A blast from the past and a flavor of the future, this may only is an excellent explanation of the newest sports car that came out as of a collaboration of Mercedes-Benz and McLaren, two large giants in the most wanted car manufacturing production. We're talking about the 2004 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren. This sports car combines the old yet astounding SLR race cars of the 50s and the most modern and meanest technology of high-performance supercars. With the power of race cars and the sleek, curves and design of a luxury car, the combination as of the two car manufacturers is tough to beat.
This supercar is definitely fast. SLR McLaren sports a 626-horsepower supercharged 5.5-liter V8. Also, it has a full carbon-fiber monologue; features crash structures and body panels. And with the supercharge V8 engine, you can see the 2004 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren go as of naught to 60 miles per hour in less than 3.6 seconds. Top speed has been measured to exceed 200 mph, a feat that can just be achieved by especially only some even among the high show sports cars. It was the high-performance division of Mercedes-Benz which created the V8s. The AMG were the ones who hand-build the supercharged V8 engines with top notched precision and superiority. It is not at a large surprise to observe the supercharged 5.5 (5439 cc) liter dry sumped 90 degree V8 engine to produce around 466.8 kW at 6500 rpm (626 hp) and 780 N·m (575 ft·lbf) torque at 3250 - 5000 rpm. The numbers maybe daunting but the sound of the engine will appease the minds of those who lengthy for the wonderful soaring performance cars.
Mounting that V8 engine into the body of SLR exotic car is also not as traditional as one would like to expect. The engine in SLR sports car is placed in a front mid-engine position just behind the front wheels. Instead of using the traditional oil-pan, dry-sump lubricants are used. With this innovation, it is highly possible to mount the engine to a level that used to be unachievable. Because of the low position of the engine in the supercar's body, the results are more than one hoped. The new Mercedez-Benz SLR McLaren race car has better aerodynamics and better handling due to the lower center of gravity.
Not just does the mean features of the sports car that attracts attention however how the two car companies were able to fuse their own traditions and expertise into a single exotic car. For one, McLaren's expertise in Formula 1 has been imbibed wholly by the SLR's design. The composition of carbon fiber material that was use in the body of the new SLR sports car is so Formula 1. Because of this body, the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren has become extra rigid and surprisingly strong.
However not to be outdone, counterpart Mercedes-Benz has also put only some tricks of its own. The German car maker added features that are deemed essential to the most important part of the vehicle: the passengers. Due to backgrounds in mostly luxury cars, Mercedes-Benz has ensured most occupant protection and safety. To my knowledge, the SLR is the only car so far that utilizes front crash structure made entirely of carbon fiber. The importance of this carbon fiber design can only be appreciated in actual crash test simulations. What the front carbon fiber crash structure does is it absorbs crash energy, four - five times other energy than ordinary steel structures actually, during a severe frontal collision. This protects the passengers during such accidents four times extra than traditional steel structures found in extra sports cars and supercars.
The SLR also has a five speed automatic transmission. There are modes, the Sport, Comfort and Manual which basically covers every known driving style. Sport is for everyday use, Comfort for bumpy or slippery roads, and Manual gives you control over the gears either through the touchpad or the levers on the steering wheel. When you use Manual, you open up three supplementary modes, namely Sport, Super sport and Race. Speed increased significantly as you go up shifts.
Other notable features in this sports car include the high-performance technologies of ceramic brakes. The SLR uses ceramic reinforced by means of fiber on its brake pads. This technology allows this exotic car to have astonishing stopping power, and extraordinary lofty resistance to heat, exceptionally muscular structure and lengthy service life for the brakes.
With all these features it is not surprising that the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is classified as a sports car and a supercar. Remember to get this right, though, the "SLR" does not stand for "Sportlich, Leicht, Transport" which is German for "Sport; Light; Racing" as most people think. Its real meaning is "super-leicht, Transport" which way "super-light, racing." The sports car is being sold by means of a base price of €443,066 £300,000 or $450,000.
As of 8 July 2008 Mercedes-Benz and McLaren Automotive have split up and ceased their collaboration. Looks like McLaren is now on its own. Mercedes-Benz has started the production of SLS AMG as their summit supercar, while McLaren Automotive is working on its McLaren MP4-12C.
0 comments:
Post a Comment