Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Mille Miglia #722,1955

Description

This model has sold out and is no longer available for purchase.

1927 entered into history as the year of birth for the Mille Miglia, the famous 1,600 km racing course through Italy. By 1930, the name of Mercedes-Benz was closely bound up with this endurance race. And the first victory came in 1931 for Mercedes-Benz.

In 1955 Mercedes-Benz introduced its 300 SLR for the first time at the Mille Miglia. Among its strongest competitors were Ferrari, Maserati, and Aston Martin. Every minute a competing car got its starting clearance. Since 1949 the starting order had been decided by lot so that each starting number was a record of the starting time. The young-but-well-accomplished British race driver Stirling Moss, together with his co-pilot Denis Jenkinson (“Jenks”), received the starting number 722. It means that their exact starting time was 7:22 am. What an unforgettable race they presented that day!

Denis Jenkinson invented the so-called Roller-Map, a sort of “navigation system“ that would become a part of racing history. This Roller-Map was a six-meter paper roll with details of the track information collected during the training sessions. As a result, he was able to give his pilot very exact tips.

Thanks to his driving skills, his will to win, and the reliability of his 300 SLR, Stirling Moss already took the lead in Rome. After 10 hours, 17 minutes and 48 seconds, the duo of Moss and Jenkinson crossed the finishing line to become the victors. They reached an unbelievable average speed of 157.65 km/h. An unparalleled record for a long time to come. J.M. Fangio, also driving a 300 SLR, finished 2nd to complete a sweet dual triumph of the Mercedes-Benz.

After a victory like this, all the ordeals that the drivers and the race car had to go through – the painful jolts from driving over countless kerbs and the hard landings after jumping with full throttle over cambers and rough roads – were forgotten. At the end of the race, the only braking left was from metal on metal, because the friction pad was completely used up.

Our SLR is hand-mounted from more than 1,500 single parts. It is a precision model that incorporates well-documented historic details and authentic replication. Explore the realistic presentation of this great model, and you will feel somehow like Stirling Moss. By the way, Moss drove the whole race with the service panel removed to expedite maintenance work in the case of emergency. He simply could not bear to lose a single second unnecessarily. But if you do not feel capable of filling the shoes of this legendary race driver, then picture yourself as his co-pilot. You don’t even have to do without Denis Jenkinson’s roller-map, for we have a miniature version of that equipment added.

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Stirling Moss preferred a three-spoke steering wheel for all his races, a detail that we take very seriously, among many others. The interior is outfitted in leather, and the seats are covered with textile fabric. The swing-up driver’s door provides ease for entry, but there is no such “luxury of convenience” for the co-pilot.
Removable front and rear spare wheels in different sizes				Spoked-wheels on aluminium rims. Each stainless-steel spoke is mounted with a single nipple
		Roller-Map: The ingenious innovation of Denis Jenkinson The model is delivered with the service opening unclosed for easy maintenance. Just like the way that Moss had it for the race to save time in the case of emergency. The starting number is printed on the car by the complex tampon-printing method and polished to a fine finish
The wheels can be removed by a three-winged central locking nut Authentic replication of the cockpit air ventilation, wind shield and rear view mirror				Realistic presentation of the original dashboard with all its instruments and control elements
The headrest dome connects with the hatch. It can be flipped up as one single unit to gain access to the spare wheels. The engine hood has a tent prop
A tank-access flap is integrated in the driver’s headrest dome. The filler neck underneath is equipped with a removable tank cap made of stainless steel				The front-right engine hood fitted with a filigree grill for the cooler and engine air-inlet duct
Front wheel suspension with inside drum brakes				Space-frame with tank, wheel suspension, console for the spare wheels and electric fuel pumps
Highly detailed 8-cylinder in-line-engine installed in angular position and complete with all pipes and cabeling				In deference to Stirling Moss, the model is presented with the service panel removed for easy maintenance. The panel can easily mount on the magnetic frame. The sidepipes are made of stainless steel