In the
Concept Category, Team Barnes Selects the first 300km/h car, the 1969
Mercedes-Benz C-111

The
C111 was a series of experimental
automobiles produced by
Mercedes-Benz in the 1960s and 1970s. The company was experimenting with new engine technologies, including
Wankel engines,
Diesel engines, and
turbochargers, and used the basic C111 platform as a testbed. Other experimental features included
gullwing doors and a luxurious interior with leather trim and
air conditioning.
The
first version of the C111 was completed in 1969. It used a
fiberglass body shell and had a
three-rotor direct
fuel injected Wankel engine mounted
in the middle. The next C111 appeared in 1970. It used a
four-rotor engine producing 370 hp (275 kW). The car could reportedly hit 290 km/h (180 mph).
The company decided not to adopt the Wankel engine and turned to
Diesel experiments for the third C111. With its 230 horsepower (170 kW)@ 4,400-4,600 5-speed manual
straight-5 turbo-Diesel, the C111 broke nine diesel and gas speed records. With more
aerodynamic bodywork that gave it an air
drag coefficient of an incredible .191, the C111 eventually hit 200 mph (322 km/h) at
Narḍ in 1978, and averaged 14.7mpg@ 316 km/h (195.4 mph) over a 12 hour cruise. A later 500 hp (372 kW) 4.8 L twin KKK-turbocharged
V8 version set another record, with an average lap-speed of 403.78 km/h (250.958 mph). It was achieved by Dr. Hans Leibold in 1 minute, 56.67 seconds on May 5, 1979.