of torque. This had long been AMG’s go-to engine, but was being supplanted by the 6.2-liter M156 V8 around the time the B55 was being built. Emissions concerns would later force AMG to switch to the twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8s used across its lineup today.
Mercedes-Benz
The V8 itself fit easily, but packaging other items like the steering and exhaust proved more challenging. A custom system with dual tips exiting at the center of the rear bumper was fabricated from spare parts. The rear axle from a W210 E-Class was chosen because it fit the best, and was mounted on a customer subframe. Brakes came from a C32 AMG, but the builders went to the aftermarket for some components, fitting a set of K&W coilovers.
The car was fitted with a full interior, including an Alcantara roof and leather/Alcantara seats that were a step up from a base B-Class. The finished car weighed an estimated 3,571 pounds, or 396 pounds more than the stock version. At the time, Würz estimated that it could do zero to 62 mph in under six seconds. Plus, it had the trademark V8 rumble and the ability to smoke its rear tires. German automotive apprentices have built some cool things over the years, but this is definitely one of the coolest.
What’s your favorite wild skunkworks project unexpectedly greenlit by a car company? Let us know in the comments!
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Stephen has always been passionate about cars, and managed to turn that passion into a career as a freelance automotive journalist. When he’s not handling weekend coverage for The Drive, you can find him looking for a new book to read.
