Driven: Mercedes 300 SEL 6.8 AMG - The Red Pig
Two minutes behind the wheel and deaf for a week... (With Video)
300 SEL 6.8 AMG Racer - 'Roten Sau'
The 300 SEL in race trim, bored out to 6.8 litres and making around 420hp, caused a sensation by finishing the race in second place, in spite of its prodigious appetite for fuel and tyres. It was an auspicious start for M-B’s tuning arm, and set the tone for an engineering philosophy that hasn’t changed a lot since. So big Benzes married to mighty AMG-fettled V8s have given us knee-trembling thrills for nearly 40 years, and long may the relationship continue!
"Want, want, want, want, want, want..."
The ultimate fate of the Roten Sau is unclear, and this replica was built for the Geneva motor show by AMG in 2006. Apparently even finding a suitable base car was a trial, as the restoration team needed a car without a sunroof and aircon – and most of the 6500 300 SELs built between 1968-72 were luxuriously equipped. This car was found in Berlin, and new parts for the reconstruction were gathered from all round Western Europe with every panel being replaced apart from the front passenger door. The restoration/rebuild was completed in six weeks, which is the sort of progress you can achieve if you own a car company.
Interior is pretty standard, wheel apart
The slightly incongruous leather 'sports' wheel needed a bit of a twirl, and the four-speed auto box had an old-school ponderous feel, but we can’t really begin to imagine how the car must have felt at full chat on the circuit at Spa. Utterly heroic, or utterly insane probably, depending on your point of view.
Son of Red Pig - aka 'Thirty-Five'
(Apologies for the video quality – those V8s were making the ground shake.)
The replica car is only a 6.3 with the stock injection etc. The Spa Cars spare engine lives on in Klaus Berhmanns 6.8 race car in Germany .
The AMG engine was special in that it had a specially cat block,heads which were made for AMG and the intake comprised of Dual throttle bodies.
AMG was funded by themselves(with volunteer support from Eric Waxenburger) where as the Winning Capri was backed with unlimited funding from Henry Ford II.
If you thought that 6.3 was impressive,just consider the fact it is a standard engine and not even a AMG stage 1 unit. :-)
I used to buy anything interesting from the Ian Skelly centre in Glasgow, who at that time were the Quattro dealers. I got a 'phone call from the salesman to say they had taken, "this big Merc in a trade in and nobody knows what it is. Oh, by the way, it makes a helluva noise; we think a big end's gone!"
I duly arrived at the site to discover a 300 SEL 6.3 in azurite blue with an utterly immaculate interior. The interiors in these cars were nothing short of magnificent: the build quality second to none. This one had dark blue bedford cord seating with polished walnut cappings on the dash and doors. The lower half of the body needed painting, but the top was virtually perfect. The car sat on its original steel wheels shod with 225/70/15 tyres, enormous in their day.
These cars are equipped with pneumatic suspension, the ride height controlled by a subtle chrome lever on the centre console. From memory there are three settings, the lowest for high speed driving. The pressure for this system come from a huge twin cylinder compressor mounted on the front of the engine and belt driven from the crank.
Both front exhaust pipes were cracked, probably due to driving over a yump with the suspension fully depressed. If you think the Merc in the article was loud, this was unbelievable! There was also a serious clatter from the front of the engine.
I risked a quick road test that resulted in the salesman turning grey as we howled sideways up Kilmarnock Road; something you would get the jail for nowadays! I noticed his hand wet and still trembling as we shook on the deal.
There was indeed a big end away, but it turned out to be in the compressor for the suspension. I stripped it down and turned out a new bearing on the lathe in oilite; the crank was unmarked and perfect. After several 'phone calls, I located a full new exhaust system from an MB dealer down south, who gave me a substantial discount as it was old stock. A new coat of paint on the bottom half and we were ready to go.
The standard exhaust on these cars was extremely efficient; twin pipe throughout, very large diameter and straight through on the main and tail boxes, and it sounded beautiful. Smooth and burbly at idle, changing to an aggressive, muted howl as the revs increased. But the best bit of all was the noise from the engine itself. On opening the bonnet you are confronted by an engine that literally fills the whole compartment; the most impressive parts being the huge, twin intake manifolds rearing up from both cylinder heads. In between these nestles what has got to be the largest mechanical injection pump ever fitted to a private car!
I think that the combination of the induction note, the mechanical injection pump and the compressor result in a sinister, rustling hiss that has got to be heard to be appreciated. It is simply addictive!
All of this is driven through a four speed MB transmission that can be driven manually by using the selector. MB rated this engine at 250 BHP, but if this is accurate then they must all have been Arabian Stallions. The power and torque are phenomenal, and you can make the rear tyres yelp changing up into top!
An absolutely unforgettable car with only one drawback. Twelve miles per gallon!
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