Description[]
The Mercedes-Benz CLK LM was a grand touring race car designed and produced by Mercedes-Benz in partnership with AMG, then an independent tuning company, for use in Group GT1 racing, specifically in the FIA GT Championship. Designed by Gerhard Ungar, the CLK LM succeeded the CLK GTR, with which it had a passing resemblance visually but was unrelated mechanically. As required by FIA GT Championship regulations, a road version of the car had to be built to homologate the car; Mercedes-Benz built two chassis, known as the CLK LM Straßenversion, one of which was a crash test car.
The CLK LM began competition in the 1998 FIA GT Championship, entering at the third round in Hockenheim, replacing the CLK GTRs which had raced the previous two races. Driven by Bernd Schneider, Mark Webber, Klaus Ludwig and Ricardo Zonta, the CLK LMs dominated the season, winning every race they entered, clinching both the Constructors' Championship for Team AMG-Mercedes and the Drivers' Championship for Ludwig and Zonta, both with significant margins over their next best competitors, Porsche. The cars also entered the 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans; this run ended without success, with both cars retiring. The cars were retired after 1998, with entries for the GT1 class being so few thanks to fears of a repeat of Mercedes-Benz's dominance that the FIA decided to scrap the class altogether for 1999. The CLK LM would be replaced by the ill-fated CLR, which resulted in Mercedes-Benz's withdrawal from all sportscar activities that year. Four chassis were produced.
Versions[]
The Mercedes CLK-LM has come out in the following versions:
| Col # | Year | Series | Color | Tampo | Base Color / Type |
Window Color | Interior Color | Wheel Type | Toy # | Country | Notes | Photo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 926 | 1999 | 1999 First Editions 26/26 |
Pearl Light Grey | Silver HW logo on rear wing | Black / Plastic |
Clear | Black | Gold LW | 21073 | Malaysia | 
| |
| 163 | 2000 | Mainline | Red | tiny White Hot Wheels logo on wing | Black / Plastic |
Clear | Black | LW | 27129 | China Malaysia |
| |
| 118 | 2002 | Mainline | Metallic Burgundy | black HW logo on hood | Black / Plastic |
tinted | Black | LW | 55003 | China | 
| |
| 158 | 2003 | Pride Rides 5/10 |
Metallic Blue | red, orange, gold, black tampos | Black / Plastic |
tinted | Black | chrome Red Y5 | 57146 | Malaysia | 
|
See Also[]
Gallery[]
