1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR "Uhlenhaut Coupe" Silver with Blue Interior 1/18 Diecast Model Car by CMC

Brand new 1/18 scale diecast car model of 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR "Uhlenhaut Coupe" Silver with Blue Interior die cast model car by CMC. Limited edition. Brand new box. Real rubber tires. True-to-scale detail. Has steerable wheels. Officially licensed product. Has opening hood, doors and trunk. Authentic and true to scale shaped body. Manufacturer's original unopened packaging. Made of diecast metal with some plastic parts. Detailed interior, exterior, engine compartment. Dimensions approximately L-9.75, W-4, H-3 inches. The 300 SLR racer was based on the famous W196 Formula One champion of the 1954-55 season. The abbreviation SLR stands for Sport Light-Racing (Sport Leicht-Rennen). Considered one of the most beautiful racecars of all time, the new SLR was equipped with a slightly different straight-eight engine, which was expanded to displace 3 liters. Two of the nine 300 SLR rolling chassis, namely 0007/55 and 0008/55, were converted into 300 SLR Coupés with a closed-top body and gullwing doors. They were intended for the forthcoming Carrera Panamericana. The body of the SLR coupé was panelled in sheet Elektron, a magnesium alloy that is even lighter than aluminum. The semicircular windscreen generated very little wind resistance. As in the SLR racer, the coupé driver had to control the pedals with his legs apart behind the steering wheel. Under the bonnet was a longitudinally-mounted eight-cylinder engine, which was placed just behind the front axle, developing peak torque of 234 lb-ft at 5950 rpm and a maximum output of 310 horsepower at 7400 rpm. Owing to safety concerns following the tragic accident at Le Mans back in June, Mercedes-Benz decided to pull out of motorsport at the end of the 1955 season. As a result, the SLR coupé project was shelved and never went into production. Subsequently, Rudolph Uhlenhaut appropriated one of the coupés for his personal use. Weighing only 1,117 km and capable of 290 km/h, the Uhlenhaut coupe was by far the fastest road car of its time in the world. Although the 300 SLR coupés stopped short of racing seriously, chassis 0007/55 was no stranger to motorsport racing. It served as a practice car for the factory racing team at the 1955 Swedish Grand Prix in June and the RAC Tourist Trophy in September. At the Targa Florio, which was the last round of the 1955 World Sports Car Championship, entrants practiced assiduously for a total of 16,695 kilometers to get familiar with the 72-km circuit and its meandering 900 curves. The Mercedes team was no exception — with Stirling Moss practicing hard at the wheel of chassis 0007/55. In the process, he did certain damage to the car, causing the frame to be distorted at the front right and the wishbones to be bent. But it didn’t keep him and Fangio from taking a 1-2 finish with their SLR racers at the Targa Florio on October 16, 1955.