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Making Cars And Making Art At Once
Such a marvellous idea could only have been the handiwork of those perfectionists at Mercedes Benz, for no one else could have seen this project through. Instead of just making any transporter that lugs a racing car to racing events in Europe, design one that is not only the fastest, but is also the most identifiable one on the road. But how could the company have had invested so much time and money in to something that was clearly not of any commercial value to them? What was wrong in using a simple van? If you like this mercedez article check out mercedes ml for more top quality information.
The tale of the making of the transporter is one of dignity, zeal, and common sense. There was extreme rivalry going on between Mercedes Benz and the other German racing teams in the days preceding the First World War. However, W-154 powered by the V-12 that Mercedes came up with won 12 out of the 17 events right before the war, and stole everyone's hearts. It was only in 1952 that the management at Mercedes decided to re-enter Grand Prix racing, and they finally did so in the season starting in 1954.
Mercedes thus built a special carrier for its W-196, a new breed of racing cars to have a celebrated Argentine racer behind its wheels. The transporter had to be made so that it was distinctive, without any match in its class, and had to be easily acknowledged as a Mercedes Benz creation. They also wanted it to be the one of the fastest vehicles on the roads of Western Europe.
You automatically got a head start if you got to the tracks first, because you got more time to acclimatize yourself with the grounds there, and take a few practice runs. This also meant that if a racer needed to be sent to the plants, it could be done easily, and without worries Technically, the transporter incorporated the best that Mercedes Benz had to offer. The 3.0 liter, 6-cylinder engine from the 300 SL models was incorporated as was their four speed manual transmission, but the frame was derived from the X-shape of the 300 S sedan. The brakes on all the wheels were power-assisted apart from the regular hydraulic system. To read other mercedez articles make sure to visit mercedes benz slk class.
But the really eye-catching characteristic of the carrier was its remarkable body work. The steel panels used on it were inspired from most of the other panels of the day. The windshield and the doors were derived from the ones that were used in the 180 S, and so too were the finishing on the inside. Between its two fenders, the one up front and the one in the rear, there was enough space for two spare tires, loading ramps, tools and all the equipment for the racer.
The single cab had been placed low and up front, far beyond the line of the front axle, and unconventional was this that it gave a defying, screaming, Mercedes Benz look in the end. The clear, definitive, factory blue paint on the final product only added to its instant success. Even when it was fully loaded with 6,600 pounds, it could go beyond 100 mph, a speed that is fast even in today's age.
The carrier was rolled out in mid-1954, only to be an instant success in the racetracks of Europe and in the U.S. The carrier was likely to pull more crowds at the races than the racers themselves. Following the tragic event at the 1955 French 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race, in which a privately owned Mercedes Benz 300 SLR crashed and killed 80 people, the company actually pulled out of formula racing. Till the autumn of the same year, all of the racing division had been retired including the transporter.
The company scrapped the vehicle altogether because even the scheme of preserving it in their museum turned out to be infeasible as the total weight was more than the floors could take. In the years following its termination, Mercedes Benz got such a huge number of requests that it decided to make a replica in 1993. It was completed in 2000, after working with an outside fabricator, photographs and sketches. A short, albeit magnificent, page in the history of Mercedes Benz racing had been restored for the amazement and wonder of all its fans.

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