2005 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren

The SLR McLaren

Among the great automotive collaborations, much can be said about the partnership between Mercedes-Benz and McLaren. Both companies are synonymous with quality, performance, cutting-edge design, and prestige. Working together, Mercedes-Benz and McLaren were a force to be reckoned with on Formula 1 circuits and their partnership is distinguished by technological innovation and motor sports superiority.

Only a truly significant car would tempt Mercedes-Benz to utilize the legendary SLR designation, and their work with McLaren proved deserving. Thanks to the brute force of a supercharged AMG-tuned V-8 engine and the phenomenal ESP traction control, the SLR can sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds, and with its substantially large brake calipers and carbon-ceramic rotors, it provides equally impressive stopping power.

The car’s other worldly per formance immediately captured the attention of automotive journalists during initial test drives. Car and Driver magazine reported times of 30 to 50 (at 1.7 seconds) and 50 to 70 (at 2.4 seconds), which “are the best pair of top-gear acceleration times we’ve ever recorded for a production car.” To highlight the engineering strengths of the SLR, Mercedes-Benz designed a strikingly aerodynamic  body  that  took  cues  from contemporary firms’ Formula 1 cars and well- established classics. With its imposing hood, butterfly doors, and carbon-fiber construction, the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren was the ultimate representation of the classic front-engine, rear-drive GT.

This Car

Built in June 2005, this pristine US-specification Crystal Laurite Silver SLR with red leather interior was one of the first 100 cars ordered for US delivery. Showing passion for his new purchase, the consignor visited the McLaren factory in the UK on the day that the car was finished, before taking delivery of it back in the US. Once in the owner’s possession, the car was shipped to Switzerland, where it was housed and maintained by the specialists at Modena Cars in Geneva. Using the car sparingly, the consignor has accrued approximately 5,000 satisfying miles piloting the car in Europe and the US. The SLR is supplied with its set of manuals, extra key, a wide array of factory booklets and documents, and its original car cover. Having been lovingly maintained, this SLR shows a history of careful use and diligent stewardship.

Now out of production, the SLR McLaren is remembered as one of the most aggressively styled, yet approachable and comfortable, supercars of the new millennium. The vast experience of the Mercedes-Benz and McLaren companies came together for only a brief period and resulted in the construction of just over 2,000 SLR cars of all variants. The SLR’s inspired design and superb pedigree make each one an important car to own both today and in the decades to come.