There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Mercedes-Benz is one of the greatest car manufacturers in the world. The iconic German auto giant has produced some truly spectacular cars over the years, be they for the road or for the race track; be they supercars or luxury sedans for everyday use. A lot of people had the brand in high regard, even if there has been the odd slip-up or two over the years. But Mercedes does know how to build a great car.
Some of those cars have been absolutely wild. From the monster that was the Red Pig to the McLaren SLR built in collaboration with McLaren, the guys at Mercedes know a thing or two about making wild rides.
While the brand has worked tirelessly to stand out among the competition due to the build quality, luxury, and engineering that goes into their cars, Mercedes-Benz is also known for producing quite a few ridiculous cars. Some of them are just outrageous, others are such engineering marvels that they turn heads wherever they go. Whatever the case may be, here are the most ludicrous cars Mercedes-Benz has ever produced.
10 Mercedes CLK DTM AMG
The Mercedes CLK DTM AMG was effectively the forerunner of the Black Series and the C63S. Its styling and shape were based upon the Mercedes DTM racing cars of 2003, and it was powered by a 574-hp 5.5-liter V8 engine.
Only 100 of these cars were ever produced and they had a limited top speed of 199 mph. It was a bit of a monster, and they sold out in an instant.
9 SLS AMG Electric Drive
This is certainly one of the most extreme cars that Mercedes have ever produced. It's an SLS that is pure electric, with a motor for each wheel generating around 740 hp altogether which at the time made this car the most powerful Mercedes ever.
A top speed of 155 mph though very rapidly became quite slow, although it did feel like a bit of a brute upon its debut.
8 G63 AMG 6x6
Pig ugly is definitely a phrase you could use to describe this particularly unusual Mercedes. The G63 AMG 6x6 is a six-wheeled version of the quite legendary G-Wagen, which was Mercedes's largest and second most expensive street-legal offroad vehicle at the time of its launch.
The 6x6 has the G63 twin-turbo V6 powering it and 6x6 portal axles, and it soon became a bit of a “flex” for the rich and famous.
7 Mercedes CLK GTR AMG
The CLK GTR is, without a doubt, one of Mercedes's most fearsome cars and the forerunner to the rather controversial CLR Le Mans. It was designed as both a road and race car and would compete in the FIA GT1 category and would also be eligible for the Le Mans GT1 class.
The road version was powered by an M297 V12 engine that gave a maximum power output of 604 hp, and at the time it was the most expensive production car ever built, costing an eyewatering $1,547,620.
6 Mercedes-AMG Project ONE
It's fair to say that the Project ONE has been through a turbulent time. First unveiled four years ago, the Project ONE utilizes a modified version of the Mercedes W07 F1 cars 1.6-liter V6 turbo-hybrid engine.
The hopeful aim is that the car will exceed 200 mph and provide F1 levels of performance for the road. Hopefully, this monster will finally be delivered to customers in 2022.
5 Mercedes 300 SEL 6.8 AMG “Red Pig”
The Red Pig is surely one of Mercedes's most distinctive cars. It is in essence a stripped-down, tighter, and more powerful version of the Mercedes 300 SEL 6.3. It has a 6.8-liter V8 engine that produced 428 hp, and it had a frankly ludicrous 0-100 km/h time of just 4.2 seconds.
Only five of these cars have ever been built, and it's quite rightly one of Mercedes's most iconic cars.
4 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is one of the most brutal supercars ever designed. It was powered by a 5.4-liter 617 hp supercharged SLR V8 engine and was a joint collaboration with McLaren, with just 2,157 of these monsters being produced.
The SLR has often been seen as a bit of a flawed masterpiece, with a slow automatic transmission and a wildly unpredictable driving dynamic. But it is an absolute monster of a car.
3 Mercedes AMG GT 63 S
Now for something a bit less crazy but no more awesome. The AMG GT 63 S is an all-out, luxury sedan with supercar levels of performance.
Powered by a twin-turbo V8, the 63 S produces 630 hp and 664 lb-ft of torque, with a 0-60 time of just 3.1 seconds. The fact this can be considered a luxury car that can be used every day is a staggering fact.
2 Mercedes 300 SLR/Uhlenhaut Coupe
The Uhlenhaut Coupe was the road-legal version of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR that took part in the Le Mans 24 Hours of 1955, the year in which one of those cars was involved in motorsports' worst accident.
After Mercedes pulled out of motorsport following the accident, just one Uhlenhaut Coupe had been completed. It was powered by a 3.0-liter straight-eight engine, producing 310 hp, and its top speed was a dizzying 180 mph. The car now stands proudly preserved at the Mercedes-Benz museum.
1 Mercedes SLR McLaren Stirling Moss
Based upon the already mighty SLR McLaren, the SLR Stirling Moss edition was a limited-edition version of the car named after British racing legend Sir Stirling Moss. The 5.4-liter SLR AMG V8 engine in the car now produces 651 hp and the car had a top speed of 217 mph.
Just 75 of these cars were built and they were only offered to existing SLR owners, priced at over $1 million each.