Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3

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Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3
Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL 6.9

The Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3 is a full-sized luxury

Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL (W109). The result was a nearly 2-ton sports sedan with muscle car
performance. At the time of its release it was one of the world's fastest four-door cars.

A total of 6,526 300 SEL 6.3s were produced, and though quite costly to maintain are very collectible today.

Concept

The car started out as a private venture in 1966 by company engineer Erich Waxenberger. His principle was simple: take the powerful 6.3 litre

W109
model. The result was an impressive level of performance for the era and for the style of automobile.

The company turned the prototype into a production model, introduced at the

Gullwing and Mercedes-Benz 300 SL roadsters of the 1950s, but made better use of the M100 engine production facilities.[citation needed] By the end of line's production the 6,500 built for the 300 SEL 6.3 far outnumbered the 2,700 turned out for the 600.[citation needed
]

The 6.3 was known for its ability to cruise at over 200 km/h (124 mph) with five occupants in complete comfort. Later, the company also fitted new, smaller V8 engines into the W109 series. The 300 SEL 4.5 was only available in the United States, while the 280 SE 3.5 Coupé could also be ordered in Europe.

In 1975, the

Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL 6.9
was introduced as a 300 SEL 6.3 successor with a larger displacement engine for more power and various modifications to the equipment.

Features

M100 engine in a 300 SEL 6.3

The 300 SEL 6.3 was an extremely luxurious vehicle for its era. Standard features included

central locking and power steering
. Air conditioning, power sunroof, audio tape deck, and rear window curtains, writing tables, and reading lamps were available as options.

Engine

Performance

  • 0-62 mph (100 km/h): 6.6 seconds
  • 0-100 mph (160 km/h) : 14.6 seconds
  • Standing quarter-mile (~400 m) : 14.2 seconds
  • Top speed : 220 km/h (137 mph) (factory figure)

Test results

Auto, Motor und Sport published the following test results for the 300 SEL 6.3 in March 1968:[3]

  • 0–80 km/h (49.7 mph): 4.3 s
  • 0–100 km/h (62.1 mph): 6.5 s
  • 0–120 km/h (74.6 mph): 9.3 s
  • 0–140 km/h (87.0 mph): 13.0 s
  • 0–160 km/h (99.4 mph): 17.3 s
  • 0–180 km/h (111.8 mph): 22.8 s
  • 0–200 km/h (124.3 mph): 31.0 s
  • 0–1,000 m (3,281 ft): 27.1 s
  • Top Speed: 220 km/h (137 mph)

Motor racing

Rote Sau car at Legendy 2014 car show in Prague

Originally not intended for motor sports, a few cars were built for racing, usually with the engine enlarged to 6.8 litres or more. The car had an impressive, but short-lived racing career, due to the lack of suitable tyres, or rule changes preventing the use of them.

24 Hours of Spa in 1971. At the end of its racing career the 6,834 cc engine yielded 428 PS (315 kW; 422 hp). The car was sold to French company Matra who used it for tests of jet fighter landing gear.[4][5]
Five examples were built: three racers and two test cars.

References

  1. Motor
    . Vol. nbr 3430. 16 March 1968. p. 58.
  2. ^ "Fuel injection pump".
  3. Auto, Motor und Sport 6/1968 16 March 1968 https://web.archive.org/web/20090526134958/http://www.einszweidrei.de/mercedes/mb300sel631091969-1.htm
  4. ^ Tom Grünweg (19 May 2006). "Renaissance der "Roten Sau"". Der Spiegel (in German).
  5. ^ http://www.mbig.de/fileadmin/Dateien/Clubleben/Ponton-Kurier/1999/PK1999_1_Vorsicht_bissiger_Benz.pdf Archived 2019-08-04 at the Wayback Machine Oldtimer-Markt 7/98

External links

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