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Die Rote Sau /
The Red Pig | 1971-2016 To
Celebrate 45th Anniversary |
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Mercedes-Benz 280S W108 2017: Tribute
to AMG Spa 1971 |
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THE
LEGEND OF SPA 1971 |
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ORIGINAL DOCUMENTARY OF THE 1971 SPA
FRANCORCHAMPS RACE | GERMAN |
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ENG-RED71
LIMITED SERIES:
A Category of One |
The Culture of The Classic |
Timeless Styling |
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Historic second place
for AMG in 1971 |
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In 1971 the 24-hour
race in Spa-Francorchamps was the first race that AMG,
founded in 1967, had ever entered. Alternating behind the
wheel of the AMG touring car were the two experienced
drivers Hans Heyer and Clemens Schickentanz. AMG was
anything but the favourite in this classic Belgian
long-distance race: mighty opponents at the time included
the Ford Capri RS, BMW 2800 CS, Chevrolet Camaro, Opel
Commodore and Alfa Romeo GTA. Nobody expected the large
saloon from provincial Affalterbach in Swabia to hold its
own against the well-established teams. |
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Surprising 5th place in
the starting lineup for AMG |
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However, the red
four-door saloon already demonstrated its potential in
training, when Clemens Schickentanz delivered a surprise
with the fifth-fastest training time. Nobody at AMG had
expected 5th starting position in a field of 60 cars. 80,000
spectators were intrigued by the fast, red saloon with the
long wheelbase – which was incidentally also the only
Mercedes in the race. Pole position was occupied by the
favourite, the Chevrolet Camaro driven by Ivo Grauls and
Peter Hoffmann, followed by the Alpina-BMW 2800 CS of Niki
Lauda/Gérard Larousse and next to it the first works Ford
Capri with Dieter Glemser and Alex Soler-Roig plus the
Schnitzer-BMW 2800 CS driven by Rauno Aaltonen and Helmut
Kelleners. A total of 60 racing touring cars raced against
the stopwatch on the then still 14.1-kilometre long course
in the Ardennes, with illustrious names such as
Hans-Joachim-Stuck, Jochen Mass, Toine Hezemans, Willy
Kauhsen, Achim Warmbold and Rainer Braun behind the wheel. |
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On the first lap |
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On the first lap Hans
Heyer, who was first to take the wheel of the 300 SEL 6.8
AMG, was able to position himself in third place right
behind the Ford Capri (Glemser/Soler-Roig) and the Chevrolet
Camaro (Grauls/Hoffmann). After a dramatic race which
included a sudden rainstorm at midnight and numerous
contestants withdrawing, the “35” crossed the finishing line
in second place directly behind the works Capri driven by
Glemser/Soler-Roig. In 24 hours the AMG saloon had absolved
precisely 308 laps. Technical problems? None whatsoever. An
absolute sensation. |
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Contrasts: 265 km/h and
exotic wood trim in the cockpit |
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Hans Heyer has fond
memories of this race: “We knew we could win, but the others
didn’t know it yet!” The AMG saloon was unbeatable on the
straight, but the braking system substantially adopted from
the series production car was slightly underpowered for the
weight of the car (1635 kilograms). “But on the old Spa
course the brake discs had plenty of time to cool down, and
nobody could catch us on the long straights,” the now 68
year-old reminisces. With a top speed of 265 km/h the 300
SEL 6.8 AMG was tailor-made for the fast Belgian circuit.
The atmosphere in the interior was luxurious, with standard
features such a power steering, air suspension, carpets,
door panelling and a dashboard with exotic wood trim. The
spectators lining the track loved this large car with its
thrilling V8 sound. “The outsider quickly became the
absolute darling of the public,” says Hans Heyer. |
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Luxury: the
Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3 as the basis for
a racing car |
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The AMG racing saloon
was technically based on the Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3. With
an output of 184 kW (250 hp) at 4000 rpm
and a top speed of 220 km/h, this saloon was Germany’s
fastest series-production car in its day. It was not only an
increase in the overall displacement from 6330 to 6835 cc
that raised the output to 315 kW (428 hp)
at 5500 rpm and torque from 500 to 608 newton metres. AMG
co-founder Erhard Melcher “tweaked” the eight-cylinder
engine using classic methods: Precision-honed camshafts and
modified rocker arms, lightweight connecting rods, new Mahle
pistons, larger intake valves, modified combustion chambers,
polished intake and exhaust ducts, a new intake tract with
two throttle flaps and a racing exhaust system ensured an
improved gasflow and allowed higher engine speeds.
Durability was improved by installing an auxiliary oil
cooler and a finely balanced crankshaft. |
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The wheel arches |
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The wheel arches were
flared to make room for the lightweight 10 x 15 and 12 x
15-inch magnesium wheels adopted from a C 111 test car.
Aluminium doors helped to reduce weight from the original
1830 to 1635 kilograms. Larger control arms at the front
axle, a more robust rear axle with a reinforced differential
and smaller air suspension bellows with a harder setup made
the saloon fit for the racetrack. |
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German TV news reports
on the sensational achievement |
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The unexpected class
victory and second overall place in the 24-hour race in Spa-Francorchamps
made AMG, founded in 1967, a household name overnight – and
marked the start of an impressive success story. Even the
German television news reported on this surprise
achievement. “It was certainly a sensation at the time,” AMG
founder Hans Werner Aufrecht remembers. The courage shown by
Aufrecht and his partner Melcher in entering a modified
luxury saloon for this classic 24-hour race paid off in
full. |
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11 and 12 September 1971
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On 11 and 12 September
1971 the 300 SEL 6.8 AMG subsequently competed in the
2×6-hour Paul Ricard race, accompanied by a privately
entered 300 SEL 6.3 with an AMG engine. Now repainted in
yellow, the 300 SEL 6.8 AMG took part in the pre-trials for
the Le Mans 24-hour race in March 1972, but was not at the
starting line for the race itself in June. However it
competed in the 24-hour race in Nürburgring in June 1972,
and in the Nuremberg 200-mile race held at Norisring on 6
August 1972. Here Hans Heyer achieved victory with the
four-door saloon – once again painted red – in the “Series
and special touring cars above 2000 cc” class. |
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Up
to five litres rule |
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The 300 SEL 6.8 AMG was
not to enjoy any further successes: a change in the race
rules by the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA)
put an end to its career, as only cars with an overall
displacement of up to five litres were now allowed for the
European Touring Car Trophy. AMG sold its racing saloon to
the French conglomerate Matra, where it was converted for
high-speed tests on aircraft tyres. Its subsequent fate is
unknown. In spring 2006 Mercedes-AMG built a replica of the
300 SEL 6.8 AMG based on the original documentation, so that
this unique success story would live on. |
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HISTORY
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AMG:
AUFRECH
+
MELCHER
+
GROSSSASPACH*.
AMG WAS A COMPANY FOUNDED AROUND 1967 BY TWO EX-Daimler AG
employees:
Hans Werner Aufrecht
from Testing Department DAIMLER/MB Germany and mechanical
engineer
Erhard Melcher;
AMG
first HQ was located in Burgstall, near Affalterbach
(Southern Germany) as a tuning and independent engineering
company, specialized in high-performance & engine
improvements: Engineering Office -Design and Testing for the
Development of Race Engines.
AMG
become famous in 1971, after first &
second place at the 24-hours race in the Belgian Ardennes,
at
Spa-Francorchamps
with a modified 300SEL (LONG CHASSIS)
powered by a reengineered MB V8 6.3 Liter engine to a
final AMG V8 6.8 Liter engine with a ZF 5-speed gearbox.
5 units 300SEL were built, 2 for testing and 3 for racing,
with different configurations, equipment and colors. For the
24-Hours race at Spa the AMG pilots were (EX-PORSCHE
DRIVERS)
HANS HEYER
and
CLEMENS SCHICKENTANZ:
their names are posted on front fenders, left and right.
*Aufrecht's place of birth. |
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Hans Werner Aufrecht |
YOU
CAN'T REALLY IMPROVE A MERCEDES. BUT YOU CAN MAKE IT
LOOK "DIFFERENT". |
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Daimler AG AMG integration in 1990
(Paris co-operation agreement) - 1999 (purchase of
the controlling stock by DaimlerChrysler AG), into
Mercedes-AMG GmbH, as a subsidiary. Mercedes-AMG
GmbH, is headquartered now in Affalterbach, Baden-Wurtemburg,
Germany |
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24-HOURS/24 STUNDEN-RENNEN Spa-Francorchamps
(CIRCUIT NATIONAL): 24-25 JULY 1971, TOURENWAGEN EUROPAMEISTERSCHAFT NO. 35 |
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The MB 300 SEL reengineered by AMG drove to the podium in the 24h race of Spa 1971. |
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_____________
MB 300 SEL AMG 6.3 (6.8)|
MODEL SPA-1971 ORIGINAL
_____________ |
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LEGENDARY ICON: MB 300 SEL AMG 6.3 (6.8) - W109 [RED GIANT/DIE ROTE SAU] |
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THE VEHICLE
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Developed by AMG in 1971 [back when AMG
was a separate tuning company] the Big Red 300SEL wasn't the
most obvious choice to take racing. THE ORIGINAL VEHICLE WAS
A DAMAGED MB 300SEL with a standard MB 6.3 Litre engine, V8,
fuel injection. Transformations to the original 6.3L/V8
engine were done in the form of modified camshafts, intake
valves, exhaust, rocker arms, and pistons heads, supervised
by Mercedes test engineer
Erick Waxenberger.
(See Waxenberger engine, on display, on
one for the original 1971 race cars.) The engine capacity
was augmented from 6.3 to 6.8 Litre + special race tuning.
It is widely accepted that the 1971 AMG-Waxenberger
engine has a final 428HP (Europe standard). |
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TECHNICAL DATA
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[Technische Data]
The
original vehicle was a
Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL, 6.3
production year 1969 equipped with a 4-speed automatic gear
and with a curb weight of 3,597 lbs. The 1969 modified
V-8 AMG-Waxenberger
engine was finally rated in 1971 at
6.8 Litre,
with a test power of
428 HP
(Europe HP),
620 Nm
(448 lb/ft of twist); the race car empty weight was
at about
1,500kg
(equipped with standard MB air suspension) and had a
max. speed of
265-288km/h
compared to the
standard model (MB 300SEL 6.3) max. clock speed was
288km/h (178mph) |
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THE LAST AMG V8 6.8L/428HP Waxenberger 69 Engine
is in a car museum in MOBILIA AUTOMOTIVE
MUSEUM, Kangasala, Finland. |
Units Produced with these specifications: 1 AMG ORIGINAL + 4
MB GERMANY COPIES = 5 UNITS|
**All other units in existence are replicas. | MB 300SEL 6.8
AMG (01) SPA-1971/AMG-WAXENBERGER 69 ORIGINAL CAR WAS SOLD
TO FRENCH COMPANY MATRA, FOR TESTING ON THE JET FIGHTER
LANDING GEAR. |
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ORIGINAL 1971 SPONSORS
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FOR THE 1971 RACE, THE
VICTOR ORIGINAL-RED VEHICLE 300SEL AMG-6.8 HAD MANY
SPONSORS: SECA100, BILSTEIN, BOSCH, HELLA, CASTROL, CAMEL
FILTERS, H.E. SIEGER, LEVY’S JEANS, FERODO, ETC. OTHER
VARIANT VEHICLES FROM THE ORIGINAL 5-UNITS-BATCH SERIES, HAD
THE SAME AND/OR DIFFERENT SPONSORS. |
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*
OUR REPLICA IS
MERCEDES-BENZ 300 SEL 6.8 AMG NO. 35,
SPA 1971 - PILOTS HEYER/SCHICKENTANZ* |
THERE IS ANOTHER MERCEDES BENZ 300 SEL
6.8 AMG, NO. 1 ADAC 24 HOURS NURBURGRING
1972 RACE WITH PILOTS HANS HEYER/THOMAS
BETZLER | ** Information based on
Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes-Benz Classic
Center USA |
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PICTURES GALLERY MB/AMG
MUSEUM [GERMANY]
300 SEL 6.3 (6.8) REPLICA |
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