history

From the mid 1950s to the mid 1960s Mercedes-Benz cars were seen in rally competition, initially as the legendary 300SL, then the 220SE, the 230SL and finally the 300SE. A period of around twelve years then elapsed before Mercedes-Benz cars were again seen in rallies.

After a victory in the 1977 London to Sydney Rally and a 6th place in the African Safari Rally in 1978 Daimler-Benz realized that their cars had the necessary durability for rallies and that with more power they could achieve further success. While other manufacturers were rallying small to medium sized cars, Daimler-Benz decided that following their experiences with the 280E, the coupe version of their 107 series was the car to use.

In 1978 a new all-alloy 240 horsepower (177 kW) V8 engine of 5,025 cc was developed specifically for the rally version of the SLC. Together with a lightweight aluminum bonnet and boot lid, the new engine also assisted in reducing the substantial weight of the big coupe and the resulting car became known as the 450SLC-5.0. In their first race, the month-long 30.000 km 1978 Vuelta America del Sud Mercedes took 1st, 2nd and 3rd places.

For 1979 the 450SLC-5.0 was homologated as a Group 4 rally car with power being increased to around 300 hp (220 kW) and further weight reductions resulted from stripped-out interiors. Success was achieved in the 5,500 km Bandama (Ivory Coast) Rally with drivers Hanu Mikkola, Bjorn Waldegard, Andrew Cowan and Vic Preston taking positions 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively.

For the Rally of Argentina engine output increased to 340 hp (250 kW) despite a slight reduction in displacement to 4,975 cc. The cars became known as a 500SLC and were now homologated as Group 2. Mikkola finished second and in the Rally of New Zealand Mikkola finished 3rd and Waldegard 5th.In the 1980 Ivory Coast rally Mercedes took the first 2 places with respectively Bjorn Waldegard, and Jorge Recalde.

In 1981 Daimler-Benz again had a break from motor sport for a few years until the introduction of the W201 series 190E 2.3-16 destined for circuit racing.