Rare Mercedes-Benz CLK DTM AMG Is Up for Auction, But There is a Catch
CLK DTM AMG is being sold under the “show or display” exemption. That means you can drive it only 2,500 miles per year.
The 2005 Mercedes-Benz CLK DTM AMG is a homologation special. Only 100 coupes were ever made. Amazingly they also built 80 cabriolets. So, you will likely be the only person at your local cars and coffee with one of these machines. A run of the mill C209-platform AMG is a wonderful car in its own right. However, this CLK DTM AMG is far from run of the mill. It is almost cartoonish in awesomeness.
If you gave a 10-year-old child a picture of the regular car and said make it look like the Hulk. This is likely what you would end up with. Of course, the wild looks serve a purpose. It was built to celebrate Bernd Schneider’s Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters championship win in 2003. And DTM racecars are known for their bulging proportions.
The car pictured here is up for sale at the RM Sotheby’s Amelia Island auction on May 22. Due to Covid-19, Amelia Island events were pushed back a couple months from the traditional early March start. So, you have a little extra time to scrape together the cash if you are interested in this quasi-road legal race car.
This rare bird will probably fetch in the neighborhood of a quarter of a million dollars. So, we are sure you are thankful for the extra time. Besides the rarity, what makes this car so special and worthy of the price tag?
It is powered by a hand built 5.4-liter supercharged V-8 producing 582 horsepower. And is mated to a Mercedes-Benz SpeedShift 5G-Tronic automatic transmission. It offers enough grunt to hit 60 mph in under 4 seconds and hit 200 mph on the top end.
Not bad for a car old enough to apply for its own driving license in most states. It goes about this business of speed in quite an aggressive manner. It is not a distant and isolated experience. The car is fast, loud, and shifts are aggressive. It is a demanding speed machine. In fact, 2,500 miles a year may well be more than you can handle.
However, on the inside it is not a stripped-out racer. Sure, it has deep leather and alcantara bucket seats and a square, DTM-inspired steering wheel. But it also has a full interior with plenty of carbon fiber bits. It is sporty for sure but has all the luxury you would expect from a Mercedes-Benz.
The outside is covered in silver metallic paint naturally. With only about 1,500 miles on the clock the paint looks as perfect as you would expect. This car comes with accessories including manuals, tool roll, jack, air compressor, battery tender, and first aid kit.
This CLK DTM AMG was imported from Germany to Texas in 2009. It was part of the distinctive Canepa Collection in Scotts Valley, California until 2015. It is now one of only five examples currently in North America. As we stated earlier, you won’t parking next to a row of these at the next cars and coffee.
It is desirable for sure. However, would you be willing to pay $250K for a car you could only drive 2,500 miles per year? That works out to 100 bucks per mile. Let us know your thoughts in the MB World forums.
Photos: RM Sotheby’s
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