Mercedes-Benz CLK LM - Automobile

auto.wikisort.org - Automobile

The Mercedes-Benz CLK LM (C298) is a Group GT1 sports car designed and built by Mercedes-Benz in partnership with Mercedes-AMG (a then independent company) to compete in the FIA GT Championship. In order to satisfy the requirements of competing in the FIA GT Championship, a singular road-legal version was built to homolgate the car, which was known as the Mercedes-Benz CLK LM Straßenversion. The CLK LM would go on to win every single championship event in the 1998 FIA GT season, retiring only at the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans, which was a non-championship event.[2][3]

Mercedes-Benz CLK-LM

The Mercedes-Benz CLK LM at the 2010 Goodwood Festival of Speed

Background

Mercedes was left without a series to race in after the 1996 International Touring Car Championship and Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft folded in 1996, with their competitors Opel and Alfa Romeo pulling out of the series, leaving Mercedes as the sole entrant.[4] The elevation of the BPR Global GT Series to an FIA-sanctioned event, the FIA GT Championship, piqued the interest of Mercedes who instructed AMG to construct a car to the Group GT1 regulations. To speed up the development process, AMG would purchase McLaren F1 GTR chassis #11R from French privateers Larbre Compétition, which was then fitted with AMG's own bodywork and the S70/2 would be substituted for Mercedes' own engine, the LS600.[5][6] This accelerated development process meant that the CLK GTR was ready for competition just 128 days after work on the design had begun.[7]

The CLK GTR would debut at Mercedes' home track, the Hockenheimring, where Bernd Schneider qualified on pole, however he would retire with brake problems, and the sister #11 would finish 27th.[8] Despite the setback, the CLK GTR would prove to be successful in the 1997 FIA GT Championship, winning six out of eleven races, the constructor's and the driver's championship by a large margin.[8]

Following the success of the CLK GTR, Mercedes-Benz would modify the CLK GTR to suit the long straights of Circuit de la Sarthe, constructing a new chassis with revised bodywork.[9] AMG also had doubts over the reliability of the V12 engine of the CLK GTR, opting to replace it with a non-turbocharged version of the M119 engine found in the Sauber C9 and Mercedes-Benz C11, dubbed the GT 108B.[10][9][11] The engine also had a revised crankshaft, with the GT 108B featuring a flat-plane crank as opposed to the crossplane crank of the previous V12.[12] Changes to the bodywork would include removing the two front brake cooling ducts, the removal of the front fender gills, alterations to the roof scoop, and a lower roofline and nose.[9][10]

The CLK GTR would race the first two rounds of the 1998 FIA GT Championship, where it would win the championship's first two races at Silverstone and Oschersleben before being replaced by the CLK LM.[13]

Racing history

At the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans Bern Schneider would qualify the #35 CLK LM on pole in the third of four qualifying sessions, setting a time of 3:35.544, just over a second ahead of the works Toyota GT-One, with the sister #36 CLK LM rounding out the top three.[14][15] The engine would ultimately prove to be Mercedes' Achilles' heel, with both cars retiring before the halfway mark.[16] Problems with the power steering oil pump caused the CLK LM's entire lubrication system to fail, with Schneider pulling over on the pit straight on the 19th lap, and Gounon would pit a few laps later with the same problem.[17]

Despite the disappointing results, Mercedes was pleased with the pace of the CLK LM, fielding the car for the rest of the 1998 FIA GT Championship, where it would qualify on pole and win every single race, posting six 1-2 finishes.[9][10][18] Klaus Ludwig and Ricardo Zonta would capture the drivers' title at the conclusion of the 1998 season, along with Mercedes-AMG collecting the constructors'.[19] Five chassis were constructed in total, with three racing chassis, and two road-legal chassis, one of which was destroyed for crash testing purposes.[20][21]

Legacy

The rising costs and Mercedes' use of homologation specials would cause Porsche and McLaren to withdraw from the 1999 FIA GT Championship, and seeing as Mercedes was the only entrant, the FIA opted to run the 1999 season without the GT1 class.[9] The repetition of what happened in 1996 with the DTM and ITCC would force Mercedes to turn their attention to the Le Mans Grand Touring Prototype (LMGTP) class, where homologation wasn't an issue.[9][22] Japanese Internet service provider MTCI planned on campaigning the CLK LM in the Japanese Grand Touring Car Championship, however negotiations to purchase the CLK LM would fall through, with MCTI eventually fielding a custom Porsche Boxster.[23]

The LM's successor, the Mercedes-Benz CLR LMGTP, would inherit much of the CLK LM's genes, the V8 was enlarged to 5.7 L (347.8 cu in), rechristened the GT 108C, and the roofline would be lowered by 10 mm (0.4 in) among other changes.[24][25] The CLR, despite being a purpose-built Le Mans racecar, would unfortunately be beset by aerodynamic issues that resulted in its infamous somersaults at the 1999 24 Hours of Le Mans.[26] Following the incidents, Mercedes would withdraw from all sportscar activities in 1999 and never enter Le Mans again.[27]

Straßenversion

Mercedes-Benz CLK LM Straßenversion
Overview
Manufacturer	Mercedes-Benz
Production	1998
Model years	1998
Assembly	Affalterbach
Body and chassis
Class	Sports car (S)
Body style	2-door coupé
Layout	Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Chassis	Carbon fibre monocoque
Powertrain
Engine	5,956 cc (363.5 cu in) Mercedes-Benz M119 DOHC V8, naturally aspirated, mid engined
Power output	600 PS (592 hp; 441 kW)
Transmission	6-speed Xtrac sequential
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,670 mm (105.1 in)
Length	4,900 mm (192.9 in)
Width	1,999 mm (78.7 in)
Height	1,119 mm (44.1 in)
Kerb weight	1,000 kg (2,205 lb)
Chronology
Predecessor	Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR Straßenversion
Successor	Mercedes-AMG ONE

The CLK LM Straßenversion or Strassenversion (German for "Street version") is the road-legal homologated version of the CLK LM. Mercedes would produce two chassis, #001 and #002, the former of which was destroyed for crash testing purposes.[21][10]

Modifications for road use included the installation of a tubular steel rollcage, the installation of a plastic front bumper similar to the one found on the CLK GTR Straßenversion, and a rear aerofoil that had a low- and high-downforce configuration.[28][29] The road car's rear wing was also modified from the lightweight bare-bones racing wing to a wide, swooping rear wing similar to the one found on the Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR Straßenversion.[30]

The car would be presented at the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans alongside the CLK LM racecars, after which it was sold to a Japanese collector.[21] The sole chassis would make sparse appearances, resurfacing at the 2014 Rétromobile alongside two Mercedes-Benz 300 SL on display by French auction house Classic Sport Leicht, where it was purchased by a European owner.[21][31] Following the purchase it was put on display in the Mercedes-Benz showroom on the Champs-Élysées in Paris, where it would remain until the 26th of June.[32] The car would also make an appearance at the 2015 Chantilly Arts and Elegance Richard Mille, which Mercedes-Benz was sponsoring.[33][34][30] In 2016 the car was put up for sale through the Mercedes-Benz Museum's trading arm, All Time Stars, where it sold for €2,000,000.[35][36]

Racing results

Complete FIA GT Championship results

(key) Races in bold indicates pole position. Races in italics indicates fastest lap.

Complete FIA GT Championship results
Year	Entrant	Class	Drivers	No.	Rds.	Rounds										Pts.	Pos.
Year	Entrant	Class	Drivers	No.	Rds.	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pts.	Pos.
1998	Team AMG-Mercedes	GT1	Bernd Schneider Mark Webber	1	All All			HOC 1	DIJ 9*	HUN 1	SUZ 1	DON 1	A1R 2	HOM 4	LAG 2	146	1st
1998	Team AMG-Mercedes	GT1	Klaus Ludwig Ricardo Zonta Marco Werner	2	All All			HOC 2	DIJ 1	HUN 2	SUZ 2	DON 2	A1R 1	HOM 1	LAG 1	146	1st

* Despite retiring, they had completed over 75% of the race distance, and were thus classified.

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results