Mercedes-Benz has spent a considerable amount of money and time in recreating a 1938 Mercedes-Benz 540 К Streamliner. It was originally built for a high-speed endurance race from Berlin to Rome. The event never took place, due to World War Two (WW2).
The recreation was motivated by the chance discovery of the car’s original blueprints in the Mercedes archives and the car will make its public debut at this year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The original race car was based on a 540K chassis fitted with a 5.4-liter, inline eight-cylinder engine.
To get maximum speed and reduce wind resistance to a minimum, Mercedes engineers wrapped it all in a streamlined body. Headlights were integrated into the front mudguards to reduce wind resistance. Door handles were flush with the body and panel gaps were minimized. Even the iconic three-pointed star on the car’s grill was replaced by a painted image on the bonnet.
Trouble was, no one knew if the tyres in 1938 were capable of the withstanding sustained high speeds over the distance between Berlin and Rome. Consequently, tyre manufacturer, Dunlop was asked to develop tyres for the Streamliner, as it was now called. Dunlop tested the car and tyres up and down Germany’s autobahns for a year but by then WW2 meant the race was called off and the car mothballed by Dunlop.
After the war the US Army took the car for its own use in Germany. They later returned it to Dunlop, who returned it to Mercedes-Benz. The folks at Mercedes promptly scrapped most of the aluminium body. Fortunately, the frame and running gear were preserved and shipped off to the Mercedes-Benz Museum in 1950.
A couple of years ago the original blueprints were discovered in Mercedes archives and in 2012 the go-ahead was given to recreate the car. Using CAD design computers combined with coach building skills, it took two years to finish the work. This is not a small car either. The wheelbase is a healthy 3290mm, about 129 inches in old language. Length is 5200mm ( 17 feet).
Back in 1938 close attention was paid to panel fit on the Streamliner in order lower wind resistance to a minimum. Door handles are flush with panels. There are no sharp edeges.
The aluminium rib construction method is clearly evident
