by Francis Isberto (RSS feed) May 12th, 2010 at 3:10 am
Ever heard of a car that is so hot that it’s started to flame on? The Mercedes Benz 300 SLR was so hot especially in 1955 where it was a sports racing car for the 1955 World Sports Car Championship season.
The car specification pretty impressive, even for today’s standards. It has the Formula 1 car’s 8 cylinder in-line engine, 310Â horsepower, and a maximum torque of 318Â N-m. The high-octane fuel mixture of 65 percent low-lead gasoline and 35 percent benzene makes the car fuel somewhat odd.
But it has some drawbacks. Even with the innovative air-brake, the drum brakes were not effective enough to stop driver Pierre Levegh, who was driving a Mercedes Benz 300 SLR in a race event, to become airborne. The ultra-lightweight bodywork’s high magnesium content caused it to ignite in the ensuing fuel fire, causing significant injury and loss of life of 82 spectators including Levegh.
It was the highest fatality accident in the history of motor sport. Following the tragedy, Mercedes withdrew from competitive motor sport until the mid-1980s. Flame on indeed!
Loading ...
by Leo (RSS feed) March 25th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
Seems like Mercedes-Benz is coming up with a new ad for its very exclusive, very rare SLR Stirling Moss Edition. Seen in the streets of Barcelona was two-time Formula One Drivers’ Championship winner Mika Hakkinen sitting behind the wheels of the elite Mercedes vehicle.
Hakkinen, who once spent time with Mercedes’ McLaren and despite his retirement, remains involved with Mercedes in an undisclosed role. Hakkinen is one lucky guy to be driving the Stirling Moss for this commercial (possibly while another one’s sitting in his garage at home). Mercedes only crafted 75 of these SLRs and its pricey tag of over one million US dollars could be quite steep for ordinary guys like me.
Mercedes didn’t give any information about the upcoming ad but an Opel Astra Coupe and what appears to be a Ferrari (though watchers said it couldn’t have been) were part of the shoot, probably as part of the support cast.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) February 12th, 2010 at 3:53 pm
The renowned Chicago Athenaeum – Museum of Architecture and Design has given three Mercedes-Benz models a singular honor by presenting the E-Class, the
E-Class Coupe and the SLR Stirling Moss with the GOOD DESIGN Award – the oldest award for outstanding product design.
In the previous two years, the jury for the GOOD DESIGN Award also recognized the high design quality of Mercedes-Benz automobiles by presenting the award to the GLK and the C-Class.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) April 28th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
If you thought that the gold-wrapped Mercedes-Benz SLR was ridiculous, then you’ll love the Anliker McLaren SLR 999 Red Gold Dream. This thing, which was once an Mclaren-Mercedes SLR, was created by Swiss tuning firm Ueli Anliker Design for a client in, yes you guessed it – Dubai. I honestly have no words for this thing, not only is it a sucky tuning job, but the red with the gold plated interior and wheels is a horrible combination. I dare you to look at it more than 10 seconds and not get the urge to puke. Another tip of the hat to the guys in Dubai, you sure have great taste in tuned cars.
via Supercarsdubai
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) April 17th, 2009 at 11:27 am
We’re always happy to see companies come up with ways to tune a particular Mercedes-Benz vehicle, even though, it’s pretty tough sometimes, especially on the SLR. FAB Design is the latest contender to try and tune the outgoing SLR. As you can see in the gallery below, they did their best to put in some of their own flare and make it unique. That actually might be the problem, they tried too hard, making the car look a bit weird. Everything is a bit over the top, from the front bumpers and rear fenders, to the humongous rear spoiler. Nevertheless, we give them points for effort, but no points for execution. Better luck next time, oh and remember, less is more when it comes to tuning.
The car itself has a high-performance engine which generates an unbelievable performance of 750hp and a maximum torque of 1,080Nm. The FAB Design “Desire” reaches a regulated top speed of 310 km/h and passes the 100 km/h mark in 3.6 seconds. The interior is a sharp contrast of the exterior, the FAB designers did a great job redesigning it – nearly all relevant parts of the SLR interior has been customized by the FAB Design specialists.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) April 16th, 2009 at 11:27 am
What do you do when you’re rich and bored? I guess you start spending your money on some pretty crazy things. The owner of a UAE license plate registry, where he made his fortune, had his SLR gold-wrapped, including the wheels. Now, this of course not the first time someone has done this, the owner of a C63 AMG did it as well. Come on guys, this is getting old, how about some new things, even a diamond studded SL has already been done. Or even better, how about you spend some of that money feeding the hungry and helping those in need, no nevermind, that’s just no fun.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) March 10th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
The new SLR Stirling Moss is characterised by the most sophisticated technology and a breathtaking design which reinterprets the SLR legend. With 478 kW/650 hp the SLR Stirling Moss accelerates its V8 supercharged engine from standstill to 100 km/h in less than 3.5 seconds, and has a top speed of 350 km/h – no other series-production car is at the same time so open and so fast.
This extreme concept makes the new high-performance sports car a legitimate bearer of the name of the British motor racing legend and Mille Miglia record-holder Stirling Moss, who drove the legendary Mercedes-Benz SLR racing cars from victory to victory in 1955. The exclusive SLR Stirling Moss rounds off the current SLR family and is limited to 75 units. It is priced at 750,000 euros (excl. VAT). The SLR Roadster will cease to be manufactured at the end of May 2009 as planned, and production of the SLR Stirling Moss will commence in June 2009.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) February 9th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
There is neither a roof nor a windscreen to separate the driver and passenger from the outside world; they enjoy unadulterated high-speed excitement with all the attributes of a speedster. The SLR Stirling Moss is also characterized by the most sophisticated technology and a breathtaking design which reinterprets the SLR legend. With 650 hp and 478 kW the SLR Stirling Moss accelerates its V8 supercharged engine from standstill to 100 km/h in less than 3.5 seconds, and has a top speed of 350 km/h – no other series-production car is at the same time so open and so fast.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) January 28th, 2009 at 11:51 am
New spy shots have emerged of the much rumored Mercedes-Benz SLC supercar, which is said to replace the already legendary SLR. AutoWeek has published pictures of a test mule making rounds on a track, but heavily masked with plastic and tape. Rumor has it that the codenamed C197 will have a AMG V8 with 580 to 600hp and go from 0 to 62 mph in 3.8 seconds. Even with a V8, the supercar should be on par if not better than the outgoing SLR, due to its weight advantage, mostly because aluminum and carbon fiber will be used in the construction of the frame and body.
Loading ...
by Muamer Hodzic (RSS feed) January 20th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
You probably remember the ASMA tuned M-Class that looks like a hungry shark in some form or another. The guys are back and have created another creature that we should not mess with, literary. I actually asked myself if their goal is to make the cars uglier instead of improving them. They should take a look at what tuners like RENNtech and BRABUS are doing.
The guys definitely have lots to learn from the top players in the Mercedes tuning industry, but if they continue like this, they will soon find themselves tuning ricers. They did manage to increase the horsepower to 700, but honestly, who cares when it looks like that. Check out the gallery, maybe you’ll like it.
Loading ...
(5 votes, average: 4.60 out of 5)
