A racing enthusiast didn’t realise how special the road car was when he purchased a 450SLC 5.0. He then decided to build one of the ultimate Mercedes-Benz AMG tribute race cars to give his creation a deeper meaning.
Words: Wilhelm Lutjeharms
Some enthusiasts feel the need to create a special car, or a car they can ultimately never own. We have seen this several times in the past and the creation can be quite inspiring. That is partly what happened to Dawie Olivier in South Africa. Apart from being a car enthusiast, he is keen amateur racer and has built a number of cars during the course of his racing career.
The history
Although this specific 450SLC 5.0 racing car is now in the hands of another Mercedes-Benz enthusiast (which we’ll get to shortly), Dawie is the one who came up with the idea and who built the car. He was the starting point and was keen to discuss the car over the phone.
“I was searching for a car that would be eligible to race in HRSA (Historic Racing South Africa). Then I found this car, it is a very rare 450 SLC 5.0, but I didn’t know how special they were. SLCs have been homologated in Germany in period to go racing in the World Rally Championship. I bought it from a guy who got it from his father. Little did I know that the 5.0-litre was rather special. I started stripping the car to get it ready for racing duties when I was informed about a registry for these cars. I also removed the three-speed automatic – all of this before I knew the rarity of these cars! One Christmas holiday I started reading about these cars and found that they were used by AMG with the Mampe Lufthansa Cocktail sponsorship for circuit racing. Mampe, a German liqueur manufacturer wanted to promote its cocktail that was served on the airline’s flights.”
“Just three original cars were built. And the more I tried to research these cars, the less information I found. Eventually I gained access to all the FIA homologation documents for the Mampe cars.”
In the meantime Dawie raced the car, but had to do so with 15-inch wheels and the car being extremely heavy, as the racing authorities wouldn't allow him to race a replica.
“The rules allowed me to install a five-speed ZF manual transmission and improved brakes. I also had a new limited slip differential built. Once in a four-hour race in East London I came fifth overall, which was quite an achievement. This was mainly achieved because the car ran so reliably.”
Next, Dawie made contact with the DMSB (Deutscher Motor Sport Bund). “After a couple of days I received a reply via email with the DMSB’s homologation documents for the Mampe racing car and the sender wished me luck in building the replica. I was extremely thankful and excited.”
With a significant collection of pictures of the original car that Dawie had collected over the years, the project started. The bodywork was manufactured while the aluminium bonnet and bootlid remained. Dawie tried to stay as true to that of the original, but admitted that it was a fault on his side to let the three-speed automatic gearbox go – but soon I would find out that I differ from him. According to Dawie, one of the reasons it was raced with the automatic at the time was that there wasn’t a manual gearbox reliable enough to handle the torque.
“I fitted a new rack and pinion electric powering steering system as the original was falling to pieces.” Dawie also spent a lot of money and energy on the rebuild of the engine and on further research about the details of the car car.
At the track
As these pictures testify, and as I walk up to it parked in the pits of Zwartkops Raceway outside Pretoria in South Africa, the car looks pretty much identical to the original - the purposeful wider wheelarches with the cut-outs towards the back show off the slick racing tyres and then there are those unique blank-out headlight surrounds.
Its current owner, Etienne Prowse is in his element, having arguably his pride and joy at the track. I quickly learn that he is a true enthusiast, and this is not the only car in his collection. He is busy sourcing selected modern classic AMGs, purely because he likes them and good ones are becoming rarer by the day.
He explains why he bought this Mampe tribute and what it means to him. It is worth noting, however, that there was another enthusiast, who also races, who owned the car between Dawie and Etienne.
“I started collecting cars in 2012 and in 2019 I heard that this SLC was for sale. After acquiring the car, I added a few stickers with the aim to make it look as close as possible to the original car. Until now I’ve only done track days with the car and taken part in some Mercedes-Benz Club South Africa events, of which one was a concours event and another during which the new SL was launched.”
Driving a race car on a track is always an exciting prospect. There is an "attitude" to a race car that no road car can replicate. The multi-spoke, three-piece wheels fill the large wheelarches with intent. The Sparco Evo racing seats are fitted with four-point Sabelt harnesses (there is also a passenger seat) and once strapped in you feel like you want to fit your racing shoes and helmet!
Gone is the standard dashboard, replaced with a unit with the necessary few switches and relatively long gearlever to your right. As expected, there is a fire extinguisher, too. Behind the floor mounted pedals I can see the hydraulics for each respective pedal. The bare metal floor and cabin come alive with the rumble from the engine when I press the red starter button.
Behind the wheel
The three-spoke Alcantara clad steering wheel, which shows some expected patina, feels pure race car in my hands while the gearlever slips easily through the first two gears as I exit the pit lane.
I take it easy through the first few corners, and as is to be expected, there is a directness to the way the car responds that is vastly different to the standard road car. With the wider and grippier tyres, and the car being lighter, you can turn in with a high level of enthusiasm and confidence. It is still no lightweight, sure, but it has been transformed into as close to a race car as possible.
The engine is also happier to rev than the standard unit. The engine has been rebuilt and, of course, is now connected to a five-speed manual gearbox instead of a lazy three-speed automatic.
The gearlever continues to move with comfort between each ratio and the car also rewards you if you can execute a heel-and-toe downshift. Needless to say, the upgraded brakes feel strong, even though the car is still, relatively speaking, on the heavy side.
Being a race car, the importance of the characteristics of the engine lower in the rev range become almost obsolete. Even so, as one would expect there is still plenty of the torque in the middle of the rev range. As you pass 4 000 rpm there is already a strong urgency from the engine but you still have over 2 000 rpm left before the red line!
Depending on your race car exposure in the past, at times you do find it interesting to be in such a huge car, with the large bonnet stretching out in front and the spacious cabin. At the same time, I can see myself getting into a rhythm with the car and doing lap after lap.
Etienne ends our time at the track with a few final thoughts. “I thoroughly enjoy this car. Because I’m a novice, I’ve spun on nearly every corner of the track. But it is interesting to note how other classics will gain on you into, or through a corner, but on the straights, you pull away from them!”
Specifications
Model: Mercedes-Benz 450SLC 5.0
Engine: M117, 5.0-litre, V8
Power: 186 kW at 5 000 rpm
Torque: 380 N.m at 3 250 rpm
Transmission: 5-speed manual, RWD
Weight: ±1,400 kg