SLR McLAREN ROADSTER
MERCEDES BENZ SLR McLAREN ROADSTER - AN OPEN AIR ADVENTURE FOR ALL THE SENSES
Stuttgart, May 4th, 2007
Mercedes-Benz will market its SLR McLaren super sports car in the form of a roadster. In common with Formula 1 race cars of today, it too is made of carbon fibre, a material that will endow the vehicle with a very high degree of safety and extreme torsional stiffness at the same high level as the coupé version. This gives rise, in combination with the racing-type chassis, to outstanding ride characteristics.
The maximum speed of the new high-performance sports car, which is powered by an AMG V8 supercharged engine delivering 460 kW/626 PS, is 332 km/h. Thanks to its fully retractable top; the Roadster offers undiluted open-air driving pleasure in the highest performance class without compromising the comfort offered to its occupants or the vehicle's suitability for everyday use. Consequently, the new Roadster opens up a new dimension in refinement for open-top super sports cars.
Like the coupé version, the new Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster once again unites the legend of the successful SLR racing models from the 1950s with the innovative technology of modern Formula 1 race cars from Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. Typical stylistic elements, such as the nose cone of the Formula 1 car, establish a visual link with the racing cars. The SLR legend of the 50s lives on stylistically in the distinctive lateral louvers, side exhausts behind the front wheels and the wide-opening dihedral doors.
The new Roadster benefits technically from the many years of experience of Mercedes- Benz and its Formula 1 partner McLaren. Excluding the two aluminium engine frames, its body is made entirely of carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) materials, making the vehicle an exception among high-performance sports cars. Especially for the Roadster, complex carbon-fibre technology has been intelligently further developed for the monocoque chassis. The result is low weight, exemplary energy absorption and, therefore, extremely high occupant safety as well as a degree of torsional stiffness hitherto unattained in open-top vehicles. This leads to outstanding ride characteristics of the kind otherwise found only in closed-top super sports cars.
The puristic top is suitable for high speeds
The exceptional qualities of the Roadster are attributable also to the fully retractable top, which blends harmoniously into the flowing lines of the SLR McLaren.
Its newly developed roof material, which is available in three different colours, not only guarantees complete suitability for everyday use in all weathers, but also endows the high performance sports car with characteristics that are exceptionally unusual in a roadster. For example, at 332 km/h, the maximum speed is at the high level of the coupé version. Conversation is still possible at well over 200 km/h on open-air journeys thanks to the favourable aeroacoustics.
The roof opens and closes semi-automatically in less than ten seconds, thereby combining the desire for convenience with the puristic character of the roadster. To open, the roof merely needs to be unlocked from the windscreen frame and be briefly raised, after which it folds away electrically. Since an aluminium cover is integrated into its front section, the roof elegantly closes off the top when retracted.
Sophisticated aerodynamics and racing-type chassis
With the use of a wind tunnel, the Roadster has been optimised for high speed aerodynamics, aeroacoustics and handling. It likewise employs the aerodynamic concept already known from the coupé version, featuring an airbrake integrated into the boot lid and a diffuser in the rear bumper to provide increased downforce on the rear axle.
The open two-seater is equipped with a racing-type chassis featuring high performance carbon-ceramic brake discs which provide extreme stopping power.
Its front-mid-engine layout provides for an optimum weight distribution. With 460 kW/626 PS and a maximum torque of 780 Nm, the AMG V8 supercharged engine, which is coupled to an AMG Speedshift R five-speed automatic transmission, accelerates the Roadster from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds.
Unique safety and exclusive fittings
A high degree of safety is ensured by unique carbon-fibre crash elements, steel reinforced A-pillars and two fixed roll-over bars. The comprehensive specification also features adaptive airbags, knee and side airbags as well as seat belt tensioners and a tyre-pressure monitoring system.
The exclusive standard equipment includes semi-aniline-leather-upholstered carbon-fibre bucket seats which can be individually adapted to the driver and front passenger by means of differently sized seat pads; dual-zone automatic air conditioning; a high-quality BOSE premium sound system; a multifunction sport steering wheel with gear change paddles and a navigation system with integral radio and CD player.
The new Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster, like the coupé, will be built at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England and will be available from September 2007.
Stuttgart, May 4th, 2007
Mercedes-Benz will market its SLR McLaren super sports car in the form of a roadster. In common with Formula 1 race cars of today, it too is made of carbon fibre, a material that will endow the vehicle with a very high degree of safety and extreme torsional stiffness at the same high level as the coupé version. This gives rise, in combination with the racing-type chassis, to outstanding ride characteristics.
The maximum speed of the new high-performance sports car, which is powered by an AMG V8 supercharged engine delivering 460 kW/626 PS, is 332 km/h. Thanks to its fully retractable top; the Roadster offers undiluted open-air driving pleasure in the highest performance class without compromising the comfort offered to its occupants or the vehicle's suitability for everyday use. Consequently, the new Roadster opens up a new dimension in refinement for open-top super sports cars.
Like the coupé version, the new Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster once again unites the legend of the successful SLR racing models from the 1950s with the innovative technology of modern Formula 1 race cars from Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. Typical stylistic elements, such as the nose cone of the Formula 1 car, establish a visual link with the racing cars. The SLR legend of the 50s lives on stylistically in the distinctive lateral louvers, side exhausts behind the front wheels and the wide-opening dihedral doors.
The new Roadster benefits technically from the many years of experience of Mercedes- Benz and its Formula 1 partner McLaren. Excluding the two aluminium engine frames, its body is made entirely of carbon-fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) materials, making the vehicle an exception among high-performance sports cars. Especially for the Roadster, complex carbon-fibre technology has been intelligently further developed for the monocoque chassis. The result is low weight, exemplary energy absorption and, therefore, extremely high occupant safety as well as a degree of torsional stiffness hitherto unattained in open-top vehicles. This leads to outstanding ride characteristics of the kind otherwise found only in closed-top super sports cars.
The puristic top is suitable for high speeds
The exceptional qualities of the Roadster are attributable also to the fully retractable top, which blends harmoniously into the flowing lines of the SLR McLaren.
Its newly developed roof material, which is available in three different colours, not only guarantees complete suitability for everyday use in all weathers, but also endows the high performance sports car with characteristics that are exceptionally unusual in a roadster. For example, at 332 km/h, the maximum speed is at the high level of the coupé version. Conversation is still possible at well over 200 km/h on open-air journeys thanks to the favourable aeroacoustics.
The roof opens and closes semi-automatically in less than ten seconds, thereby combining the desire for convenience with the puristic character of the roadster. To open, the roof merely needs to be unlocked from the windscreen frame and be briefly raised, after which it folds away electrically. Since an aluminium cover is integrated into its front section, the roof elegantly closes off the top when retracted.
Sophisticated aerodynamics and racing-type chassis
With the use of a wind tunnel, the Roadster has been optimised for high speed aerodynamics, aeroacoustics and handling. It likewise employs the aerodynamic concept already known from the coupé version, featuring an airbrake integrated into the boot lid and a diffuser in the rear bumper to provide increased downforce on the rear axle.
The open two-seater is equipped with a racing-type chassis featuring high performance carbon-ceramic brake discs which provide extreme stopping power.
Its front-mid-engine layout provides for an optimum weight distribution. With 460 kW/626 PS and a maximum torque of 780 Nm, the AMG V8 supercharged engine, which is coupled to an AMG Speedshift R five-speed automatic transmission, accelerates the Roadster from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds.
Unique safety and exclusive fittings
A high degree of safety is ensured by unique carbon-fibre crash elements, steel reinforced A-pillars and two fixed roll-over bars. The comprehensive specification also features adaptive airbags, knee and side airbags as well as seat belt tensioners and a tyre-pressure monitoring system.
The exclusive standard equipment includes semi-aniline-leather-upholstered carbon-fibre bucket seats which can be individually adapted to the driver and front passenger by means of differently sized seat pads; dual-zone automatic air conditioning; a high-quality BOSE premium sound system; a multifunction sport steering wheel with gear change paddles and a navigation system with integral radio and CD player.
The new Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster, like the coupé, will be built at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England and will be available from September 2007.
