Bonhams announced Monday that it will auction the 1954 2½-liter, straight-8 Mercedes-Benz W196, which legendary driver Juan Manuel Fangio piloted to wins in the 1954 German and Swiss Grand Prix races, at their Goodwood Festival of Speed sale on July 12, 2013. Chassis 00006 also was the first open-wheeled, slipper-bodied postwar Mercedes-Benz to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix race. The car’s innovative W196 design also marked the successful introduction to Formula 1 of the following technologies: Fuel-injected engine All-independent suspension Multi-tubular “spaceframe” lightweight chassis design All-round inboard-mounted brakes The in-line or ‘straight-8’ engine ‘lay-down’ configuration to minimize the car’s overall […]
Bonhams announced Monday that it will auction the 1954 2½-liter, straight-8 Mercedes-Benz W196, which legendary driver Juan Manuel Fangio piloted to wins in the 1954 German and Swiss Grand Prix races, at their Goodwood Festival of Speed sale on July 12, 2013.
Chassis 00006 also was the first open-wheeled, slipper-bodied postwar Mercedes-Benz to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix race.
The car’s innovative W196 design also marked the successful introduction to Formula 1 of the following technologies:
- Fuel-injected engine
- All-independent suspension
- Multi-tubular “spaceframe” lightweight chassis design
- All-round inboard-mounted brakes
- The in-line or ‘straight-8’ engine ‘lay-down’ configuration to minimize the car’s overall height
- Power take-off from the centre of the engine’s long 8-cylinder crankshaft to minimize vibration
- “My motoring auction career spans five decades, and I have been privileged to have handled some of the world’s most desirable and important motor cars,” said Robert Brooks, Bonhams chairman. “To handle the sale of this legendary W196 Grand Prix Car – the only one out of captivity – could well be the pinnacle. Our Goodwood Festival of Speed auction is shaping up to even eclipse the record breaking sale of last year.”
For more information, visit www.bonhams.com.
