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They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and Kenneth Heyer looked to his father and his historic Mercedes race car for inspiration. For the upcoming 24 hours of Spa, Heyer will be racing a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 that has been made to look like the historic Mercedes 300 SEL 6.8 AMG driven by his father, Hans Heyer.
The elder Heyer drove that car at the 1971 24-hour race in Spa-Francorchamps. It was the first race for an AMG car and expectations were low for the big red sedan sporting the three-pointed star and the number 35. The AMG racer didn’t experience any mechanical failures, but Hans Heyer and his partner Clemen Schickentanz made a lot of pit stops to refuel the thirsty 6.8-liter, 250-hp engine. It was good enough for a second place overall finish and helped put AMG on enthusiast maps worldwide.
Not surprisingly, Mercedes-Benz and its performance arm AMG hold the 300 SEL 6.8 AMG in high regard. Before last year’s 24-hour Spa race, the automaker paid tribute to the race car by duplicating an impeccable carbon copy of its paint and sticker treatment on a 2011 Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG.
This year, exactly 40 years after his father’s historic race, Kenneth Heyer and his team from Black Falcon have done the same thing to their Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. “It’s a great honour,” said Heyer. “Together with my team colleagues, I will be trying to achieve at least second place.”
Aside from the trademark gullwing doors, Heyer’s racer shares little in common with the street version of the SLS. The hand-built, 6.2-liter V8 engine normally puts out 563 hp but has been detuned to meet GT3 regulations, while the seven-speed dual clutch transmission gives way to a single-clutch, six-speed gearbox. An extensive aero kit including a humongous spoiler helps keep the racer sleek and planted and the interior has been stripped to help shave 600 pounds off the 3,500-pound street version.
The 300 SEL racer still had creature comforts such as wood trim and leather, but the SLS GT3 is all business with thin, carbon-fiber shelled seats, a steel roll cage and a fire extinguisher. Will it be enough to earn second place or better? We’ll find out when it blasts away from the starting line on July 30.
Fuente: http://wot.motortrend.com/sons-merce...#ixzz1W0d4c2uM
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