Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR in full detail, V12 Vantage Roadster and CLS AMG Shooting Brake
When the GT1 category for production-based sports cars was introduced in the mid-1990s, there were significant loopholes in the regulations. The first to take full advantage of these was Mercedes-Benz, who introduced the purpose-built CLK-GTR at the start of the 1997 season. To meet the homologation requirements, a thinly disguised road version of the all carbon-fibre racer was eventually produced. By that time, Bernd Schneider had already been crowned the FIA GT driver's champion ahead of Steve Soper and JJ Lehto in their McLaren F1 GTR, which was actually based on a production car. At the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed, Mercedes-Benz brought out one of these V12-engined machines, which has allowed us to capture it in full detail. The result is an all-revealing 18-shot gallery of the car we believe was used by Bernd Schneider and Mark Webber in the type's final and victorious appearance at Silverstone in 1998.
It took Aston Martin over three years but they have finally revealed the Roadster version of the V12 Vantage model. It features the same twelve-cylinder engine as the coupe, which is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox. Compared to the V8 model, the V12 Vantage Roadster features a lower front air intake and a redesigned boot lid.
The second Mercedes-Benz highlighted today is this CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake. The range topping model of the latest addition to the German manufacturer's line-up, the stylish estate boasts a twin turbo V8 that produces as much as 557 hp depending on the engine's state of tune. Like the 'coupe' version of the CLS, the AMG-tweaked Shooting Brake uses a seven-speed automatic gearbox.
Enjoy the links:
1997 Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR - Images, Specifications and Information
2012 Aston Martin V12 Vantage Roadster - Images, Specifications and Information
2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake - Images, Specifications and Information
If you should see a man walking down a crowded street talking aloud to himself, don't run in the opposite direction, but run towards him, because he's a poet. You have nothing to fear from the poet - but the truth.
(Ted Joans)
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