Mercedes-Benz Heritage presents Silver Arrows and super sports cars at the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2023. From 13 to 16 July 2023, the brand’s unique racing history will be brought to life for the more than 210,000 expected visitors. On the 1.86-kilometre, slightly uphill tarmac strip in the park at Goodwood House, as well as on the Forest Rally Stage, renowned brand ambassadors will drive a dozen famous racing sports cars and sports cars from Mercedes-Benz and Mercedes-AMG built between 1939 and 2023. This promises a thrilling combination of speed, sound and the aesthetic appeal of the Silver Arrows.
Festival of Speed in shining silver
The Goodwood Festival of Speed has been hosted by Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox, the Duke of Richmond, at his family’s country estate for 30 years. The event is affectionately known as the “largest motorised garden party in the world”. Every year since 1993, racing cars and sports cars from the very early years of motorsport to current vehicles can be seen in action here, especially on the hillclimb track. The attractive supporting programme extends far beyond motorsport and includes insights into the mobility of the future.
The racing cars presented by Mercedes-Benz Heritage recall highlights of motorsport history. Between the driving events, the vehicles can be admired in the Classic Car Paddock.
The oldest operational vehicle presented by Mercedes-Benz Heritage is the Mercedes-Benz W 165. It was developed for a single race, the 1939 Tripoli Grand Prix. Despite a change in the race regulations, it enabled Mercedes-Benz to compete in the prestigious competition and achieve a double victory: Hermann Lang won the race with this Silver Arrow, ahead of his teammate Rudolf Caracciola.
The double victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June 1952 was one of the great successes of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL racing sports car (W 194). In that year, the brand made a highly successful return to motor racing: the 300 SL also won the Berne Prize, the Nürburgring Grand Jubilee Prize for sports cars and the Carrera Panamericana. In the famous 24-hour race, Hermann Lang shared the eventual winning car with Fritz Rieß. The 300 SL with the distinctive blue radiator grille surround is brought to Goodwood by a private collector.
With the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR (W 196 S) racing sports car, the brand won the 1955 World Sports Car Championship. Great successes included the legendary victory in the 1955 Mille Miglia by Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson, with start number 722. The vehicle presented at Goodwood is the 300 SLR with chassis number 10 – the last racing sports car of this type to be built. It was not used in races in 1955 but was scheduled to compete in 1956 – as were the famous 300 SLR “Uhlenhaut Coupés”. However, at the end of the 1955 season, at the height of its success, Mercedes-Benz withdrew from motor racing for a period and concentrated entirely on the development of new passenger cars.
40 years ago, a Mercedes-Benz 280 GE was the overall winner of the legendary Paris–Dakar Rally. The aerodynamic improvements made to the off-road vehicle were particularly unusual. G-specialist Jörg Sand built the 280 GE rally car presented at Goodwood as a true replica of the original winning car driven by Jacky Ickx and Claude Brasseur in 1983. The vehicle will be used on the Forest Rally Stage.
In 1989, Jochen Mass, Stanley Dickens and Manuel Reuter won the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the Sauber-Mercedes C 9. Their vehicle is on display at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart. At Goodwood, Mercedes-Benz Classic is showing the second-placed car driven by Mauro Baldi, Kenny Acheson and Gianfranco Brancatelli.
The uncompromisingly open Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Stirling Moss (Z 199) of 2009 crowned the development of this series of high-performance sports cars. 20 years ago, Mercedes-Benz together with McLaren, its Formula One partner at the time, presented the coupé with gullwing doors as the first model in the series.
The fastest Silver Arrows at Goodwood are two Formula One racing cars:
The MGP W02 dates from 2011 and, in that season, it was driven by the duo of Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg. Mick Schumacher, a test driver for the Mercedes-AMG Formula One team since 2023, will drive his father’s racing car at Goodwood.
In 2021, the Mercedes-AMG F1 W12 E Performance won the Formula One Constructors’ Championship with drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. Grand Prix driver Esteban Gutiérrez will drive the monoposto from the hybrid era that was so successful for the brand at Goodwood.
The two racing cars will be on display in the Formula One Pit Lane.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles at Goodwood:
Mercedes-AMG is showing the peak of supercar engineering with the Mercedes-AMG ONE. Formula One technology enables a system output of 782 kW (1,063 hp) to be achieved.
Also taking to the track at Goodwood are a still camouflaged variant of the next-generation Mercedes-AMG GT and a Mercedes-AMG GT2 customer sports racing car.
The Mercedes-AMG ONE and the new Mercedes-AMG GT can be seen in the Supercar Paddock, while the Mercedes-AMG GT2 is presented in the Classic Car Paddock.
20 years of Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren and well-known brand ambassadors
Mercedes-Benz presented the high-performance Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren sports car of the 199 series at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt/Main (IAA) from 11 to 21 September 2003. The car had been jointly developed with Formula One partner McLaren. Its 460 kW (626 hp) 5.5-litre V8 supercharged engine (M 155) came from Mercedes-AMG. The 199 series comprised the SLR McLaren Coupé (2004 to 2008), the SLR McLaren Roadster (2007 to 2009), the SLR McLaren 722 Edition (2006 to 2008) and the uncompromisingly open SLR McLaren Stirling Moss (2009). An SLR McLaren Stirling Moss from the Mercedes-Benz Heritage collection is on display in the Classic Car Paddock.
To mark the 20th anniversary of the SLR premiere in 2003, the Mercedes-Benz SLR.CLUB will be a guest at the Goodwood Festival of Speed with a total of 20 vehicles from this exclusive model series (including four examples of the SLR McLaren Stirling Moss). The vehicles of the recognised brand club will be parked in the Performance Car Paddock. On 13 July, they will complete the legendary Goodwood Hillclimb.
Brand ambassadors
Mercedes-Benz Heritage and Mercedes-AMG are bringing current and former racing drivers to Goodwood as knowledgeable brand ambassadors. They not only routinely drive valuable classics at racing speed but are also sought-after conversation partners. At the Festival of Speed, the brand ambassadors are often in action several times a day with different vehicles. The following drivers are scheduled to take part in the Goodwood Festival of Speed:
Esteban Gutiérrez
Thomas Jäger
Jochen Mass
Bernd Mayländer
Jörg Sand
Bernd Schneider
Mick Schumacher
Karl Wendlinger
30 years of the Goodwood Festival of Speed
Goodwood has had a firm place in motorsport since the middle of the 20th century. In 1936, the grandfather of the present Duke held a race on the hillclimb track in the park at Goodwood House, which he won with a Lancia. The Goodwood Motor Circuit was opened in 1948, and car races were held there until 1966. Born in 1955, Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox, 11th Duke of Richmond, attended the last of these events at the side of his grandfather, who was known for his love of motor racing. In 1993, 30 years ago, he hosted the first Festival of Speed. A few years later, the authorities also permitted additional races with historic vehicles to be held on the tradition-laden circuit. This year, the resulting Goodwood Revival will be held on 10 September 2023.
The Mercedes-Benz Heritage vehicles at the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2023
Mercedes-Benz 1.5-litre W 165 racing car (1939)
Presentation at the Goodwood Festival of Speed: Dynamic
Mercedes-Benz developed the W 165 for one single race – the 1939 Tripoli Grand Prix in Libya. The Italian event organisers announced the race exclusively for voiturette formula vehicles with a 1.5-litre engine. The aim was to end the previous winning streak of the German manufacturers, since neither Mercedes-Benz (Tripoli winner in 1935, 1937 and 1938) nor Auto Union (winner in 1936) had a racing car suitable for this category. However, the racing department in Stuttgart accepted the challenge and built an all-new 1.5-litre racing car in less than eight months. Two W 165s took up the gauntlet on 7 May 1939, vastly outnumbered by the competition consisting of 28 red-painted Alfa Romeos and Maseratis. They went on to secure a triumphant double victory: Hermann Lang won the spectacular desert race for the third time, and Rudolf Caracciola finished second. The fastest Italian car crossed the finishing line a good 4 minutes after the Silver Arrows.
Technical data: Mercedes-Benz 1.5-litre racing car W 165
Deployment: 1939
Cylinders: V8
Displacement: 1,493 cc
Max. output: 187 kW (254 hp)
Top speed: 272 km/h
Mercedes-Benz 300 SL racing sports car (W 194, 1952)
Presentation at the Goodwood Festival of Speed: Static
The winner of the 1952 Le Mans race was a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL racing sports car (W 194). This 300 SL belongs to a private collector. At the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1952, Hermann Lang and Fritz Rieß won with this car (00007/52) with the start number 21 and a blue border around the radiator grille. Second place went to Theo Helfrich and Helmut Niedermayr, also with a 300 SL. After the Second World War, Mercedes-Benz re-entered motor racing with the W 194. Limited resources initially inhibited the development of a Formula One racing car as new rules had been announced for the 1954 season. The axles, transmission and engine of the new racing car were derived from components of the Mercedes-Benz 300 (W 186) prestige saloon. One completely new feature was an extremely lightweight yet very torsionally rigid spaceframe enclosed by a streamlined light-alloy body. As the height of the spaceframe restricted the available entry space, the racing sports car was fitted with characteristic gullwing doors with roof-mounted hinges. The 300 SL racing sports car achieved immediate success in 1952: in addition to the double victory at Le Mans, its major racing successes included the triple victory at the Berne Prize (Switzerland), the double victory at the Carrera Panamericana in Mexico and the quadruple victory at the Nürburgring Grand Jubilee Prize.
Technical data: Mercedes-Benz 300 SL racing sports car (W 194)
Deployment: 1952
Cylinders: 6/In-line
Displacement: 2,996 cc
Output: 125 kW (170 hp)
Top speed: 240 km/h
Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR racing sports car (W 196 S, 1955)
Presentation at the Goodwood Festival of Speed: Dynamic
Mercedes-Benz developed the 300 SLR (W 196 S) for the 1955 World Sportscar Championship. It was based on the successful W 196 R Formula One racing car. Besides the two-seater body, the main difference was the engine: the racing sports car was not bound by the displacement limit of Formula One and was powered by a three-litre version of the in-line eight-cylinder engine which did not require any special racing fuel and ran on regular premium petrol. Its high performance potential and unequalled durability and reliability made the 300 SLR far superior to its competitors in 1955: this was impressively demonstrated by double victories in the Mille Miglia, the Eifel Race, the Swedish Grand Prix and the Targa Florio (Sicily), the triple victory in the Tourist Trophy in Ireland and finally its victory in the World Sportscar Championship. The vehicle with chassis number 10 is presented at the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2023. It was intended for the 1956 season and never took part in a race.
Technical data: Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR (W 196 S) racing sports car
Deployment: 1955
Cylinders: 8/In-line
Displacement: 2,982 cc
Output: 222 kW (302 hp)
Top speed: More than 300 km/h
Mercedes-Benz 280 GE “Paris–Dakar” (W 460, 1983)
Presentation at the Goodwood Festival of Speed: Dynamic
40 years ago, Mercedes-Benz triumphed in the world’s toughest rally: racing driver Jacky Ickx and his co-driver, actor Claude Brasseur, won the 1983 Paris–Dakar Rally in the Mercedes-Benz 280 GE. The project was managed by Mercedes-Benz France and supported by the company’s engineers from Germany. The twin-cam six-cylinder engine was optimised for the rigours of the rally, and above all the aerodynamics of the G-model were improved. The result was a more than 20 km/h increase in top speed with lower fuel consumption. The fate of the original winning car of the 1983 Paris–Dakar Rally is unknown. Rally fan and G-model specialist Jörg Sand built a faithful replica based on a 1982 G-model. He used photos to help him and was supported by the Mercedes-Benz engineers involved in the 1983 project. Jörg Sand will present this off-road vehicle at Goodwood.
Technical data: Mercedes-Benz 280 GE “Paris–Dakar” (W 460)
Deployment: 1983
Cylinders: 6
Displacement: 4,973 cc
Output: 145 kW (197 hp)
Top speed: Just under 200 km/h
Sauber-Mercedes C 9 Group C racing sports car (1989)
Presentation at the Goodwood Festival of Speed: Dynamic
The late 1980s were marked by the return of Mercedes-Benz to the race track: Group C racing cars were the first to bear the three-pointed star. Sauber-Mercedes C 9 vehicles had usually appeared in a black or dark blue livery since 1987, but in 1989 they were also updated visually: they now received a silver paint finish that clearly placed them in the tradition of the Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows. In 1989 alone, the new racing cars emerged victorious in eight out of nine races. One of these was the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 10 and 11 June 1989: Mercedes-Benz drivers Jochen Mass / Manuel Reuter / Stanley Dickens and Mauro Baldi / Kenny Acheson / Gianfranco Brancatelli achieved a double victory with the C 9 Silver Arrows. At the end of the season, Jean-Louis Schlesser won the Sportscar World Championship in the C 9.
Technical data: Sauber-Mercedes C 9 Group C racing sports car
Deployment: 1989 to 1990
Cylinders: V8
Displacement: 4,973 cc
Output: 530 kW (720 hp)
Top speed: 400 km/h
Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Stirling Moss (Z 199), 2009
Presentation at the Goodwood Festival of Speed: Dynamic
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren high-performance sports car made its debut in 2004. It was created in cooperation with the then Formula One partner McLaren. Its design with gullwing doors and stylistic features of the Formula One Silver Arrows linked the two-seater to the legendary SLR racing sports cars of the 1950s, and to the formula cars of the modern era with which McLaren-Mercedes won the Formula One World Championship in 1998 and 1999. The 5.5-litre supercharged V8 engine was developed by Mercedes-AMG, as was the AMG Speedshift transmission. 2006 saw the launch of the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren 722 Edition. The SLR McLaren Roadster followed in 2007, and the SLR McLaren 722 Edition Roadster in 2008. In 2009, Mercedes-Benz and McLaren crowned the SLR series with the spectacular and uncompromising SLR McLaren Stirling Moss. The high-performance sports car has no roof, windscreen or side windows; instead, the driver and passenger enjoy sheer high-speed fascination with all the attributes of a speedster. A 478 kW (650 hp) V8 supercharged engine accelerates the SLR McLaren Stirling Moss from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 3.5 seconds, with a top speed of 350 km/h. This vehicle was the final model of the 199 series and was limited to 75 examples.
Technical data: Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Stirling Moss (Z 199)
Production time: 2009
Cylinders: V8
Displacement: 5,439 cc
Output: 478 kW (650 hp)
Top speed: 334 km/h
The brand ambassadors of Mercedes-Benz Heritage and Mercedes-AMG at the Goodwood Festival of Speed 2023
Esteban Gutiérrez
Born on 5 August 1991 in Monterrey, Mexico
Esteban caught the motorsport virus at a young age, from his older brother Andrés. At the age of 13, he started kart racing and achieved success in Mexico. From there he switched to Formula BMW USA for the 2007 season. This not only gave him his first experience in formula racing, but he also ended the year as the best rookie with second place overall. The following year, he went on to compete in the European championship and secured the title with seven victories and a 26-point lead. He rounded off the year with third place at the 2008 Formula BMW World Final in Mexico City. His talent was also evident in the Formula 3 Euro Series. At the end of 2009 he tested a Formula One car for BMW Sauber for the first time, a reward for winning Formula BMW Europe. In 2010, two races before the end of the season, he secured the championship in his first season of the GP3 series. He also became a test and reserve driver for the Sauber F1 Team. In parallel, and also successfully, he competed in the GP2 series from 2011. He made his Formula One racing debut with Sauber in 2013. However, the season was difficult, and he achieved only one top-10 result. At the end of the 2014 season, he left Sauber to become a test and reserve driver at Ferrari. A year later, he made a comeback with Haas. After leaving there, Gutiérrez competed in various racing series, including Formula E and the IndyCar Series. He has been a simulator and development driver for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One team since 2019.
Thomas Jäger
Born on 27 October 1976 in Chemnitz (then Karl-Marx-Stadt), Germany
Racing driver, developer, manager: Thomas Jäger has “petrol in his blood” in every respect. The beginnings of his passion for motorsport date back to 1990: he won his first kart race at the age of 14, laying the foundation for his future career. After Formula 3, he became a pro in 2000 and achieved success as a Mercedes works driver in the DTM for four years. In 2009 he added an overall victory in the Porsche Carrera Cup to his collection of titles. In 2010, the Business Administration degree holder from Munich joined Mercedes-AMG’s new customer sports project as coordinator, where he played a key role in its establishment and development. On the race track too, he continued to celebrate successes of a historic nature: at the 4-hour race on the Nürburgring North Loop, he achieved the very first victory by an SLS AMG GT3 in 2010. In 2012, he won the 24-hour race in Dubai and, in 2013, the 12-hour race in Bathurst. In 2014 and 2015, further victories followed on the North Loop and at the 24-hour race in Le Castellet. In 2016 and 2018, Jäger won the 6-hour qualifying race at Nürburgring and was on the rostrum again after the 24-hour race in 2018 and 2019. Today, Thomas Jäger still works as a development driver for Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing, and, on completion of GT2 development, he won the 2023 Nürburgring 24-hour race in the SP-X class. With his driving expertise, he is also responsible for the sporting management of the DTM programme at AMG, among other activities.
