The 1998 Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR

 

A Guinness World Record Holder

 

     When it was finally built in 1998 the Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR was the most expensive car of its time costing $1,547,620. That is very expensive, but it's nothing compared to some of the cars being built today like the Bugatti Veyron.

      Anyway let's talk about the CLK-GTR. The CLK-GTR is hypercar with a RMR layout and is equipped with a 6 liter AMG V-12 engine. Naught to sixty took 3.8 seconds, the same as a Marussia B2. Top speed is 199 mph which seems normal. The original horsepower was 600 but was increased to 630. The engine is coupled to a 6-speed sequential manual.

      The seats are made of leather, and the interior also includes an air conditioning unit. The doors of the CLK-GTR open Lamborghini Diablo style.  The bodywork is made entirely of carbon fiber. Double wishbone suspensions are used in both the front and rear of the car. The tires used are Bridgestones which in my mind are very grippy. However the car tends to drift and be tail-happy.

      One interesting fact when creating the CLK-GTR was that Mercedes-AMG decided to buy a used McLaren F1 GTR to test its lap times so that Mercedes-AMG could make the CLK-GTR have similar performance. Mercedes-Benz also modified the F1 GTR by attaching bodywork meant to go on the CLK-GTR. This allowed Mercedes-AMG to perfect the aerodynamics of the CLK-GTR before it was even built.  
     The cost for a CLK-GTR today is $1,995,980 which is even more expensive than it was in '98.