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Collaboration Born From Formula 1 Effort
When Mercedes-Benz first started making plans for the SLR, it was coming off back-to-back driver’s world championships in 1998 and 1999 and the constructor’s title in 1998 as the engine supplier to the mighty McLaren. The British race team knew a thing or two about making supercars, having produced its own F1 supercar in the early to mid-1990s. With a nod to his expertise as the brainchild of the F1, Mercedes-Benz hired its designer, Gordon Murray, to help with turning the concept Vision SLR into a roadgoing machine.
Murray, who not only penned the F1 but also designed winning cars for both the Brabham and McLaren Formula 1 teams, insisted on a number of changes to the SLR, including moving the engine back approximately one meter in the chassis. The relocated powerplant, now well behind the front axle instead of partially straddling it, help improve balance and handling. The fuel tank was redesigned to allow for more trunk space. The SLR, after all, was supposed to be a supercar you could live with, meaning you should have storage more than would accommodate just a sandwich or two.
Assembled in the U.K. With Supercharged AMG V8
With McLaren assembling the cars at a purpose-built facility at its Woking, U.K, bas, the SLR was manufactured entirely differently than any other car to ever wear the three-pointed star. Its carbon-fiber monocoque consisted of four main components that were bonded together. No rivets, no screws and certainly no welds, the carbon tub was essentially glued together, albeit via an automated factory robot that was able to form complex shapes from the composite material. The monocoque was then bonded to an aluminum subframe that held the AMG-built, 617-horsepower, supercharged 5.4-liter SOHC V8, which was placed low in the chassis with a remote oil sump for added aerodynamic advantage.
The only transmission available was a beefed-up version of Mercedes-Benz’s 5G-Tronic five-speed automatic, a notably durable and reliable gearbox that could handle the impressive 575 lb-ft of torque from the supercharged V8. With peak torque arriving at just 3,250 rpm—and a big chunk of it available across a wide swath of the rev range—an automatic transmission seemed the right choice anyway for a car more suited to high-speed grand touring than seeking faster lap times. Despite the extensive use of composites and aluminum, the SLR McClaren had a curb weight over 3,800 pounds.
Retro-Inspired Exhaust
The SLR certainly looked the part of a supercar. One clever homage to the original Uhlenhaut 300 SLR Coupe was the exhaust exiting on the sides, just behind the front wheels and underneath the equally retro side vents. Another nod to history was the unconventional way the doors opened. Rather than in “gullwing” fashion like the 1950s SL, they opened more like the scissor doors that have become a Lamborghini signature.
Though roughly five inches shorter in overall length than a contemporary Mustang GT, the Mercedes McLaren was also five inches lower overall than Ford’s pony car, making the SLR look a lot longer due to its proportions, including that extended hood length mandated by the pushed back engine its big air intake up front. It may have carried some styling cues with the other models in the automaker’s lineup, but it stands alone with a presence no other car from the company could match at the time.
Supercar Specs for the Chassis and Interior
In 2006, the SLR carried a $450,000 MSRP, making it the most expensive production Mercedes-Benz up to that point. Befitting such an high-priced, racing-inspired car, the interior included lots of aluminum and more carbon fiber for the seat shells, which were covered in semi-aniline leather. Not as ornate as either some other supercars from the era or even more luxury-oriented Mercedes-Benz models, the SLR still had some unique design touches, such as a start button hidden under a flip-top latch on top of the automatic’s shifter in the console.
In keeping with the 200-mph mission of the SLR McLaren, each car was fitted with large-diameter carbon ceramic brakes, including 14.6-inch front rotors clamped by eight-pistons calipers. Massive, 19-inch exclusive Michelin Pilot Super Sport rubber (255 mm wide in front and 295 mm in back) were mounted on aluminum “Turbine Design” wheels.
Performance of the collaboration was impressive, with the sprint from 0 to 60 mph taking 3.6 seconds, according to the road testers at Car and Driver magazine, who were also able to achieve a quarter-mile elapsed time of 11.6 seconds with a trap speed of 125 mph. True supercar performance. Amazingly, despite its ability to slam occupants into the two carbon-fiber seats, the SLR also gained a reputation for being an everyday car, unperturbed by traffic or maneuvering in parking lots.
Speaking of those seats, as a seriously sporting car, the chairs are rather nicely bolstered on the sides for spirited driving. While the two seats look the same, the driver’s seat is a big more snug, sized “medium” according to Mercedes-Benz, while the passenger’s seat is sized “large” for additional comfort. A proper supercar driver would not want any special passengers being shuttled around at high speed to be any less comfortable than was necessary, of course.
This 2006 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren presently offered in Hemmings Auctions is one of just 141 examples sold in the U.S. for the model year. Over the entire eight years of production in the U.K., just 2,157 SLRs were produced for the entire world.
Finished in black with a black leather interior, it is described by the selling dealer as “turn-key, with no issues.” At the time of submission, the odometer showed just 10,061 miles. The seller’s notes include the term “excellent” on nearly every aspect of the car, with details indicating no leaks of any kind, no swirls or scratches in the paint, no dents, and all features working as designed. Certainly, the recently shot photos corroborate these observations. Even the big 19-inch Turbine wheels show zero signs of damage or curb rash. Even the leather seating surfaces look barely sat in, save for minor creasing on the driver’s side exterior bolsters. The aerodynamically correct flat underside, too, looks barely used.
This rare sports/GT car is now accepting bids on Hemmings Auctions. Take a look and see exactly what an everyday supercar from Mercedes-Benz and McLaren looks like.
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