Renn 208
06-18-2005, 12:05 AM
With the recent resurgence of McLaren Mercedes in the most recent F1 races, it seems almost prophetic that 2005 marks the 50th anniversary of Mercedes greatest year of motorsport…ever. 1955 would also see the introduction of what many consider Mercedes-Benz’s single greatest automotive achievement.
With the recent end of WWII, countries on both sides of the war struggled to rebuild and find new national identities. With severe restrictions placed on the “losers”, Germany had turned its focus… no, its hope, to automotive production. More specifically, Daimler-Benz had entrusted their fortunes to two key individuals, Rudi Uhlenhaut and Alfred Neubauer – Neubauer being the head of motorsport and responsible for bringing on the legendary Juan Manuel Fangio and young gun Stirling Moss; Uhlenhaut-the chief motorsport engineer. And for 1955 he delivered the 300SLR.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/300SLR.jpg
The 300SLR was a spiritual successor to 1952’s 300 SL Gullwing as much it was a mechanical successor to the w196 formula one car. To borrow a phase from the late Enzo Ferrari, the 300SLR was “Formula One, two seats for the road.”
Packed with all the latest technology, Uhlenhaut borrowed the w196’s 2.5L inline-8 engine, bored it out to 3.0L and tipped it to its side by 30 degrees to lower the car’s center of gravity and improve cooling airflow. The Mercedes lump used direct fuel injection and desmodromic valves instead of valve springs. That is, a second camshaft was used to close the valves, allowing the engine to rev well past 6,000 RPM. The engine developed 310 peak HP and reached speeds of up to 186 mph-remember this is 1955, and there are no carbon monocoques, airbags, or even hard helmets…but there is a nice wooden steering wheel.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/271752.jpg
But more than an engine, it was a light-weight chassis with a beauty that can only come from form following function. Its hand-made magnesium skin shimmered in the traditional Mercedes Silver Arrow livery. The blue tartan seats would be most memorably filled by two individuals- a journalist named Dennis Jenkins and a 25 year old driver named Stirling Moss.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/271750.jpg
The first test of the all new 300SLR would be the most grueling European race of the time, the Mille Miglia. True to its name, the 1,000 mile course would start in Brescia go to Rome and then all the way back. Over its more than 3,000 curves the race would start in the cold mountains, go through rain, pause for sunshine, then start all over again in reverse.
To shake down and prepare the cars Neubauer unleashed his MB team on the course for 3 months prior to the race. Imagine Project D from the Japanese cartoon Initial D, but instead of one night of practice of a particular togue it would be 12 weeks of day and night running- as Stirling noted, “It would take two days to do one lap of the course, as 500 miles a day is all you could manage with regular traffic and all.”
At precisely 7:22AM on April 30th, 1955 300SLR #722 left the ramp on its run to make history. But, unlike the other drivers, Moss had a secret weapon – his navigator, Jenks. Over their months of practice, Jenks had compiled pace notes for every one of the 3,000 or so turns of the Mille Miglia. He had fabricated a small metal box with the hand-written notes on a long paper roll and would scroll ahead as the race progressed.
The team also used a series of hand signals to communicate over the noise of the 3.0L inline-8. Aside from “Right”, “Left”, and so on, a hand waved from the top to the bottom of the dash would signal “slow down,” while a faster, more emphatic wave would mean “really slow down!” A fist to the cheek would mean “I’m hungry” while a loose wave of the hand from chin to chest would signal, “Whoo!, look at the pretty girl.” They sure knew how to race back then!
And unlike modern races, Moss and Jenks would have to deal with the mass of spectators waiting for them at most turns. Moss once described what it was like to race on public roads without barriers. At one moment, Moss charged down a straight away at more than 100mph on the tight Italian roads…while going through a column of people reaching out and actually trying to touch the silver Mercedes as it flew by.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/MileMiglia1955.jpg
Moss and Jenks would cross the finish line just short of 5:30PM, 10 hours, 7 minutes, and 48 seconds after they started, averaging 98 mph – a record that still stands unbeaten today. Out of the 525 odd races that Moss would participate in his career, he would call this race his most memorable. For everyone else, it has been considered the greatest racing performance made by any driver, anywhere, at any time.. By comparison, the legendary Fangio would cross the finish line in 2nd some 30 minutes later.
Moss would continue on to win the Targa Florio, the Tourist Trophy, and two other non-championship races in Sweden and Ireland to build an undefeated season for Mercedes Benz. Out of the six total races for that season, there would only be one that the 300SLR would not finish 1,2.
1955 Le Mans
For the 1955 Le Mans, on June 11th, 1955 Mercedes would enter in 3 teams to run the 300SLR in the world’s most prestigious race. Moss and Fangio would pilot #722, Karl Kling and Andre Simon would be in a second car, and American John Fitch and Frenchman Pierre Levegh would be in the third. Mercedes would have some stiff competition, as their 3.0L 300SLRs were up against the 3.5L Jaguar D-Types, and the 4.4L engined Ferraris.
Just a few hours into the race, the 300SLRs were leading 1, 2. Mike Hawthorne in the 3rd position Jaguar D-type was coming down the start finish straight to pass Lance Macklin in an Austin Healey. Just after making the pass, Hawthorne suddenly braked to dive into the pits. Macklin was forced to react by veering hard left just to avoid the Jaguar. Unfortunately, Pierre Levegh in his 300SLR was already bearing down on the pair going in excess of 160mph and had nowhere to go. Levegh’s right front wheel rode the left rear deck of the Austin Healy and was instantly launched right into the grand stand.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/lemanscrash.jpg
The front axle and engine of the Mercedes ripped away as chassis skipped on the barrier and tumbled into the crowd, cutting down dozens of spectators before anyone could duck. The Mercedes’s magnesium body caught on fire and the white-hot flames caused even more deaths and injuries. Levegh died instantly. When the dust had settled, 82 spectators were killed and another 76 injured – by far the worst auto racing accident that has ever occurred.
Team leader, Alfred Neubauer asked the race organizers if the race would stop. The officials responded that while they wish they could, they could not stop the race, as the exodus of people would hinder the ambulances and fire trucks needed to clear the dead and the injured. Neubauer then called an emergency phone meeting of the Daimler-Benz Board of Directors in Germany. Their decision was clear. Neubauer called the rest of the Mercedes teams in at 1:45 PM. At the time Moss and Fangio were leading the race by 3 laps, the other car being in 3rd place. Neubauer then issued a statement on behalf of the team and the Board: “The pride of designers and drivers must bow to the grief suffered by countless French Families.”
Fangio would later relate his last sight of Levegh as he was following behind just before the incident. Fangio saw the French driver go around the bend into the straight when he suddenly raised his hand. Fangio would always wonder if Levegh was warning him of what was up ahead, or if he was just saying goodbye.
After finishing the season, Mercedes Benz would voluntarily withdraw from auto racing all together—it would be 32 years before Mercedes would go racing again. As a result of the 1955 Le Mans 24h, Switzerland would ban all racing on motor circuits; a ban that is still in effect today.
So, as the 73rd running of Le Mans 24h begins this weekend, and as McLaren Mercedes tackle Indianapolis at the top of the time sheets, remember the 1955 season- The Greatest and Worst Season Ever for Mercedes Benz Motorsport.
-Renn
******
Thanks go to the following for providing source materials for this article:
Daimler-Chrysler AG
Mercedes Benz Classic Center, Fellbach
SpeedTV
http://members.aol.com/healeypics/lemans.html
several other websites for providing pictures and additional research
With the recent end of WWII, countries on both sides of the war struggled to rebuild and find new national identities. With severe restrictions placed on the “losers”, Germany had turned its focus… no, its hope, to automotive production. More specifically, Daimler-Benz had entrusted their fortunes to two key individuals, Rudi Uhlenhaut and Alfred Neubauer – Neubauer being the head of motorsport and responsible for bringing on the legendary Juan Manuel Fangio and young gun Stirling Moss; Uhlenhaut-the chief motorsport engineer. And for 1955 he delivered the 300SLR.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/300SLR.jpg
The 300SLR was a spiritual successor to 1952’s 300 SL Gullwing as much it was a mechanical successor to the w196 formula one car. To borrow a phase from the late Enzo Ferrari, the 300SLR was “Formula One, two seats for the road.”
Packed with all the latest technology, Uhlenhaut borrowed the w196’s 2.5L inline-8 engine, bored it out to 3.0L and tipped it to its side by 30 degrees to lower the car’s center of gravity and improve cooling airflow. The Mercedes lump used direct fuel injection and desmodromic valves instead of valve springs. That is, a second camshaft was used to close the valves, allowing the engine to rev well past 6,000 RPM. The engine developed 310 peak HP and reached speeds of up to 186 mph-remember this is 1955, and there are no carbon monocoques, airbags, or even hard helmets…but there is a nice wooden steering wheel.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/271752.jpg
But more than an engine, it was a light-weight chassis with a beauty that can only come from form following function. Its hand-made magnesium skin shimmered in the traditional Mercedes Silver Arrow livery. The blue tartan seats would be most memorably filled by two individuals- a journalist named Dennis Jenkins and a 25 year old driver named Stirling Moss.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/271750.jpg
The first test of the all new 300SLR would be the most grueling European race of the time, the Mille Miglia. True to its name, the 1,000 mile course would start in Brescia go to Rome and then all the way back. Over its more than 3,000 curves the race would start in the cold mountains, go through rain, pause for sunshine, then start all over again in reverse.
To shake down and prepare the cars Neubauer unleashed his MB team on the course for 3 months prior to the race. Imagine Project D from the Japanese cartoon Initial D, but instead of one night of practice of a particular togue it would be 12 weeks of day and night running- as Stirling noted, “It would take two days to do one lap of the course, as 500 miles a day is all you could manage with regular traffic and all.”
At precisely 7:22AM on April 30th, 1955 300SLR #722 left the ramp on its run to make history. But, unlike the other drivers, Moss had a secret weapon – his navigator, Jenks. Over their months of practice, Jenks had compiled pace notes for every one of the 3,000 or so turns of the Mille Miglia. He had fabricated a small metal box with the hand-written notes on a long paper roll and would scroll ahead as the race progressed.
The team also used a series of hand signals to communicate over the noise of the 3.0L inline-8. Aside from “Right”, “Left”, and so on, a hand waved from the top to the bottom of the dash would signal “slow down,” while a faster, more emphatic wave would mean “really slow down!” A fist to the cheek would mean “I’m hungry” while a loose wave of the hand from chin to chest would signal, “Whoo!, look at the pretty girl.” They sure knew how to race back then!
And unlike modern races, Moss and Jenks would have to deal with the mass of spectators waiting for them at most turns. Moss once described what it was like to race on public roads without barriers. At one moment, Moss charged down a straight away at more than 100mph on the tight Italian roads…while going through a column of people reaching out and actually trying to touch the silver Mercedes as it flew by.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/MileMiglia1955.jpg
Moss and Jenks would cross the finish line just short of 5:30PM, 10 hours, 7 minutes, and 48 seconds after they started, averaging 98 mph – a record that still stands unbeaten today. Out of the 525 odd races that Moss would participate in his career, he would call this race his most memorable. For everyone else, it has been considered the greatest racing performance made by any driver, anywhere, at any time.. By comparison, the legendary Fangio would cross the finish line in 2nd some 30 minutes later.
Moss would continue on to win the Targa Florio, the Tourist Trophy, and two other non-championship races in Sweden and Ireland to build an undefeated season for Mercedes Benz. Out of the six total races for that season, there would only be one that the 300SLR would not finish 1,2.
1955 Le Mans
For the 1955 Le Mans, on June 11th, 1955 Mercedes would enter in 3 teams to run the 300SLR in the world’s most prestigious race. Moss and Fangio would pilot #722, Karl Kling and Andre Simon would be in a second car, and American John Fitch and Frenchman Pierre Levegh would be in the third. Mercedes would have some stiff competition, as their 3.0L 300SLRs were up against the 3.5L Jaguar D-Types, and the 4.4L engined Ferraris.
Just a few hours into the race, the 300SLRs were leading 1, 2. Mike Hawthorne in the 3rd position Jaguar D-type was coming down the start finish straight to pass Lance Macklin in an Austin Healey. Just after making the pass, Hawthorne suddenly braked to dive into the pits. Macklin was forced to react by veering hard left just to avoid the Jaguar. Unfortunately, Pierre Levegh in his 300SLR was already bearing down on the pair going in excess of 160mph and had nowhere to go. Levegh’s right front wheel rode the left rear deck of the Austin Healy and was instantly launched right into the grand stand.
http://www.jrentech.net/benz/1955/lemanscrash.jpg
The front axle and engine of the Mercedes ripped away as chassis skipped on the barrier and tumbled into the crowd, cutting down dozens of spectators before anyone could duck. The Mercedes’s magnesium body caught on fire and the white-hot flames caused even more deaths and injuries. Levegh died instantly. When the dust had settled, 82 spectators were killed and another 76 injured – by far the worst auto racing accident that has ever occurred.
Team leader, Alfred Neubauer asked the race organizers if the race would stop. The officials responded that while they wish they could, they could not stop the race, as the exodus of people would hinder the ambulances and fire trucks needed to clear the dead and the injured. Neubauer then called an emergency phone meeting of the Daimler-Benz Board of Directors in Germany. Their decision was clear. Neubauer called the rest of the Mercedes teams in at 1:45 PM. At the time Moss and Fangio were leading the race by 3 laps, the other car being in 3rd place. Neubauer then issued a statement on behalf of the team and the Board: “The pride of designers and drivers must bow to the grief suffered by countless French Families.”
Fangio would later relate his last sight of Levegh as he was following behind just before the incident. Fangio saw the French driver go around the bend into the straight when he suddenly raised his hand. Fangio would always wonder if Levegh was warning him of what was up ahead, or if he was just saying goodbye.
After finishing the season, Mercedes Benz would voluntarily withdraw from auto racing all together—it would be 32 years before Mercedes would go racing again. As a result of the 1955 Le Mans 24h, Switzerland would ban all racing on motor circuits; a ban that is still in effect today.
So, as the 73rd running of Le Mans 24h begins this weekend, and as McLaren Mercedes tackle Indianapolis at the top of the time sheets, remember the 1955 season- The Greatest and Worst Season Ever for Mercedes Benz Motorsport.
-Renn
******
Thanks go to the following for providing source materials for this article:
Daimler-Chrysler AG
Mercedes Benz Classic Center, Fellbach
SpeedTV
http://members.aol.com/healeypics/lemans.html
several other websites for providing pictures and additional research