The Concept
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren concept was a belated continuation of the legendary 300 SLR Coupe of the 1950s, the new Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is the perfect synthesis of tradition and innovation.
Breathtaking performance, striking looks and the use of lightweight material such as carbon fibre for the chassis make the SLR a true super car.
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is the culmination of several years work between the two respected companies. The vast 5.4 litre supercharged V8 engine is mounted in the front, dictating the cab rearward styling of the SLR. Access to the SLR is gained through impressive swing wing doors hinged along the 'A' pillar.
The SLR draws on McLarens F1 experience and uses underbody aerodynamics to suck the car to the road.
The SLR also uses a variable geometry spoiler placed at the extreme tail of the car, this raises to a 10° angle at 59 mph and during heavy braking it increases to 65° to keep the rear end planted firmly to the road.
The Design
The design of the new Mercedes-Benz McLaren SLR : a breathtaking blend of legend and sophistication.
- New high performance sports car to make world debut in autumn 2003
- a captivating combination of traditional and state-of-the art styling elements
Twin-headlamp face, plus styling touches from the Silver Arrows Formula One car.
These and other styling elements rooted in the SLR tradition are harmonised smoothly with the latest Mercedes design traits: these include the distinctive "twin-headlamp face", which has been blazing a trail since it first appeared in 1995, and the fascinating interplay of soft contours and taut lines, a characteristic which runs through many of the models in the cur-rent Mercedes portfolio.
The bodystyling of the SLR is also modelled on the McLaren Mercedes Silver Arrows. The arrow-shaped nose, which encompasses the Mercedes star at the front and gives the bumper as a whole a bolder, more powerful look, stems from the championship-winning Formula One car, as does the twin-fin spoiler in the front bumper. Again, this is more than just an identifying design feature, as it is also crucial to the vehicle's aerodynamics and en-gine cooling.
Seen from the side, the eye is immediately caught by the flat, wedge-shaped form of the new high-performance supercar. This is created primarily by the long bonnet, the steeply raked front windscreen, the rear-wards positioning of the passenger cockpit, the large wheels and the com-pact tail. Thanks to these proportions, the side profile lends further emphasis to the sense of forwards surge which courses through the new SLR.
The designers have incorporated a further SLR element in the form of the finned side air gills in the front wings, although they do far more than recall just the design of the legendary racing cars from 1955: today, as indeed back then, the side air outlets serve to ventilate the engine compartment. The designers have underlined their practical function by the use of sweeping lines which continue into the gullwing doors.
Interior Design
Moving inside, the sports bucket seats, upholstered in a combination of semi-aniline leather and Alcantara, offer excellent lateral support, while the colour contrast provided by the distinctive "300 SL red" stitching throughout the interior, the 722 insignia on the head restraints and the red seat belts is designed for added visual impact.
The attractive material mix comprising semi-aniline leather and Alcantara, which gives the interior its characteristic look and feel, also features prominently on the roof lining and door panels. Frequently used controls, such as the shift lever and handbrake lever, are trimmed in easy-grip, moisture-absorbing suede.
in terms of exterior design, the SLR 722 Edition features discreet sporty touches, thereby satisfying the desires of keen gentleman drivers and affluent sports-car collectors – the core target group – to the letter. The new-look 19-inch light-alloy wheels afford a perfect view of the red-painted brake callipers and the large brake discs, emphasising the sheer power and performance that underpins every aspect of the SLR 772 edition.
Technical Feature
Boasting an impressive output of 478 kW/650 hp, the new SLR McLaren 722 Edition super sports car not only outperforms its historic forefather, it even outstrips the scintillating peak performance of the current SLR model. The new limited-edition series – only 150 models are being produced, for the most part handcrafted, at the McLaren Formula 1 works in Woking – is the brand's response to calls from highly discerning SLR customers for even more sportiness combined with the same high level of everyday practicality.
At the heart of the SLR 722 Edition is a 5.5-litre supercharged V8 assembled by hand at the Mercedes-AMG engine workshops in Affalterbach, Germany, based on the "One man, one engine" principle. Among the high-performance powerplant's major strengths are its exceptionally spontaneous response to accelerator pedal movements, high torque and that unmistakable V8 sound.
The forged pistons are only manufactured in extremely small numbers. Just like the forged lightweight connecting rods, the pistons are measured and weighed with utmost accuracy before being assigned to individual engines. This keeps any mass balancing tolerances to an absolute minimum. The pistons slide inside extremely durable, wear-resistant, low-friction cylinder barrels made from a special compound which is otherwise only found in race car engines. Twin oil injection is used for effective piston cooling.
The oil cooling technology employed for the power unit as a whole also draws on the brand's racetrack experience: a sophisticated dry-sump lubrication system with a capacity of around eleven litres combines with a five-speed oil suction pump and a two-speed oil pressure pump to guarantee reliable lubrication under all driving conditions.
Efficient cylinder charging is the task of a belt-driven compressor with two screw-shaped aluminium rotors that are Teflon-coated in the interests of keeping friction low. In order to keep the engine running as efficiently as possible at all times, the AMG engineers have devised an intelligent engine management system which independently determines when to deploy the screw compressor as the engine's rev speed and load change. Consequently, the supercharger is only called into action when it is really needed. Notwithstanding this, however, maximum power is always available the instant the driver summons it by opening the throttle.
The intercoolers operate based on the extremely efficient air-to-water heat exchanger principle: the air which has been compressed by the compressor, causing it to heat up, is directed through a separate water circuit to cool it down again. This enables the eight-cylinder powerplant to maximise its output and torque delivery.
High performance has also been ingrained into the five-speed automatic transmission, which was developed in-house at Mercedes-Benz and has already featured in a number of exceptionally powerful models. It has been optimised to enable it to handle the awesome torque on tap and also offers drivers the possibility of varying the gearshift characteristics. The transmission directs the engine's power to the differential and the rear wheels via a precision balanced drive train made from aluminium and steel.
The end result is an extremely impressive set of performance figures, even by high-end super sports car standards: the SLR 722 Edition completes the sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in a breathtaking 3.6 seconds (SLR 3.8 seconds), with the speedometer needle proceeding to pass the 200 km/h mark in a mere 10.2 seconds (SLR 10.6 seconds) and the 300 km/h mark in just 28.0 seconds (SLR 28.8 seconds). Plus, the top speed of 337 km/h is even higher than that of the current SLR (334 km/h).
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