From Calm Coupe to Crazy CLK GTR

In the mid nineties the FIA GT Championship was a mix of the world’s largest car manufacturers producing the sort of machines that were beyond the wildest dreams of supercar enthusiasts. The homologation specials were being produced from everyday names such as Porsche, BMW, Nissan, Toyota and even Bentley. Many of the cars were a distant resemblance of the road cars we’d become accustomed to, merely sharing the manufactures name usually emblazoned across the top of the windscreen and that was about it. Porsche gave a hint of the 911 that was hiding underneath with some of the headlights for the GT1 but you’d certainly struggle to find anything else that it shared with the road going car. Obviously this didn’t matter with the rules of the time, with 50 road going versions in production enough to enable the wild machines to be entitled to race; and ‘road going’ was definitely meant in the loosest sense of the word. Think full GT Championship racers with a number plate and that’s pretty much it.

However, one participant thought they may as well give their car the familiar family look of their road cars, all be it one that looks like it’d spent way too much time in the gym or wind tunnel. Enter the Mercedes CLK GTR; a car so bonkers yet instantly stylish that the limited edition of 25 road legal cars are now considered classics, despite being less than 20 years old. Mercedes’ foray into the world of FIA GT racing came at a time before hybrids and diesel technology specialists from Audi and Porsche had even been dreamed about. There were no energy recovery systems or electric motor systems to worry about, just pure aerodynamic engineering and good old fashioned petrol power plants. Mercedes always have the power side of things sorted. The in house engineers from AMG work wonders with an engine, producing something with as much power as they want, snarling and growling its way in the process and usually leaving most of your tyres behind them in a cloud of smoke. They are also famous for producing some of the most beautiful racing cars in history, visions in silver and a force to be reckoned with on a racetrack.

In this instance they decided that their current range of cars, particularly the CLK sports coupe, was the very car they would need to take on the rest of the field at GT racing. Whereas other competitors designed their cars with no thought to the current range of family saloons or even sports cars that they produced, Mercedes seemed to think theirs were just the ticket. The CLK GTR sported not only the round lights from the road car but the rear lights as well, and with remarkably few differences in order to adapt for racing. Not only this but whilst other manufacturers spend countless hours in wind tunnels honing the svelte bodywork in order to create the sleekest, most slippery shape they possibly could, Mercedes had the audacity to give their car the trademark family chrome grille. Not only that but it even featured their iconic spring loaded three pointed star that graces the bonnet of everything from a GL off roader to the humble A-class. Whilst you’d struggle to tell the manufacturers apart on the grid for most other cars, Mercedes had given their racer the same look as one of their family saloons and as a design it worked brilliantly.

The CLK GTR was quite a machine. The familiar looking Mercedes front end was angled and very low, with the heavily modified chrome grille practically lying flat between the large oval lights taken from the CLK. The high sills combined with the seemingly endless length of the body meant that the doors looked tiny, hinged on the A-pillar to create a winged appearance when both open. The mid mounted engine was fed air by the huge roof mounted scoop leaving the sides free from vents and grilles. There is a real sense that the designers were given free reign to create the kind of car that they always dreamed about when drawing the humble road cars. The long sleek body angles up towards the rear creating one of the biggest integrated rear spoilers you’d ever seen, something only rivalled by Ferrari’s efforts with the F40 and F50. The idea of seemingly using existing parts from a current road car to create a GT Championship race car seems like such a crazy one, but it was done to such great effect by the designers at Mercedes Benz.

Of course the car was longer, wider, sleeker, more powerful and made from more exotic materials than the CLK it was based on but the fact that it was at least based on a familiar family car made the racer look fantastic. Surely one of the main points of competing in competitive racing series’ is to promote the brand and image of the company you’re representing, and here Mercedes had produced a car that looked like the design dreams of every boy racer and racing driver young and old who owns or parents own a Mercedes Benz. The familiar styling was instantly recognisable and the visual link from road car to racing car was plain to see.

The limited run of hard top and convertibles may have cost over a million pounds to buy but that wasn’t the point. Mercedes had taken on the world and won in a car that looked as familiar as the one sat on your driveway. The ability to produce something so desirable and effortlessly beautiful, yet such an over the top version of a current production vehicle made the CLK GTR an instant hit and is the reason it has become the classic it has already. The fact that it produced the results on the track meant that the racing heritage and the famous silver arrows name of the company could enjoy winning yet again. Whilst the well heeled car collectors of the world could indulge their passion for driving the flashiest, most over the top car the German company has ever produced. Examples of the CLK GTR are certainly rare and these days exchange hands for more than double the original sale price, not bad for a nineties Mercedes with no boot and parts taken from a family coupe.

Each Thursday will include a Throwback Thursday blog post highlighting a design classic from years gone by. Whether it’s a futuristic concept car from the past, a racing landmark machine or a legendary design classic, it will focus on the inspiration and thoughts behind the design and the way it shaped the way of things to come.