Mercedes-Benz is celebrating the world premiere of the new EQ Silver Arrow 01 at the International Motor Show in Geneva.  The Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team is unveiling its Formula E racing car ahead of the International Motor Show in Geneva that kicks off March 7th – 17th, 2019.

• The 2019/20 season will be the first in which Mercedes competes in both Formula 1 and Formula E
• The two racing series together will be an important driver of technology for the Mercedes family in the future
• Toto Wolff: “We are looking forward to the challenge of demonstrating the performance of our intelligent battery-electric drives in motorsport and of giving a positive boost to the EQ brand”

Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team

The 89th International Motor Show in Geneva has another star turn in the shape of the Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01. The ‘ teaser’ version of the first all-electric racing car to be entered by the Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team has made its world debut.

The EQ Silver Arrow 01 will be on public display between 7 and 17 March 2019 at the trade show. The car has been given a special ‘ teaser livery’ which gives an idea of the team’s Formula E campaign to come. The definitive design will be presented at a later stage ahead of the season opener.

“The Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01 teaser car gives a foretaste of the first all-electric Silver Arrow from Mercedes-Benz,” says Gorden Wagener, Chief Design Officer Daimler AG. “Blue accents and the subtle contrast between matt and gloss in conjunction with the star pattern at the rear of the vehicle stage the progressive luxury in electric motorsport.”

On the side of the vehicle, running all the way from the front to the rear, is a horizontal blue line symbolising the EQ brand. At the same time, it serves as a colour contrast similar to the PETRONAS green on the Mercedes-AMG F1 W10 EQ Power+ in Formula 1. The lines help to optimise visual proportionality. At the rear of the vehicle there is a star motif for both the Formula 1 car and the Formula E teaser version. This subtly conveys the high-value Mercedes-Benz brand.

Challenge accepted: Formula E as new arena

With its innovative and complex technology, Formula E represents a whole new world of racing, in which newcomers face multiple challenges. This first public appearance of the new car in Geneva therefore constitutes an important milestone on the way to the team’ s Formula One E debut.

“The countdown to our entry into Formula E has now officially begun,” says Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport Toto Wolff. “Our team has obviously been working behind the scenes on this project for quite a while now, but when you see the car in our teaser livery for the first time, you know that the project has entered a serious phase.”

However, the team still has a lot of work to do before the Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01 contests its first race towards the end of the year. “Formula E is going to be a completely new playing field for us,” adds Toto Wolff. “But we are looking forward to the challenge of demonstrating the performance of our intelligent battery-electric drives in motorsport and of giving a positive boost to the EQ brand.”

Parallel commitment consolidates technology transfer within the Mercedes family

When the sixth season of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship gets underway, Mercedes will be opening a new chapter in the long and successful racing history of the brand. At the start of its debut season in 2019/20, the Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team will be entering not one but two all-electric racing cars.

The brand with the three-pointed star will thus become the only automobile manufacturer in the world to compete in both Formula 1 and Formula E. The parallel commitment to the two racing series will enable Mercedes to transfer the lessons learned in both arenas to the road. The two platforms taken together constitute an important technology driver for the entire Mercedes family and will help to shape the future of the automobile industry.

German auto racer Hans Stuck had a dream and a desire to capture the world land speed record for himself and for Germany. In the late 1930s, he worked to put together a team to achieve this goal and in 1937 had convinced Wilhelm Kissel, Chairman of Daimler-Benz AG, to have Mercedes-Benz develop and build the vehicle, which Dr. Ferdinand Porsche had agreed to design. Stuck also obtained project approval from Adolf Hitler, who saw the record as another propaganda tool to demonstrate Germany’s supposed technological superiority.

Mercedes-Benz T 80 world record project vehicle, overall view with mounted body. Photo from 1953.

The vehicle was officially known as the Mercedes-Benz T80 or Type 80. Dr. Porsche had first targeted a speed of 342 mph (550 km/h), utilizing a 2,000 hp (1,490 kW) engine. However, other speed record challengers began to raise the record, so the T80’s speed goal was raised as well. More power was made available from the engine, and when the T80 was nearly finished in 1939, the target speed for its record run was 373 mph (600 km/h) after 3.7 mi (6 km) of acceleration.

The T80 cost 600,000 Reichsmarks to complete; that is about $4 million in today’s USD. Aerodynamics specialist Josef Mikcl helped streamline the car’s body, which was built by aircraft manufacturer Heinkel Flugzeugwerke. The T80 incorporated a Porsche-designed enclosed cockpit, low sloping hood, and rounded fenders. The rear wheels were encased in elongated tail fins to help stabilize the vehicle at speed. Two small wings at the middle of the car provided downforce and ensured stability. The heavily streamlined twin-tailed body achieved a drag coefficient of 0.18, a very low figure even by today’s standards.

The car had three axles: the front provided steering, and the two rear axles were driven by a 2,717 cu in (44.5 L) Daimler-Benz DB 603 inverted V-12 aircraft engine. Ernst Udet, director of Germany’s Aircraft Procurement and Supply, provided the third DB 603 prototype engine for installation in the T80. The supercharged DB 603 engine with mechanical fuel injection was specially tuned to 3,000 hp (2,240 kW). The engine ran on a special mixture of methyl alcohol (63%), benzene (16%), ethanol (12%), acetone (4.4%), nitrobenzene (2.2%), avgas (2%), and ether (0.4%); it utilized MW (methanol-water) injection for charge cooling and anti-detonation.

Power from the engine was transmitted to the four drive wheels via a hydraulic torque converter to a single-speed final drive. To maintain traction, the T80 had a mechanical “anti-spin control” device. The front and rear wheels each had a sensor to mechanically detect wheel spin. If the rear wheels began to spin faster than the front, fuel to the engine was automatically reduced.

Mercedes-Benz T 80 world record project vehicle, view of the DB 603 RS aircraft engine installed in the chassis. Photo from 1939.

The T80 was 26 ft 8 in (8.128 m) long and 4 ft 1 in (1.245 m) tall. Its body width was 5 ft 9 in (1.753 m) and 10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) wide including the wings. All six wheels were 7 in x 32 in and had a 4 ft 3 in (1.295 m) track. The vehicle weighed about 6,390 lb (2,900 kg).

The T80 vehicle had been unofficially nicknamed Schwarzer Vogel (Black Bird) by Hitler and was to be painted in German nationalistic colors complete with German Eagle and Swastika. Hans Stuck would have driven the T80 over a special stretch of the Dessau Autobahn (now part of the modern A9 Autobahn), which was 82 ft (25 m) wide and 6.2 mi (10 km) long with the median paved over. The record attempt was set for January 1940 and would have been the first absolute land speed record attempt in Germany.

However, the outbreak of the war prevented the T80 run. In fact, the vehicle’s finishing touches were never completed, and it never moved under its own power. After the record attempt was cancelled, the T80 was garaged. In late February 1940, the DB 603 engine was removed, and the vehicle was stored in Karnten, Austria for the duration of the war. The Mercedes-Benz T80 was unknown outside of Germany until discovered by the Allies after World War II. Fortunately, the T80 survived the war relatively unscathed and was eventually moved into the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, where it is on permanent display in the Silver Arrows – Races & Records Legend room. (The T80’s body is on display. The chassis is in storage at a museum warehouse.)

Mercedes-Benz T 80 world record project vehicle

On 16 September 1947, John Cobb achieved 394.19 mph (634.39 km/h) in the twin Napier Lion-powered Railton Mobil Special, surpassing the T80’s calculated Autobahn record run speed. However, after discovering the T80, the Allies had been quoted an astounding top speed of 465 mph (750 km/h) for the T80. Had the T80 been capable of this estimated top speed, the corresponding record would have been unequaled until 1964 when Craig Breedlove hit 468.72 mph (754.33 km/h) in the jet-powered Spirit of America. In addition, the T80 would still hold the record for the fastest piston-engined, wheel-driven vehicle.

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

The Mercedes-Benz T 80 world record project car was the brainchild of racing driver Hans Stuck: he wanted to break the absolute world land speed record. Stuck completed the project with the help of three major personalities: Wilhelm Kissel, the Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler-Benz AG, engineer Ferdinand Porsche and air force general Ernst Udet. During the 1930s each of them made their contribution to completion of the project. The story of the Mercedes-Benz T 80 is a marathon for the designers and aerodynamicists: the project began in 1936. Via numerous development stages and vehicle refinements, it came to an end in 1940 – without the T 80 ever being used.

The aim of all those involved was to achieve a speed never before reached by any land vehicle. This was all the more challenging because, in that period, British drivers were establishing new records all the time at Daytona Beach and on the Bonneville Salt Flats: on 3 September 1935, Malcolm Campbell reached a speed of 484.62 km/h over the flying mile with “Blue Bird”. On 19 November 1937, George Eyston broke the 500 km/h barrier with “Thunderbolt” (502.11 km/h over the flying kilometre). And finally on 23 August 1939, John Cobb established a new record of 595.04 km/h over the flying kilometre with “Railton Special”. Accordingly the planned target speed of 550 km/h was revised upwards, first to 600 km/h and finally even to 650 km/h.

Mercedes-Benz T 80 world record project vehicle, overall view with mounted body. Photo from 1953.

A new record for the Silver Arrows

If this project proved successful, Mercedes-Benz would add another triumph to a long list of speed records. The highlight to date was the speed record on public roads established by Rudolf Caracciola on 28 January 1938: he reached a speed of 432.7 km/h with the record-breaking Mercedes-Benz W 125 on the autobahn near Darmstadt. Nevertheless, the T 80 project was not without its critics within the company. This was not least due to Hans Stuck himself. After all, the Grand Prix racing driver competed for Auto Union in the 1930s. How would the public respond if the highly successful Stuttgart racing department engaged a driver from the competition for its absolute world record attempt? Many decision-makers in the company therefore wondered if it would not be better to entrust works driver Rudolf Caracciola with the record-breaking attempt as previously.

On the other hand, Stuck also had connections with the Stuttgart brand: in 1931 and 1932, driving a Mercedes-Benz SSKL, he raced very successfully for the Mercedes star. In 1932 he became international Alpine champion and Brazilian hill-racing champion. Four years later, Stuck was now using his former contacts with Untertürkheim.

Via the racing department of Auto Union, he made contact with designer Ferdinand Porsche. It was on the latter’s P-vehicle concept that the Grand Prix racing cars of Auto Union were based from 1934 to 1936. And flying ace Ernst Udet had already known Stuck since the 1920s. At that time the two would spar off, e.g. in ice races on the frozen Lake Eib near Garmisch-Partenkirchen: Stuck driving an Austro Daimler racing car and Udet flying an aircraft.

Telegram to Stuttgart

What was the motivation for Stuck’s desire to break the absolute world land speed record? One reason was undoubtedly his Auto Union team mate Bernd Rosemeyer. When the latter won the European Grand Prix championship in 1936, Hans Stuck started looking for another stage on which to demonstrate his driving skills. An obvious possibility was the world record, which was dominated by British drivers at the time.

Stuck had contacts in the National Socialist government, and knew that he could rely on political support for this prestige project. Nonetheless, he also needed partners for its technical implementation. On 14 August 1936 he sent a telegram from Pescara to the Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler-Benz, Wilhelm Kissel, requesting a meeting. In a conversation with Kissel, the racing driver suggested that Mercedes-Benz should build a record-breaking vehicle powered by a Daimler-Benz aircraft engine. The British record-breaking cars of that era were also powered by aircraft engines.

Record-breaking attempts were not new territory for Mercedes-Benz. After all, the Stuttgart-based company had set numerous records in the 1930s. And as Kissel remembered, the idea of building a record-breaking vehicle powered by an in-house aircraft engine had already come up under the aegis of late Daimler-Benz board member Hans Nibel, who died in 1934.

The vehicle for the record attempt was to be designed by Ferdinand Porsche, who had left his position as Chief Engineer at Mercedes-Benz in 1928. However, there were still connections between the world’s oldest automobile manufacturer and the Porsche design studio (P.K.B.). Between 1936 and 1937 Mercedes-Benz, among other things, built 30 prototypes of the “KdF” car, which went into series production as the VW Beetle after the Second World War.

On 11 March 1937, Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche GmbH concluded a contract with Daimler-Benz AG for extensive involvement in all areas of engine and vehicle design. As well as the T 80 (according to Porsche nomenclature, the “T” stood for “type”), the resulting projects included the T 90, T 93, T 94, T 95, T 97, T 104 and T 108. So, in addition to the world record project vehicle, Porsche was also involved in developing racing cars, commercial vehicles and engines.

An aircraft engine for a world record

The T 80 was to be powered by a Daimler-Benz aircraft engine. However, the manufacturer did not have automatic access to such a unit, as the Ministry of Aviation had sole rights of disposal over all aircraft engines produced in Germany. Therefore, Stuck put his connection with Ernst Udet to good use. The flying ace had meanwhile been promoted to head of the Luftwaffe’s technical department.

Fritz Nallinger, at that time Daimler-Benz’s technical director responsible for the design, development and production of large engines, commented on the project in September 1936. In Nallinger’s estimation, an output of 1,103 kW (1,500 hp) with the initially proposed DB 601 aircraft engine was definitely possible. In fact, 2,036 kW(2,770 hp) was achieved with a version of this engine prepared for flying record attempts in 1938 and 1939.

In October 1936 Kissel informed Porsche by telephone that the Ministry of Aviation was willing to release two engines. He also asked Porsche to commence work on the project. The official order followed on 13 January 1937. An appendix to the order pointed out that the Porsche design was always only to be referred to as a Mercedes-Benz world record project vehicle.

The financing was initially arranged as follows: Daimler-Benz would bear the cost of building the chassis. The body was to be built and paid for by aircraft manufacturer Heinkel. Organisation of the record-breaking attempt itself would be financed by racing driver Stuck himself. This had already been laid down by Kissel when he met with Stuck on 21 October 1936. In November 1936 Kissel estimated that the T 80 could not be completed before October 1937.

In February 1937, the project took a major step forward when Ernst Udet approved the official release of the DB 601 aircraft engine for installation in the T 80. In view of the greater power requirement that became obvious during the course of development, this approval was later extended to the DB 603 V3.

On 6 April Porsche presented his plans for the T 80 in Untertürkheim. These describe a multistage development process, from an initial twin engine proposal to a final single engine concept. This latest proposal already showed most of the characteristics of the vehicle actually built: a three-axle record-breaking car powered by a centrally suspended V12 aircraft engine. Porsche calculated that for a record speed of 550 km/h after a distance of five kilometres, an engine output of at least 1,618 kW (2,200 hp) or better still 1,838 kW (2,500 hp) would be necessary.

Originally the plan was to use a track in the United States of America for the record-breaking attempts. In mid-1938 this gave way to a plan to use a specially prepared section of the autobahn between Dessau-South and Bitterfeld instead. In August 1938 the General Inspector of German Roads, Fritz Todt, announced that the date for the proposed release of this autobahn section for use would be in October 1938.

The question of the location for the record attempt was never actually settled. But there was still talk of a record attempt in the USA in 1939. All the world speed records of recent years had been achieved on the Bonneville Salt Flats in the USA. One reason for the renewed discussion at Mercedes-Benz might have been the difficult driving conditions on the manually paved median between the two lanes on the envisaged section of the autobahn.

The birth of the world record car

The T 80 increasingly took shape during the course of 1938. In October Ferdinand Porsche viewed the wooden model of the bodyshell together with employees. It was now time to define the types of steel panelling for the body and produce a corresponding bill of materials, decide on the details of the seat and cockpit and formulate the tubular structure of the spaceframe. On 26 October 1938, the Mercedes-Benz racing department recorded in a test report that the first welded frame weighed 224 kilograms.

The chassis and frame were completed at the end of November 1938. The Mercedes-Benz racing department planned that the vehicle complete with all its major assemblies would be ready by the end of January 1939. A memo dated 26 November 1938 states that if the aircraft engine could also be delivered by then, the chassis could be assembled by the end of February 1939. The body would then be completed by May 1939.

Will the tyres withstand the record-breaking speed?

Tyre manufacturer Continental tested the wheels intended for the T 80 on a test stand, and during a high-speed test at 500 km/h in January 1939 found severe deformation of the wire-spoked wheels supplied by Hering in Ronneburg (Thuringia). In May there were still slight deformations at 480 km/h. Porsche had meanwhile calculated that a distance between 13.73 kilometres (with 2,023 kW/2,750 hp) and 11.48 kilometres (with 2,206 kW/3,000 hp) would be necessary for a record-breaking run at 600 km/h.

In 1939 the decision was reached to equip the T 80 with a DB 603 engine. In March 1937 the Ministry of Aviation had forbidden its further development as an aircraft engine, but it could be used for the land speed record if the ministry approved. The engineers were confident that the 44.5-litre V12 aircraft engine designed for an output of around 1,471 kW (2,000 hp) could reach up to 2,206 kW (3,000 hp) at 3,200 rpm during a record-breaking attempt. To this end the engine was to be fuelled with the two special racing fuels XM and WW. From February 1940 the company was permitted to restart its work on the DB 603 as an aircraft engine. Series production for aviation use began in 1941.

Optimisation of the DB 603 for the record attempt

In 1939 racing manager Alfred Neubauer noted down that a DB 603 for the T 80 could be delivered as a “running-in engine” in June of that year. The engine to be used in the actual record attempt would be available at the end of August 1939. In June Fritz Nallinger, who was responsible for Daimler-Benz aircraft engines, improved various details for installation of the world record project engine in the T 80. This included modifying the routing of the air intake ducts and configuring the exhaust ducts so that the vehicle could convert recoil energy into speed.

In summer 1939 measurements on a scale model of the T 80 were also carried out in the wind tunnel of the Zeppelin company in Friedrichshafen. The aim was to find the optimum level of downforce: strong enough to bring the entire engine power onto the road, but as low as possible so as not to overload the tyres with their thin tread surfaces. Following these measurements, the surface area of the downforce fins was reduced by another 3.65 square metres.

Testing of the T 80 was also continued after the outbreak of the Second World War on 1 September 1939. On 12 October the chassis of the world record project car was tested on the roller dynamometer, for example. In view of the new record of almost 600 km/h set by Cobb, Porsche was meanwhile envisaging a speed of up to 650 km/h for the record-breaking attempt. This would probably make an engine output of up to 2,574 kW(3,500 hp) necessary. Even this level of power seemed possible with the DB 603.

End of the T 80 project in spring 1940

No further steps were taken towards achieving the world land speed record. As early as February 1940, Mercedes-Benz sent an enquiry to the Ministry of Aviation about a possible contribution towards the development and production costs. In June 1940 a final report was produced for the project, and the T 80 was placed in storage. The DB 603 world record project engine meanwhile installed in the vehicle was returned to the Ministry of Aviation.

After the Second World War, Mercedes-Benz exhibited the T 80 in the company’s museum in Untertürkheim. When the museum was reorganised in 1986, the body and chassis were separated and the chassis was placed in storage. The new Mercedes-Benz Museum opened in 2006 outside the gates of the Untertürkheim plant also presented the T 80 in the permanent exhibition with its original body, spaceframe and wheels – but without the heavy chassis.

The body exhibited in the Mercedes-Benz Museum intentionally shows the world record project car with traces of the project work which was unfinished in 1940. Mercedes-Benz Classic is now juxtaposing the chassis together with the replicated spaceframe and the cutaway engine with this mighty exhibit. From mid-2018 this unique exhibit will make the technology of the T 80 immediately and impressively accessible.

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Mercedes Formula One Team driver Nico Rosberg and current 2014 F1 leader took a video selfie at the Hockenheim race track while there for the DRM season opener. The 28-year-old German filmed himself driving a classic Mercedes-Benz W196 Silver Arrow from 1954.

Bringing the legendary Silver Arrow W 25 to the Klaussen pass in Switzerland, Mercedes-Benz and IWC Schaffhausen attempted to recreate the 1934 world speed record set by the Silver Arrow W 25.

The Silver Arrow W 25 won 11 Grand Prix championships between 1934-1936 and could run a mile in a mere 30.76 seconds at an average top speed of 197 mph.  Keep in mind this was in 1934, a time and speed like this is impressive even by today’s standards.

Lewis Hamilton, Former Formula One World Champion, commented on the W 25, “.. I’ve had the privilege of driving that car, and it scared the life out of me.”

Watch the video below for a great look at the Silver Arrow W25 both in 1934 and today.

The Mercedes-Benz A 45 AMG, the Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series, the Mercedes SLS AMG GT3, and a Mercedes E 63 AMG compete against Michael Schumachers F1 “Silver Arrow” in the High-Performance Demonstration on the famous Nurburgring North Loop.

The race starts with an A 45 AMG driven by Bernd Mayländer, followed by an E 63 AMG driven by Karl Wendlinger, Nico Rosberg in an SLS AMG Black Series and Bernd Schneider with the SLS AMG GT3. The last car – the Formula 1 Silver Arrow with Michael Schumacher starts and tries to ride across the finish line at the same time with all the other Mercedes-AMG cars.

The Monaco Yacht Show is considered the most prestigious pleasure boat shows in the world, with 500 major companies in the luxury yachting on display and a hundred super and megayachts afloat.  It is the perfect backdrop for Mercedes-Benz Style and Silver Arrows Marine to present their designs for a luxury motor yacht.

The 14-metre-long (nearly 46 ft) seagoing Granturismo combines design elements typical of Mercedes-Benz automobiles with innovations hitherto unknown in the boat industry. The result is a progressive and emotionally appealing luxury yacht featuring the passionate design language of Mercedes-Benz. The yacht also represents the next stage in Daimler’s vision of all-encompassing mobility: along with Mercedes-Benz vehicles on land and the Eurocopter EC145 Mercedes-Benz Style in the air, mobility on water under the aegis of the three-pointed star will also soon now be possible.

The motor yacht is being developed and will be built by UK-registered boat-building company Silver Arrows Marine whose team includes world renowned marine architects Martin Francis and Tommaso Spadolini, between them responsible for some of the most capable and luxurious craft in the world today. The ‘Silver Arrow of the seas’ is due to come on to the market in 2013.

“Giving shape to a boat was an exciting challenge for automotive designers like we are,” said Gorden Wagener, Head of Design Mercedes-Benz Cars, at the presentation of the yacht’s design in Monaco. “Our task was to explore how to apply the Mercedes-Benz design language to the particular proportions and specific requirements of a boat. We wanted to create something special and what we have come up with is indeed unique. The ‘Silver Arrow of the seas’ embodies pure emotion and stands for luxury, style and pleasure.”

The crème de la crème of designers and boatbuilders

The new yacht, styled by Mercedes-Benz designers, is being engineered by the project partner, Silver Arrows Marine. “Silver Arrows Marine is a new brand with the best team of experts for extremely high-end maritime products,” Gorden Wagener said. As well as Martin Francis and Tommaso Spadolini, the Silver Arrows Marine team consists of specialists in all areas of luxury yacht development and construction.

Mercedes-Benz Style and Silver Arrows Marine have been working closely together to implement the designers’ interior and exterior style concepts in line with their precise specifications. The Mercedes-Benz Style team has been involved in the project from the beginning, collaborating with Silver Arrows Marine on the yacht’s innovative layout and use of space, shaping the exterior and interior and choosing materials and colour combinations. Silver Arrows Marine is responsible for the boat’s technical equipment and construction, with the first yacht expected to be launched within a year of the presentation of its design.

On the design collaboration with Mercedes-Benz Style, Silver Arrows Marine Chairman Ron Gibbs said: “It has been a privilege to work with professionals as passionate about design as we are passionate about boats and the sea. I am confident that together we can deliver innovation and elegance in a motor yacht that changes the way people see boats in this class.”

Granturismo in its finest form

At 14 metres in length, the new yacht’s design makes it suitable for a wide range of uses. The innovative versatility and intelligent use of space are particularly impressive. While ideal for a day on the water with friends, the motor yacht can also offer overnight accommodation. The elegant and timeless interior appointments offer a level of comfort and luxury commensurate with the Mercedes-Benz name.

About Mercedes-Benz Style

In addition to their work in the field of automotive design, the designers at Mercedes-Benz have been working since 2010 on a range of designs for other products, in cooperation with selected partners. The first product to come onto the market, in 2011, was the Eurocopter EC145 Mercedes-Benz Style helicopter, the first of which have now been delivered to customers. This was followed in 2012 by an exclusive furniture collection, produced in cooperation with the Formitalia Luxury Group, one of Italy’s leading manufacturers of designer furniture. The Mercedes-Benz Style label encompasses transport-related products as well as furniture and lifestyle products.

About Silver Arrows Marine

Silver Arrows Marine is a collective of internationally renowned marine architects and engineers who are behind some of the greatest luxury motor yachts currently in service. Registered in the UK, Silver Arrows Marine works on an exclusive basis with leading specialists in all fields of luxury motor yacht design, development and construction to build high-end boats that make no compromises in their elegance, functionality and sheer usability.

MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS driver Nico Rosberg’s first Formula 1 win at the Chinese Grand Prix last week was also the first for a works Silver Arrow since the 1955 Italian Grand Prix. The victory in Shanghai, China came exactly 20,671 days after five-time Formula 1 champion Juan Manuel Fangio won the world championship at Monza in his Mercedes-Benz W196. In the 55 years between 1955 and 2010, there was no such thing as a thoroughbred works Silver Arrow in Formula 1. Rosberg’s win came in the 41st Grand Prix of the new era.

To thank his German fans for their incredible support, Rosberg will be performing demonstration laps around the Hockenheim ring in Juan Manuel Fangio’s race-winning Silver Arrow from the 1955 season.

This will be Rosberg’s second visit to the DTM season opener at Hockenheim: last year, he volunteered his services as a DTM ‘taxi driver’ at the wheel of the THOMAS SABO AMG Mercedes C‑Class. Rosberg’s involvement in last season’s DTM extended to the first ever Show Event in Munich: on that occasion, he drove a Formula 1 Silver Arrow around the temporary circuit in the Olympic Stadium.

Nico will not be the only prominent guest at Hockenheim; his MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS team-mate Michael Schumacher is also keen to be present for the opening race of the world’s most popular touring car series and will be in Hockenheim on Sunday, April 29th. Like Rosberg, the seven-time Formula 1 champion will be bringing a Silver Arrow to the event, namely the 2011 MGP W02 in which he will complete a sequence of demonstration laps.

Nico Rosberg: “I have great memories of the DTM. The earliest date back to when my father was still racing. Then I started competing in the various junior classes that are staged as part of the DTM race weekend as I started out on my own motorsport career. A lot has happened in the meantime, and the highlight so far was obviously my win in China one week ago. I am absolutely delighted to be returning to Hockenheim as a Grand Prix winner. Last year, I was able to drive a classic Silver Arrow on the famous Nürburgring Nordschleife, so now I’m really looking forward to climbing into the cockpit of Juan Manuel Fangio’s phenomenal W196 streamliner from Monza in 1955 and driving a few laps at Hockenheim. It means a lot to me that we have written a new chapter in the wonderful history of Mercedes in motorsport – and that there is plenty more still to come.”

Michael Schumacher: “After a busy start to the Formula 1 season with four flyaway races in succession, it will be nice to come back to Germany for the DTM season opener at Hockenheim on Sunday. I’m especially looking forward to the chance to give the fans a taste of a Formula 1 Silver Arrow in action.

This will be my first visit to a DTM race in 20 years, and I hope that my brother and his fellow Mercedes-Benz drivers will get their season off to a great start.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: “DTM begins a new era this weekend in Hockenheim, with a brand-new and exciting generation of cars. To mark the occasion, we wanted to give the spectators at the circuit something extra, and both our F1 drivers were immediately right behind the idea. Following his victory at the Chinese Grand Prix ten days ago, Nico Rosberg will complete demonstration laps in the Silver Arrow W 196 streamliner, with which Juan Manuel Fangio won at Monza in 1955. On Sunday, just before the start of the race, Michael Schumacher will complete a demonstration run in last year’s F1 Silver Arrow.

It’s a throwback to the start of the DTM, which now features three premium manufacturers, and a way of saying thank you to the loyal DTM fans and to our Mercedes colleagues, thousands of whom will be in the Motodrom this weekend, accounting for a high proportion of the 55,000 pre-sold tickets. We are delighted to be able to offer the fans these additional attractions and Nico and Michael are excited to be attending on one of their few free weekends, for which I sincerely thank both of them.”

The debut of the MGP W02, the new Silver Arrow for the 2011 Formula One World Championship, took place this morning at the Valencia Circuit in Spain with the new challenger unveiled in front of the MERCEDES GP PETRONAS team garage by Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher.

The result of twelve months intense design and development work, the MGP W02 is the second Silver Arrows car to be launched by MERCEDES GP PETRONAS since the team became the first Mercedes-Benz works outfit since 1955.

The car’s livery is an evolution from its predecessor with a striking high-gloss airbrush effect highlighting the shape of the car. The interaction between the Silver Arrows heritage and the green shading representing the team’s title partner PETRONAS evokes memories of the first Silver Arrow car of 1934 with a modern touch added by 3D partner logos.

The technical specification of the MGP W02 includes the KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery) system which returns to the sport after a one-year absence. The Mercedes KERS system was the first to win a Grand Prix during the 2009 season when KERS made its debut in Formula One. Also new on the car for this season is the adjustable rear wing, operated by the driver to aid overtaking, and Pirelli tyres as the Italian manufacturer becomes the sport’s official tyre supplier.

The team’s driver line-up remains unchanged with seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, who achieved the team’s three podiums in 2010, forming one of the most exciting and talented pairings on the grid.

Michael Schumacher

“Finally the waiting is over and things get started. For us drivers, the break every year is hard to take because the gap between the last race and the first time out on track seems to be never-ending. Even if I have been involved and updated all winter on the developments, and even if I know the improvements are significant, it is still different to see the new car literally for the first time in front of you. You automatically build up this nice pre-start tension. I very much look forward to the new season. We have said it several times already but again, we are really to building up something big together. I am very confident that this season we will be standing on the podium much more regularly; ideally in the middle!”

Nico Rosberg

“It is always a very exciting time of year to drive the new car for the first time and feel how it performs out on track. This year we have the added challenge of not having an immediate reference due to the change in tyre manufacturer to the new Pirelli tyres, which felt good during our first try-out at the Abu Dhabi test last year. I am very much looking forward to having a much stronger season than last year and as always, our targets are aggressive. We want to be competing at the front and challenging for race wins. Everyone at our factories in Brackley and Brixworth has worked extremely hard on the new Silver Arrow and we are all looking forward to seeing how it performs.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal

“It is always a thrill to see a new car ready to take the track for the first time and this year is no exception. After our first year as the Mercedes-Benz works team, we are now seeing the benefits of our chassis and engine groups working well together. With a good technical structure and a strengthened race engineering organisation, both at the factory and the race track, I am confident that we have done and will continue to do a better job this year in all key areas.

“The concept development for the MGP W02 started early and we have set challenging targets for the design, combined with a robust plan to ensure that the pace of development can continue throughout the long 2011 season. We have two excellent drivers in Michael and Nico, both of whom capable of winning races in a good car, and we look forward to seeing them push each other and the development of the new Silver Arrow during the season. We want to be setting the standard right from the start but if we are not, we will respond very strongly to get ourselves into the game. Everyone is excitedly waiting to see what the new season will reveal.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President – Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“The new Silver Arrow for the 2011 season has little in common with its immediate predecessor. Our chassis engineers have taken a fairly ruthless approach and were determined to shave off every superfluous gram and millimetre. What emerged from this process is a compact and exquisitely shaped vehicle that introduces a host of sophisticated solutions and truly reflects the enormous dedication of its constructors. We have given it a brand new coat of paint, and we aim to see a smile on the faces of our hard-working drivers and team members that is as bright as our new silver livery.

“Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher are top drivers who can win races for us, provided we build them the right car. At the same time, our team, like all the other teams, has to deal with complex new tasks. The new generation of tyres from Pirelli, and the extent to which the cars and drivers adapt to them, will play a vital role in deciding wins and defeats.

“The rear wing flap, which can be adjusted under specified conditions, will boost top speed and facilitate overtaking which should open up a new and interesting chapter for Formula One. And there is the return of KERS following a one-year absence at the end of the 2009 season when our Mercedes system recorded a historic first race win. This will play a massive role amongst all of the performance-related components, both for the additional power and for the strategic options it makes available. As in 2009, it is our ambition that Mercedes-Benz builds and runs the best hybrid system and that all three teams which use it benefit significantly from this.

“After I have spoken at length here on the many new issues, our target can be described in one short sentence: The new Silver Arrow should not only look first class, but should also be developed to be at the top step-by-step.”

From the first automotive competition in history to its return to the Formula One championship with a works team for the 2010 season, the racing activities of Mercedes-Benz tell a success story that has its roots in the early days of the automobile. Since the 19th century, racing cars, racing sports cars and rally cars made in Stuttgart have consistently been ahead of the field in sporting competition. Their triumphs are testimony to the innovative engineering, the drivers’ will to win, and efficient teamwork. Outstanding moments in the brand’s racing history include participation in the world’s first automobile competition in 1894, its first grand prix victory in 1908, the era of the supercharged car from 1922 onwards and, of course, the Silver Arrow era. These are the foundations on which recent victories in Formula One and the German Touring Car Masters (DTM) are built.

It is impossible to detach such racing success from the brand’s routine work in laboratories, workshops and production halls. On the contrary, motorsport has an interdependence with top-quality products from all other areas, since experience from the development of competition vehicles feed into series production, and the skills of the engineers from the comprehensive product portfolio of the global Mercedes-Benz brand and its predecessor companies provide the inspiration needed to constantly improve its racing cars. Particularly impressive is the direct exchange of engineering and expertise evident in the early decades of motor racing.

But in the larger context this interaction can still be found today. Engineering competence pairs up with the excitement of competition in the commitment to motor racing. In the global environment, customer demands and markets change and the company is constantly forced to adapt. Many technical innovations that have opened up new vistas in car manufacturing have their roots in pioneering developments of the race engineers. This was demonstrated, for example, at the exhibition “Fast Forward: 20 ways F1TM is changing our world”, which opened in March 2009 at the Science Museum in London. The exhibition, a joint production between Team Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and the Science Museum, showed examples of how technology developed for Formula One has also been used in such everyday technologies as cycle design, medicine and furniture-making. Organisational processes applied to pit stops in motorsport even serve as improvement models in emergency medicine.

People and cars are the protagonists of racing. But without the team and the brand, neither top drivers nor the best racing cars can win. In motorsport, therefore, every race demonstrates anew that collective performance is what makes the difference between success and failure. Team, technology and tactics must smoothly dovetail. And so the importance and excitement of racing does not end once the chequered flag is waved: a brand like Mercedes-Benz, which is fully committed to motorsport and to winning, promotes its own products far beyond the racing circuit. This is tried-and-tested knowledge at Mercedes-Benz and its predecessor brands. The Benz annual report of 1907/08 reported: “We consider the extra cost of racing an absolute necessity if we are to defend the rightful position of our brand in international competition.”

Motorsport as a leitmotif of brand history

Even in its early days, during the outgoing 19th and early 20th centuries, the automobile demonstrated its capability and reliability in the first competitions. Vehicles from Daimler and Benz took part in all the prestigious events throughout Europe and all over the world. They won races and broke one speed barrier after another in record attempts. Impressive examples of this include the first Mercedes of 1901 and the record-breaking 200 hp Benz, which in 1909 became the first automobile to exceed the magic mark of 200 km/h, held the land speed record of 228.1 km/h from 1911 to 1924, and rejoiced in the honorific title of ‘Blitzen-Benz’, the Lightning Benz.

The merger of Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) with Benz & Cie. in 1926 to form Daimler Benz AG also brought about the merger of the two brands’ racing activities. The supercharged Mercedes-Benz sports cars dominated this period in the late 1920s, winning all major events. The K, S, SS, SSK and SSKL models, a family known as the ‘White Elephants’, wrote automotive history.

The Silver Arrow era, which was interrupted by the Second World War, lasted from the 1930s to 1955. Under the Silver Arrow name brand historians subsume a whole family of racing cars, record-breaking vehicles and racing sports cars which were distinguished by their silver-painted body and superb engineering. Prior to the war

Mercedes-Benz dominated the European grand prix scene with its Silver Arrows. Then in 1952 the Silver Arrows staged a comeback with the 300 SL racing sports car, back-to-back titles with the W 196 R in the Formula One world championship in 1954 and 1955 and victory in the sports car world championship with the 300 SLR (W 196 S) in 1955.

In the face of the great challenges raised by the development of new passenger cars, the Stuttgartbrand withdrew from motorsport for several years in 1955. But private teams, supported by Mercedes-Benz, carried on the motor racing tradition, especially in international rallies. Highlights were provided by a wide range of model series, including the W111, C/R107, W115/114 (Stroke Eight), W113 (Pagoda) and the G model.

Success in everything from rallies to long-distance marathons such as the Paris – Dakar came not just to Mercedes-Benz passenger cars, but also to the various Unimog models and all-terrain trucks.

Heavy-duty commercial vehicles from Mercedes-Benz were also the stars of truck racing. In 1989 Axel Hegmann driving for Mercedes-Benz won a first European Truck Racing title in Class C (14,101 cc – 18,500 cc displacement), and in 1990 he repeated the feat in Class A (max. 11,950 cc displacement). Numerous victories followed, even after revision of the classification for the 1994 season (race trucks and super race trucks). The titles in 2007 (Markus Bösiger) and 2008-2009 (David Vršecký) went to drivers for the Daimler brand Freightliner.

Alongside the racing cars and racing sports cars the company has also regularly produced record-breaking vehicles. Some have been based on experimental vehicles such as the C 111; other are derived from series vehicles, such as the Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.3-16 Nardo of 1983.

In the 1980s Mercedes-Benz returned to the racing circuits, initially with Group C racing sports cars and racing touring cars. In the German Touring Car Championship (DTM) and the International Touring Car Championship (ITC) Mercedes-Benz was three times champion and four times runner-up between 1986 and 1996. Then in 1994 came the return to Formula One with Sauber (1994) and McLaren (from 1995). During this period world driver’s titles were won by Mika Häkkinen (twice, in 1998 and 1999) and Lewis Hamilton (2008) and one constructor’s title for Team West McLaren Mercedes (1998). There were also ten runners-up places in the championship. A new era began in 2010, when Mercedes-Benz returned to Formula One with its own works team and engaged Michael Schumacher as its number one driver. The engines from Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines will be used not just by Team Mercedes Grand Prix Petronas, but also by Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and Force India F1.

Since 2000, Mercedes-Benz has also competed in the new DTM, taking overall victory in 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2006. In 2003 the team even swept the first three places, with Bernd Schneider as overall winner followed by Gary Paffett and Christijan Albers.

More than a century of motorsport under the three-pointed star: the history of Mercedes-Benz is inseparably linked with the history of motor racing. And in retrospect sporting involvement repeatedly has proved to be a driving force for the rapid advancement of motor vehicle technology. Viewed in this light, motorsport also opens a window on the future.

July 4, 1954 was a golden day for German sport. Whilst the national football team was lifting the World Cup in Bern, Switzerland, over the border in France Mercedes-Benz was celebrating its return to Grand Prix racing in equally majestic fashion. The Silver Arrows sealed a one-two victory on the Reims circuit, the streamlined speed machines finishing a full lap ahead of their pursuers. The rivals were stunned.

The automotive world had come to expect the unexpected from Mercedes. However, the team’s scarcely believable performance after fifteen years away from the Grand Prix arena was era-defining stuff. The secret was an obsessive pleasure in achieving perfection, reflected in the team’s preparation, the technical make-up of the cars and the performance of the overall package in the race itself.

The decision

The Daimler-Benz Board meeting in Stuttgart in March 1953 was a routine affair until the subject turned to motor sport, how the company could be most effectively involved and whether competitive action on the track could be used to boost exports. The decision was duly taken to bring the Mercedes-Benz brand back into Grand Prix racing the following year.

The preparations

The strategists and engineers had just about one year in which to build a competitive racing car more or less from scratch. It received the internal designation W 196 R and was a completely new design – too much had changed in the rules and regulations of Grand Prix racing, and automotive technology had also moved on in the company’s absence from the track. For instance, the 1954 season brought with it new regulations limiting the cars to either 2.5 liter naturally aspirated engines or 750 cc supercharged units.

Mercedes plumped for the naturally aspirated option, the superior output and torque potential at low engine speeds, broader overall rev range and lower fuel consumption of this design tipping the scales in its favor. The result was an eight-cylinder in-line engine constructed out of two blocks of four cylinders with central power output and tilted to the right in the engine bay in order to lower the car’s center of gravity. Although the initial design featured four Weber twin carburetors, the decision had already been taken to have a mechanical direct injection unit in place come race day. The Bosch system on offer improved output and fuel economy but would only just be ready in time. Another special feature of the engine was its desmodromic valve control. Rather than relying on spring pressure, the engineers adapted the system so that a rocker arm not only opened the apertures but also closed them again (forcibly) in order to ensure efficient performance at high engine speeds. These ingredients combined to produce smooth power development throughout the speed range and make the engine extremely robust. The engine initially developed 257 hp at 8250 rpm, later squeezing out as much as 290 hp.

The space frame concept had already proved highly successful in the 300 SL racing sports car for the 1952 season, convincing Mercedes-Benz to use the same concept in the W 196 R as well. The frame’s tubular bars only needed to withstand compression or tension loads. At 36 kilograms the frame may have been extremely lightweight, but it was also deceptively strong. The sophisticated chassis of the W 196 R with double wishbones, single-joint swing axle and low pivot point also constituted an impressive feat of state-of-the-art automotive engineering.

The body of the Mercedes-Benz W 196 R which lined up on the grid in Reims prompted widespread amazement. The new racer was covered from head to toe (and including the wheels) in an extremely lightweight and streamlined magnesium body. This ground-breaking design, which needed a loop-hole in the race regulations to see the light of day, gave the W 196 R a huge boost on high-speed circuits such as Reims. Indeed, the car’s performance advantage over the less aerodynamic monoposto design of its rivals was quantified at a remarkable four seconds per lap. The only drawback for the Mercedes drivers was that they could no longer take their bearings from the wheels when lining up the apex of the next corner. The W 196 R later appeared with a monoposto body on twistier circuits which demanded greater agility.

The final weeks

Racing manager Alfred Neubauer had assembled a team of three drivers: Juan Manuel Fangio, Karl Kling and the talented youngster Hans Herrmann. The moment their W 196 R racers were ready for action, the three drivers embarked on an unremitting program of testing, first and foremost on the Hockenheimring. On June 21, 1954, they were registered for the race in Reims by telegram. One day later, the team arrived in Reims for a private practice session, the French authorities having sealed off the public roads which made up the race course to regular traffic. The engines were proving to be remarkably reliable, with technical problems conspicuous only by their absence. The team’s lap times were extremely promising.

Practice

On Friday July 3, the cars and drivers arrived for another practice session. The Silver Arrow engines now enjoyed the added benefits of a direct injection system, delivered bang on schedule. Whilst the power units for Fangio’s W 196 R and Kling’s car (chassis numbers 3 and 5) had proved their mettle on the test bench in Stuttgart, time constraints meant Hans Herrmann’s engine (chassis number 2) had been forced to skip this extra fine-tuning stage.

The qualifying session on Saturday was extremely successful. Fangio and Kling would begin the race from first and second on the grid with only the 1953 World Champion Alberto Ascari for company on the front row in his Maserati. Behind them was the first of the Ferraris, piloted by José Froilan Gonzalez, and Onofre Marimon in the second Maserati. Hans Herrmann qualified on the third row in his Silver Arrow and was flanked by Thailand’s Prince Bira, also in a Maserati, and Ferrari driver Mike Hawthorn. It was an illustrious field, illuminated by some of the defining names of the era.

Despite the apparent success of practice and qualifying, there was still a palpable sense of unease in the Mercedes-Benz camp, with average fuel consumption too high for comfort. It was a rather rainy weekend, and the wet track appeared to be pushing up the amount of gasoline required. Rudolf Uhlenhaut it was who came up with the solution. He climbed into his lightning-quick 300 SL and set out on the road to Stuttgart. There, he had three auxiliary fuel tanks put together overnight before heading back to Reims where the tanks were installed at the last minute, to complete the 506 kilometer race without refueling.

The race

It was July 4, 1954 and 40 years to the day since Christian Lautenschlager had sealed victory in the 1914 French Grand Prix in Lyon at the wheel of his Mercedes. Now three Silver Arrows of the new generation were lining up at the start of the 41st Grand Prix d l’ACF in a 21-strong field. The 8.301 kilometer triangular course outside the city of Reims was to be completed 61 times, taking the cars on a journey spanning a full 506 kilometers. The Reims circuit put the cars’ brakes and engines under extreme loads – two of the three corners were extremely tight, one hauling the racing machines down to 80 km/h, the second demanding fierce deceleration from 260 km/h to 60 km/h. It was a spectacle enjoyed by 300,000 spectators at the trackside.

At 2.45 p.m. sharp the starting flag sent the cars roaring on their way. Ascari’s race was over almost before it had begun, his engine giving up the ghost on lap one. That meant that Gonzalez and Hawthorn were now breathing down the necks of Fangio (car number 18) and Kling (car number 20). Hans Herrmann (car number 22), meanwhile, was flying and caught up with the leaders. After seven laps, he had left Hawthorn in his slipstream and four circuits later he passed his teammate Fangio. This supreme effort included a lap record of two minutes and 32.9 seconds at a speed of 195.463 km/h. The W 196 R cars now occupied the top three places and the field was strung out around the track. Gonzalez, however, refused to buckle, attacking once more and reclaiming third position. His resurgence, though, lasted only a few more kilometers before the engine blew and man and machine disappeared under a cloud of smoke. Hawthorn had already been forced to retire from the race by that point, leaving the three silver Mercedes-Benz out on their own.

“And that’s how we would have finished,” recalls Hans Herrmann. Unfortunately, the young driver’s luck deserted him spectacularly on lap 17. “The engine suddenly lost all output and eventually shut down completely.” In the end, it seemed the engine’s lack of time on the test bench had come back to haunt him.

By the time the drivers crossed the line for the 36th time, the field had been whittled down to just seven cars. Only Fangio and Kling were still looking lively and lapping at an even pace. The crowd were entranced as the two drivers took turns to hold the lead, the cars flying past in a blur of excitement. As for the duel of the elements, the sun eventually prevailed on the 42nd lap, lighting up the Champagne countryside and bathing the circuit in a warm glow. Ten laps to go, and the pack were now almost the length of the circuit behind the runaway leaders, with Fangio and Kling locked in a battle of their own. As they entered the penultimate lap, however, German radio commentator Reiner Günzler thought it was all over. “Karl Kling’s won the race! He’s 15 meters ahead of Fangio! Over the last few meters he’s turned the screw again – although you have to say he’s not really eased off all afternoon.” After 500 kilometers of racing Kling looked the clear winner, but there was still one lap to go. “And it’s not over yet … full power through to the finish line … both of them neck and neck … and Fangio’s done it! Can you believe it? I’ll get it right this time. Fangio has won the French Grand Prix.” The Argentinean had indeed edged home by just half a car’s length, and Mercedes-Benz could celebrate a one-two victory 40 years after Christian Lautenschlager had tasted glory for the brand. In third place and a lap behind was Ferrari privateer Robert Manzon, prevailing in a private head-to-head with Prince Bira.

As they came to a halt, the two Silver Arrows were surrounded by a fascinated crowd. Indeed, the police had to form a corridor for the two drivers’ wives and other members of the Stuttgart-based team to greet the drivers. A flood of telegrams duly arrived, including one from the German football squad in Bern.

Daimler-Benz had every cause for celebration. The company had made a quite sensational return to Grand Prix racing and breathed fresh life into the history of the Mercedes Silver Arrows. The German magazine “Spiegel” featured racing manager Alfred Neubauer on its July 28 front cover with the pertinent caption “Win first, refuel later”.

The one-two finish in Reims was repeated five times in 1954/55, with four other victories bringing the team’s record to a total of ten wins in 13 Grand Prix races, plus several second, third and fourth-place finishes. Juan Manuel Fangio clinched the drivers’ title in the World Championship in that year as well as the following one. The return of Mercedes-Benz to Formula One had been a compelling success.