They say that it’s wise to save the best till last and it looks as though that is exactly what Mercedes-Benz and McLaren have done with the awesomely styled SLR Stirling Moss.

Just when you thought the Mercedes McLaren SLR might be approaching its sell-by date, this venerable supercar re-emerges for the summer in a new uncompromising guise. The latest variant fuses modernity with unashamed nostalgia for the days of 1950s derring-do, when legendary racing driver Sir Stirling Moss won the Mille Miglia in record time driving an SLR 300. (I once had an argument about ABS with Sir Stirling on a BMW press trip a few years ago – ‘Not a lot of people know that Ed’.)

Step forward the new SLR Stirling Moss which enters production this month, following on from the SLR Roadster which reached the end of its road in May. Like a magnificent butterfly, the newest SLR will enjoy only a brief moment in the sun, with production ceasing in December.

Uncompromising

The folks at Stuttgart describe this €750,000 (£640,000) – that’s right €750,000! – SLR as ‘adding the crowning glory to the model family... with a new, uncompromisingly spectacular car’. But, look, there’s no roof, nor a windscreen to separate the driver and passenger from the outside world; it’s just man and machine braving the elements.

Gathers no moss: 0-62 mph in 3,5 seconds.

Nevertheless, the new SLR Stirling Moss is also characterised by the most sophisticated technology and a stunning design which reinterprets the SLR legend. With 478 kW/650 hp, the supercharged V8 accelerates the car from standstill to 100 km/h (62 mph) in less than 3.5 seconds, streaking on to a top speed of 350 km/h (217 mph) – no other series-production car is, at the same time, so open and so fast.

Toy for super-rich

Mercedes reckons that this extreme concept makes its new toy for the super-rich a legitimate bearer of Sir Stirling’s name and an instant collector’s item (helped no doubt by the car’s limited-edition status of 75 individually numbered units and the fact that it is only being made available to previous SLR customers).

SLR Stirling Moss and namesake.

Impressive pedigree

This SLR has an impressive pedigree. In the 1950s, the Mercedes-Benz SLR 300 celebrated victory after victory. It won the Mille Miglia and the Targa Florio as well as the Tourist Trophy. It was driven by the stars of the day – Juan Manual Fangio and Karl Kling but, first and foremost, by our own Stirling Moss. At 10 hours, 7 minutes and 48 seconds, Sir Stirling’s Mille Miglia record still stands so it seemed only fitting that the modern-day incarnation of the SLR should bear the ‘Stirling Moss’ name. 

But while the 300 SLR earned its spurs on racing circuits the world over, the newest member of the SLR family is not designed for the track. Although it sets new standards in terms of technology, performance and excitement – just like its forebears – it is aimed at individuals whom Mercedes describes as having ‘exquisite requirements’ while nurturing ‘very special dreams’ – basically the filthy rich.

Sophisticated equipment

Remaining totally true to the specifications of the 300 SLR, the new Silver Arrow’s equipment is both extremely sophisticated and, at one and the same time, decidedly spartan, doing without both roof and side windows. There are just two wind deflectors a couple of centimetres in height to protect the driver and passenger from the airflow. Two air scoops integrated into the bodywork serve as roll-over bars. With this extreme concept the new SLR Stirling Moss is visually very different from all the other vehicles which belong to the elite sports car class.

Sir Stirling Moss.

The entire bodywork is made of lightweight carbon fibre moulded into a pronounced arrow-shaped form and characterised by an elongated bonnet and a compact, muscular rear. As there is no windscreen, the exterior and interior flow smoothly into one. The bonnet stretches right down into the interior, giving the vehicle body a distinctly sleek air. Even when standing still, the car radiates a sculptural kind of charisma.

Further eye-catching features include the aforementioned air scoops behind the driver and passenger. The wings are powerfully contoured. Black-painted ventilation ‘gills’ sit facet-like on the sides. Exactly as they were on the 1950s version, the side skirts on the new SLR are also very high. This prompted the designers’ decision in favour of folding swing-wing doors which open forwards. The vehicle can be closed by two tonneau covers which are carried in the boot.

Bare essentials

In keeping with the authentic exterior, the interior of the SLR is also reduced to the bare essentials; it’s not exactly ascetic, but opulence is discreetly limited to carbon fibre, aluminium and quality leather. An aluminium plate carries the engraved signature of Stirling Moss and covers the area around the shift lever.

Down-force

Developers working on the Stirling Moss were able to fall back on a wealth of experience gathered when producing the SLR Coupé and Roadster, in particular where the technical base was concerned, with its extravagant carbon-fibre design, high-performance suspension and throaty V8 engine. The common denominator uniting the Stirling Moss with the other members of the SLR family is its aerodynamics: a closed underbody and a diffuser in the rear bumper generate maximum possible down-force at the rear axle, but there’s one difference; the diffuser here is considerably larger than that on the Coupé and Roadster.

Hours of development in the wind tunnel ensure the car always generates sufficient down-force for extremely safe handling. However, the driver can also manually operate the airbrake to increase contact pressure further, while the airbrake is also raised during powerful braking at speeds above 120 km/h (75 mph), for additional stability during rapid deceleration.

It’s the end of another era for the SLR, but what a finish!

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