One to Buy: 4 time race-winning 1990 Mercedes-Benz C11
Having created arguably the most effective sports racing car ever seen for the 1955 season (the W196S 300 SLR), Mecedes-Benz made the decision to abandon top flight competition as a consequence of Pierre Levegh’s fatal accident at that year’s Le Mans 24 Hours where the Frenchman’s Silver Arrow flew into the crowd and killed 83 spectators.
Mercedes made its highly anticipated return to the World Sportscar Championship 30 years later as an engine supplier to the Sauber team. Steady improvement throughout the subsequent 1986 and ‘87 seasons convinced Mercedes to become Sauber’s official team partner for 1988 when the black AEG-sponsored C9 won five World Championship events and finished second in the Constructor standings to Jaguar.
1989 saw the further uprated Sauber Mercedes C9 (now painted a traditional all-silver colour scheme) win all but one race on its way to Driver and Constructor championship honours. Remarkably, it was a similar story for 1990 when the new C11 repeated the exact same feat.
Currently on the market at Mechatronik’s showroom in Pleidelsheim is a veteran of that all-conquering 1990 campaign: chassis 03.
Chassis 03 initially served as the T-car at Silverstone and Spa, after which Jean-Louis Schlesser and Mauro Baldi piloted it to four consecutive pole-to-flag victories at the Spa, Dijon, Nurburgring and Montreal 480km races en route to their 1990 world title.
The car was then prepared for the 1991 Le Mans 24 Hours, but having led for 17 hours, chassis 03 retired with under three hours to go owing to a broken alternator bracket that allowed the water pump belt to come off.
At the end of 1990, chassis 03 was sold to a major collector with whom it remained for the next 30 years. The car departed for Mechatronik in 2021 and it is today offered as arguably one of the most important Group C cars in existence.
Reprinted below is Mechatronik’s description:
The most successful C11 of them all
One of only six C11 ever produced
Winner of the 1990 World Championship
4 pole positions & 4 race wins in 4 races
Le Mans participant 1991
One of the most collectible Group C race cars of all time
The Mercedes-Benz C11 presents itself as a groundbreaking redesign compared to its predecessor, the C9.
Despite external similarities, it is a racing car with an entirely new chassis and a safety cell made from an innovative composite material of carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic and lightweight metal. This construction method provides the vehicle with higher internal stability, resulting in improved driving characteristics and better controllability.
An outstanding feature of the Sauber-Mercedes C11 is the advanced electronic control of the eight-cylinder engine. Continuous monitoring of cylinder pressure through knock control enables precise determination of the ignition timing, leading to more efficient power regulation and contributing to the C11's tremendous performance values.
The V8 engine of the vehicle has a displacement of 4973 cm³ and produces 537 kW/750 PS at a speed of 7000/min under normal operation. During fast qualification rounds, a brief increase in boost pressure allowed for a total output of 929 PS. The top speed of the Sauber-Mercedes C11 is an impressive 400 km/h.
The successful partnership between Mercedes-Benz and Sauber, which laid the foundation for the construction of the C11, began in 1985 when Peter Sauber asked Mercedes-Benz for an engine for his new racing car. This collaboration flourished, especially after Mercedes-Benz decided to return to racing three years later.
In 1989, the Sauber-Mercedes team already won the Sports Car World Championship, setting the stage for the impressive Sauber-Mercedes C11. The "C" in the vehicle's name not only stands for the sports car class Group C but is also a personal declaration of love to Christiane, Peter Sauber's wife, believed to bring luck to the vehicles.
The C11 made its debut in the first race of the Sports Car World Championship in 1990 in Suzuka. The Sauber team entered with a C11 and a Sauber C9 from the previous year, along with an additional C9 as a spare vehicle. Unfortunately, the C11 driven by Jean-Louis Schlesser and Mauro Baldi crashed during practice. Schlesser and Baldi then switched to the spare vehicle. In the second race in Monza, the team fielded two C11s and secured the first two positions.
Chassis 03
The offered Mercedes-Benz C11 is the most successful chassis of the 1990 Sports Car World Championship, ultimately winning the overall championship.
In four race appearances, Chassis #3 achieved four pole positions and four victories.
The car was driven by none other than the driver champions of the 1990 season, Jean Louis Schlesser and Mauro Baldi.
The first use of Chassis #3 occurred on May 20, 1990, as a test vehicle at the Silverstone championship race. The car did not participate in the race itself.
Another test took place on June 3, 1990, in Spa, driven by Jochen Mass. Again, it remained exclusively a training session for #3.
The first race took place on July 22 in Dijon, France. The Schlesser/Baldi duo successfully piloted the car to victory after securing pole position in qualifying.
Almost four weeks later, on August 19, the duo repeated this exceptional performance with Chassis #3 at the Nürburgring. After winning the pole in qualifying, a confident victory was also achieved in the race.
The next outing occurred on September 2 in Donington, England. Once again, the pole position and race victory went to the Schlesser/Baldi duo and the car with chassis number 3.
This feat was repeated a few weeks later, on September 23, 1990, in Montreal, Canada, during the car's last appearance in the 1990 season! Both qualifying and the race win went to Chassis #3.
Such a dominant record can be attributed to only a few racing cars, and the offered Mercedes-Benz C11 undoubtedly belongs to that elite group.
In 1991, Chassis #3 was prepared for the highlight of the endurance season, the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans. Unfortunately, due to an engine failure three hours before the end, the driver trio of Jean Louis Schlesser, Jochen Mass, and Alain Ferte could not finish the strong race until then.
A few months after its last race in France, Chassis #3 entered one of the world's most exclusive private collections, where it remained with its owner for almost 30 years before our company ultimately acquired it in 2021.
Our sales staff is always available for detailed questions.
