243 Star Torque Autumn 2016

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T M-B SL: by V. Thompson photos: Daimler AG Mercedes-Benz 300 SL W 198-1 & W 198-II The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL “Gullwing” - often referred to as a design icon – stands for elegance and sportiness like no other car of its time. Even today, it is considered one of the ultimate dream cars. The legendary Gullwing coupé was the first true sports-car to be developed by Daimler-Benz after the war. This development was initiated by Max Hoffman, a US-American citizen of Austrian extraction, who had been the official importer of Mercedes-Benz cars since September 1952. For the board of directors of Daimler- Benz, Hoffman’s plan to sell sports cars with the Mercedes star on the bonnet was a welcome opportunity to open the US market for Daimler-Benz and so they were easily persuaded. In September 1953 the development of two sports-car models was launched. At the Geneva Motor Show in March 1957, Mercedes- Benz presented the roadster version of the 300 SL, as the successor of the Gullwing coupé. From the start, Maximilian E. Hoffman had asked for this vehicle for the US market, since he saw greater chances for an open car there than for a coupé. 6
Mercedes-Benz 190 SL W 121 In a way that resembled the construction of the 300 SL model, which had been put together from existing structural components, another sports-type car was developed on the basis of the 180 model. In contrast to the famous gull wing-door coupé, the roadster 190 SL was not designed to be a true sports car, but an elegant and stylish sporty two seat GT car. The 190 SL came onto the market in 1955 and 25,881 of the vehicles were produced up to 1963, mostly in left hand drive for the domestic European and all important American export markets for Daimler-Benz. Mercedes-Benz 350-560 SL R 107 In spring 1971, another production sports car was presented with the Type 350 SL, replacing the 280 SL, which had been built since January 1968. Technically, this model was a brand new development which had almost nothing in common with its predecessor. However, the same basic components had already been used in other Mercedes-Benz models: Front and rear wheel suspension was basically the same as that of the “ Stroke Eight” models and the V8-engine was a familiar feature of the saloons, coupés and convertibles of the 280 SE 3.5 Type. The production of the 300 SL up to the 560 SL ended in August 1989, more than 18 years after the first 350 SL was built. The 107 SL series thus set a record for Mercedes-Benz that is unlikely to be broken: no other Mercedes-Benz model series was produced for such a long period. A total of 237,287 of these cars came out of the Sindelfingen plant, a figure that demonstrates just how popular the 107 series was. Mercedes-Benz Pagoda SL W 113 In 1963, the W 113 Mercedes-Benz 230 SL appears with new and unfamiliar proportions and lines, referred to as the “Pagoda SL” on account of the characteristic shape of its hardtop roof. The removable hard top not only looked good, but its special shape and slightly lowered middle section increased the stiffness of the roof and thus enhanced safety. Mercedes-Benz introduced the vertical main headlights with the 300 SL Roadster in 1957 already, and continued to use them in later models as well. They are a typical trademark at the front of the car. The three SL models that made up the W 113 model series were each available as a Roadster with folding soft top, as a sports car with a removable Coupé roof, and in a further variant that combined the removable Coupé roof with a Roadster soft top. Production of the W 113 ended in March 1971 with 48,912 units to its credit. Mercedes-Benz SL 350 & 500 R 129 The world premiere of the new 129 series SL, in March 1989, was the main attraction at the Geneva Motor Show. The response was immediately extremely positive – in fact so positive that the planned annual production capacity of 20,000 units was soon oversubscribed. Anyone wanting to own an R 129 had to accept a delivery period of several years in that early phase. 7
Page 1: Mercedes-Benz Club of NSW Star Torq
Page 4 and 5: CONTENTS AUTUMN 2016 15 11 1 About
Page 6 and 7: The Presidents report Hello from th
Page 10 and 11: 8
Page 12 and 13: 10
Page 14 and 15: Expressive and distinctive: the ext
Page 16 and 17: My Service. Visit an authorised Mer
Page 18 and 19: 1992 Mercedes-Benz 350 GD Turbodies
Page 20 and 21: 2016 Mercedes-AMG G65 310 kW AMG bi
Page 22 and 23: BRABUS TECHNOLOGY B RABUS offers th
Page 24 and 25: materials, colours and designs. The
Page 26 and 27: BRABUS OWNERSHIP S o what is it lik
Page 28 and 29: 26
Page 30 and 31: AMG GT3 R by A.King, Daimler AG ba
Page 32 and 33: New cars are constant objects of st
Page 34 and 35: they were knocked out of a potentia
Page 36 and 37: D G In December, I went to Melbour
Page 38 and 39: THE BUSINESS Dutton is a name synon
Page 40 and 41: Special service and prices to Merce
Page 42 and 43: Executive committee & team Presiden
Page 44 and 45: GLASS GLASS AND MOORE GLASS! Thousa
Page 46 and 47: Pre-school & Long Day Care Hamil
Page 48 and 49: 46 Contact Simon Foster at: The Toy
Page 50 and 51: Motor Mart 1977 Mercedes-Benz Model
Page 52 and 53: Conditional Registration scheme As
Page 54 and 55: Membership fees Mercedes-Benz Club
Page 56 and 57: Peter Warren Automotive Cnr Hume Hi

243 Star Torque Autumn 2016

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