Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren 722 Edition - you can't treat yourself to anything else
Summary
When Mercedes-Benz presented the SLR Vision at the 1999 Detroit Motor Show, the uncompromisingly styled sports car with an almost infinitely long hood attracted a lot of attention. Such a car was not expected from Mercedes in particular. However, motorsport successes and the collaboration with McLaren made series production of the SLR in coupé and roadster form possible, even if the car was only affordable for a few. This vehicle report tells the story of the SLR, which was produced in very small numbers, and shows a Coupé of the 722 Edition in many pictures.
This article contains the following chapters
- Rooted in tradition
- Starting signal for theseries
- Deliveries from 2004
- The right compromise?
- Quite an expensive affair
- Even more exclusive: 722
- Closed or open
- And a little less for more
- Almost 20 years later
- Further information
Estimated reading time: 11min
Preview (beginning of the article)
From 1995, McLaren raced with Mercedes-Benz engines, in 1998 and 1999 Mika Häkkinen won the F1 World Championship in a McLaren-Mercedes and in 1998 Mercedes-Benz also finished as number 1 in the FIA GT Championship for sports cars. So much racing success had to be celebrated, especially as Mercedes-Benz also had a rich racing history. What could be more obvious than to build a super sports car in the style of the 300 SLR of the 1950s together with McLaren? So while the Bugatti Veyron with a mid-engine was gradually being created at Volkswagen, the designers under Bruno Sacco and his successor Peter Pfeiffer drew a classic sports car with an infinitely long hood, Formula 1 nose and a V8 engine behind the front axle. Pfeiffer was quoted as saying: "We wanted to build on our great past without going into retro design; when we bring out a new car, it also has to be a glimpse into the future - and in racing that is Formula 1". In line with the design and these specifications, the front mid-engine was already set.
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