Completely wrong watch to celebrate the
Stromlinienwagen Mercedes W196, one of my favorite racecars ever, on par with Porsche’s 917/30.
The dial - and the fabulous W196 finishing - are a glimmering silver.
Much like under_score’s feets…
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I got a chance to get close to this chassis when it was at Sears several years ago.
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The long-tail and covered fenders gave their 1954 Formula 1 car incredible speed at tracks like Monza - where the additional weight was less of a penalty than the longer legs the streamlining provided. In addition to the streamlined version, Mercedes-Benz also used otherwise-mechanically identical but lighter and more nimble
open-wheeled version of the same F1 cars at shorter tracks.
It was powered by a 2.5 litre straight eight with desmodromic valve gear and direct fuel injection.
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The thing about 1954’s Monza - not only was the banking extreme… it was also bumpy as hell.
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That shapely bulk of clever racing history and beautiful automotive art that demonstrated to the world the impact of airflow upon performance has just recently sold for €51,000,000
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