Tuesday 1st December 2009

1050hp Gullwing Dragster At Essen Show

Video: Swiss man builds 300SL impersonator

---

Following the arrival of the Mercedes AMG SLS everybody's got Gullwing fever it seems, and amongst the varying shades of bonkers displayed at this year's Essen Motor Show is a dragster that looks as if it's driven there straight out of Wacky Races.

Its Swiss builder Stefan Winter spent over 3 years building this fibreglass dragster based on the Mercedes 300SL. Fortunately, no real 300SL's were harmed in the making of this car; the body is made of fibreglass and the engine is a 6.9-litre small block Chevy 350, reportedly putting out an appropriately dragster-like 1,050hp.

Peter Perfect said to be considering making an offer

Other interesting bits include a 9-inch Ford rear axle, an A-1 Pro 3-Speed transmission and whopping 15-inch rear tires. And that body, though a very neat interpretation of the 300SL in shape, actually uses metallic silver paint from Mazda.

Winter claims a quarter-mile time of 8.1 seconds for his pricey long-term project, crossing the line at 166mph.

	"Darn you, Dick Dastardly!"

[WorAl]

8.1/166 Quarter mile? not all that fast really is it?

this bloke runs an 8.87/164 Impreza which he drives to and from the events and uses it in the handling circuits.

Edited by WorAl on Tuesday 1st December 13:10

[Skylinecrazy]

Want.

[Ray Singh]

Nice car - i want.

Glad to read that no real SLs were harmed when making that though.
Makes nice change from the usual drag cars.

[Cotty]

That looks fantastic, really unusual body choice. Love the fact they have incorporated the gullwing doors

[vdubbin]

I'm guessing the fibreglass shell is available for kit builds? Looks very detailed for a dragster.

[hairykrishna]

WorAl said:

8.1/166 Quarter mile? not all that fast really is it?

this bloke runs an 8.87/164 Impreza which he drives to and from the events and uses it in the handling circuits.

Edited by WorAl on Tuesday 1st December 13:10

0.7 seconds over a quarter mile is a lot though, isn't it? Red Victor 2 is 'only' 0.7 seconds faster than this thing.

[turbo-ww]

The timer on the video seems to suggest 5.364?

Edited by turbo-ww on Tuesday 1st December 13:36

[Hugo a Gogo]

where exactly is the similarity with the wacky racers car? it's got big rear wheels?

[Mr Gear]

turbo-ww said:

The timer on the video seems to suggest 5.684?

Looks like an 1/8th mile track to me.

[turbo-ww]

Mr Gear said:

turbo-ww said:

The timer on the video seems to suggest 5.684?

Looks like an 1/8th mile track to me.

Ah.

[NAS]

Saw it live yesterday. Proportions are all wrong, but impressive nonetheless.

I'd rather have one of the 5 original SLs standing in another hall. The black one with the red leather was my favourite.

[oagent]

Love it. Would like to see it powered by a big AMG v8

[k-ink]

Cool for a dragster.

It would also be good to see a lower powered example that would also handle well for the road. Say 500bhp with some sort of cobra style chassis :P

[Slinky]

hairykrishna said:

WorAl said:

8.1/166 Quarter mile? not all that fast really is it?

this bloke runs an 8.87/164 Impreza which he drives to and from the events and uses it in the handling circuits.

Edited by WorAl on Tuesday 1st December 13:10

0.7 seconds over a quarter mile is a lot though, isn't it? Red Victor 2 is 'only' 0.7 seconds faster than this thing.

0.7 seconds is indeed a long time on the track..

This car has most probably been built for Super Comp which is an 8.90 index racing class.. So isn't all about trying to get through the top end as quickly as humanly possible.. (yes, that does happen in drag racing..)..

[EeeThirty]

Can't help thinking that gullwing doors might hinder his escape in the unfortunate event of a flaming crash... It seems Merc have a pyrotechnic gadget to remove the doors if the new SLS, I hope this guy can release his from the top somehow!

Having said that, it looks so so , really nicely done as well.

[WorAl]

hairykrishna said:

WorAl said:

8.1/166 Quarter mile? not all that fast really is it?

this bloke runs an 8.87/164 Impreza which he drives to and from the events and uses it in the handling circuits.

Edited by WorAl on Tuesday 1st December 13:10

0.7 seconds over a quarter mile is a lot though, isn't it? Red Victor 2 is 'only' 0.7 seconds faster than this thing.

I know it is a long way but, considering you could actually pop to the shops in Mr Forests Impreza its not a bad time.

[Slinky]

WorAl said:

hairykrishna said:

WorAl said:

8.1/166 Quarter mile? not all that fast really is it?

this bloke runs an 8.87/164 Impreza which he drives to and from the events and uses it in the handling circuits.

Edited by WorAl on Tuesday 1st December 13:10

0.7 seconds over a quarter mile is a lot though, isn't it? Red Victor 2 is 'only' 0.7 seconds faster than this thing.

I know it is a long way but, considering you could actually pop to the shops in Mr Forests Impreza its not a bad time.

You could pop to the shops in Mr Frosts 7.41/197 Victor too..

[nav p]

I saw it at the show yesterday...great show by the way,scary thing was is that there was also a smartcar dragter with a bike engine sitting where the passenger normally does!

[LukeBird]

Mental!

[GingerWizard]

WorAl said:

8.1/166 Quarter mile? not all that fast really is it?

this bloke runs an 8.87/164 Impreza which he drives to and from the events and uses it in the handling circuits.

Edited by WorAl on Tuesday 1st December 13:10

Behave! 8.1sec 1/4 mile not that fast? Bloody hell fella i think i need some of the medication you must have!
The point that other cars might be quicker/smaller is debateable all day long, what is not however is the fact that 8.1 sec at 166mph is quick, super-hyper-mega-car quick.....

phhheewwwwww, you know i actually felt a bit queasy then... 8.1sec 166mph.... goodness gracious...