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I ran across this thread from 2004 where a guy is talking about buying a C43 McLaren variant that has 390 BHP. He claims it is one of 90 in the world, I have NEVER heard of such a beast. Can anyone confirm or deny the existence of said variant???
I ran across this thread from 2004 where a guy is talking about buying a C43 McLaren variant that has 390 BHP. He claims it is one of 90 in the world, I have NEVER heard of such a beast. Can anyone confirm or deny the existence of said variant???
there wasn't much info about this car.
dude deleted his pics.
this car seems to be a hidden treasure?
I guess Mclaren tweaked that car somehow?
it would have been great to know what so special about it?
there wasn't much info about this car.
dude deleted his pics.
this car seems to be a hidden treasure?
I guess Mclaren tweaked that car somehow?
it would have been great to know what so special about it?
to start it had 390 BHP according to the OP..... that's pretty special I'd say
Yes, I have also heard about a C43 McLaren, but it remains rather a mystery. Have you heard about the C32 Wagen that had been tweaked by McLaren and owned by Bernie Ecclestone aka "Mr F1"?? That was on ebay some time back.
He killed the sale in ebay, but here is what he advertised:
Mercedes C43 AMG, McLaren factory edition. Only 6 ever produced by McLaren factory in Woking.
These 6 produced editions were Formula 1 (F1) Safety Tribute cars i have been told.
306 bhp from AMG to 390 bhp out of McLaren
This is an ultra rare beast.
Front and rear PDC sensors
Sunroof
Xenon lights from factory
Electric seats, Mirrors, lumbar support
Climate control
Multiple airbags
AMG sill plates
Elec folding mirrors
Headlamp wash wipe
AMG alloys
£1000's have been spent maintaining this car
Mechanically is is perfect, with no faults whatsoever.
Engine, gearbox, and all mechanical items are solid and work perfect.
This car is extremely fast!.
Owned for the last 14 years by a business man in Canary Wharf London.
This is the first Mercedes to be fully built by AMG, so is a rare model increasing in value
Very reluctant sale...
Now the bad bits:
Rust spot on passenger rear door, and drivers side front wing, and little bit on roof edge
Wheels need a refurbish
i dont believe anything of that car being a McLaren.
tacho till 260km/h.
anybody can put a decal on it.
if u have one for sale u advertise it like one.
McLaren would for sure made a significant detail to a C43 if they made one at all.
that $0.01 decal doenst make it an McLaren.
Very little is known about the mclaren units but I'm pretty sure it existed. One was made for a f1 driver (forgot his name). I also read an article before but I couldn't remember what issue it was
So this has really been bothering me lol. Anyway, I guess the question is whether the claim is real or urban legend?
OK. Let's look at the original claim from the other forum:
The ad below appears to be talking about a 390BHP C43, oh yes
One of 90 cars made I belive. Anyone have any info on these varients? I assume they are the same spec as the C43's that were used as F1 saftey cars..
OK and here is the claim from the ebay ad recently listed and then removed:
Mercedes C43 AMG, McLaren factory edition. Only 6 ever produced by McLaren factory in Woking.
These 6 produced editions were Formula 1 (F1) Safety Tribute cars i have been told.
306 bhp from AMG to 390 bhp out of McLaren
Original Claim
1. In the first quote, they say there were 90 cars made. This claim is untrue. There would be much more evidence, like pictures and documentation, if 90 "McLaren C43's" were made.
2. In the first quote, he assumes that the vehicle is the same spec as the C43 F1 Safety Cars. This claim is untrue. It is very well documented that 2 C36's were used as the Safety and Medical Cars for F1. The C43 ("McLaren" or AMG) was never used as a Safety or Medical Car in F1 Racing.
Ebay Ad
3. The ebay ad takes a different turn from the original claims. Now the claim is that there are 6 McLaren cars built which were Safety Cars in F1. This claim is untrue. This claim almost seems plausible because McLaren began using Mercedes engines in 1995 and in addition, McLaren is synonymous with F1 Racing. However, it is well documented that the 1996 Safety Car was the C36 (More about this in a minute). Enjoy the video for now...
4. The ebay ad makes a claim that the 6 cars produced at the McLaren Factory in Woking had 390 hp. This claim is likely true, but the car for sale is not one of the 6. Mercedes chose the C36 to debut as a Safety car in F1 racing because Mercedes was highly active in DTM racing. Mercedes had 6 W202 DTM cars that produced nearly 400 HP. These W202 DTM Racers were 6 cylinder engines and it is likely that they were tuned or built in part by McLaren. Also keep in mind that by 1993, well before the the McLaren/Mercedes relationship, McLaren was building road cars with over 600 hp and so again, it wouldn't make sense for McLaren to secretly build (and I say secretly because there is absolutely no documentation) 390 hp C43's.
This explanation is garnered from the extensive online research I have undertaken to quell my curiosity over this matter. I am more than grateful if anyone can correct me or add information to my explanation.
now finally u/someone made some homework!!!
if Mclaren has made any W202 into "McLaren/C55 trim" for sure there would have been any, small, info about it.
ïve been spoken to, heard about, somone said...bla die blahdiblahdiblah...
just screeming i have an MCLaren for sale bacause u stick a decal on it is a f-ing joke.
my car has, proven , 400HP... do i have an McLaren version too??
its to be found all over the internet that F1 used C36's back then for being a pacecar.
and indeed.. even the DTM guys used 6-cilinders not even V8's.
we can better hunt for a true C55 because we for sure know they are out there... (there is official documentation for that ---> http://www.benzclub.ru/forum/showthr...330938&page=12) but finding one is a reall pita.
see this interesting video with also named partsnumbers and a real trans cooler at 1.11 minute:
Very little is known about the mclaren units but I'm pretty sure it existed. One was made for a f1 driver (forgot his name). I also read an article before but I couldn't remember what issue it was
The F1 driver was David Coulthard when he drove for McLaren
Also when I visited "Mothership" in Affalterbach a couple of years ago, I asked the question to the AMG engineers. They had to ask for info with the factory archivist and came back a couple of weeks later saying they didn't have ANY info regarding this version of the c43.
I believe someone asked the people at McLaren in Working but didn't get any info back.
Probably asking the question directly to David Coulthard could give some light to this mysterious model.
only the C36 was used as a pacecar..
by the look of the car in the picture shown there it was a stock one too.
looks like it hasnt even been lowered for better handling...
still interesting thread. because the Q rises.. where's DC's W202
and what was it look like and how was it modified or personalized..
If this is true for the year 1999, it could then be a test mule, as the C55 didn't appear until 00'.
However, I don't recall having read that the C55 ever came in T (touring) version aka station wagon, not unless it was available as a special order and converted. The C55 started life as a C43 on the production line and was sent to Affalterbach to be modified by AMG.
Also contrary to popular belief, the C43 was always assembled on the regular MB assembly line and not at Affalterbach. This still holds today for all AMG models. Affalterbach only get to do in-house individual customer specials for people with deeeeep pockets. I manged to visit that specific workshop but no photos allowed like everywhere in the factory
Also contrary to popular belief, the C43 was always assembled on the regular MB assembly line and not at Affalterbach. This still holds today for all AMG models. Affalterbach only get to do in-house individual customer specials for people with deeeeep pockets. I manged to visit that specific workshop but no photos allowed like everywhere in the factory
So you're saying that the 43s were not fully hand built? & they were not even built in Affalterbach? If this is the case, I have been completely misinformed & have been feeding all of my friends & family $#%T for many years. I also just read that the 11th character in your VIN is where the vehicle is assembled, is this correct?
its too bad owners with a real C55/W202 dont visit forums. and show them and have us see differences.
i would love to read/see this booklet which is shown in the video i posted.
for example seeing that theres a bigger/real oilcooler for the transmission is used is interesting... thats not what ive seen before by guys (like me) who do/did the swap.
(btw the oil cooler used by CM60K from this SLK55 also has my very attention as i think temperatures are higher with the stock cooling since i swapped. but this is just a sidenote..)
the difference in floorpans with W202 is also something which interests me since my hardydisk hits my bottom when accelerating like really really hard from a stand still.
(disk is new, rubbers from differential are new as also the bolt with the shims and rubbers.)
09-19-2010, 04:16 PM
Man would I like a set 
