As per classic car insurer Hagerty, an anonymous individual paid a whopping 142 million dollars for a 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe
In the 1950s, Mercedes-Benz entered the world of racing, but a few years later, the company pulled back from the racing universe. During the company’s racing tenure in that era, the 300 SLR dominated all the races and brought several laurels to the Merc-Benz stable. The car was an important piece of Mercedes-Benz’s history and therefore, they only produced two 300 SLRs that were fondly addressed as the Silver Arrows.
Now, as per classic car insurer Hagerty, an anonymous individual has paid a whopping 142 million dollars for one of the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupes. In short, after decades, one of the original Silver Arrows is now in the garage of a private owner.
Piece of history
The Silver Arrows were feared by the rivals in the initial period of Formula One. In the 1950s, they were highly powerful machines and behind their steering wheels was legendary Argentine F1 racer Juan Manuel Fangio. In 1954 and 1955, it was the duo of Fangio and Silver Arrow who swept the Formula One championship.
Not to forget, in the Silver Arrow, another legend Sir Stirling Moss won the 1955 edition of the international sports car championship.
Why did the cars receive the moniker of Uhlenhaut?
When Mercedes-Benz left the racing world, the two cars went out of business. However, the Silver Arrows were road-legal racing cars. Therefore, one of the cars was picked up by Rudolf Uhlenhaut, the chief of the test department at Mercedes-Benz. For a long time, he used one of the cars for daily commuting. Thus, the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR received the moniker of Uhlenhaut (coupe).
Spec-sheet
An M 196 S Straight 8 2,982cc engine that was tuned to produce a peak power of 310hp at 7,400rpm and a maximum torque figure of 310Nm at 5,950rpm mated to a five-speed gearbox powered the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupe. Its engine was placed in the front, whereas the car had a rear-wheel drive. The entire car is exactly the same as it was ages ago.
The auction
As per Hagerty, the auction was kept secret and therefore, nobody knows the name of the purchaser. However, as per many other reports, the auction took place at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, where only a handful of people were invited. Last but not the least, the auction price of SLR 300 shattered the auction record of Ferrari 250 GTO, which was sold at 70 million US dollars in 2018.
