One of the four cars that dominated the 1979 Bandama Rally Cote D’Ivoire WRC race, this Merc is expected to sell for up to $1.1 million
- The Mercedes 450 SLC 5.0 was the first rally car to win a WRC event with a V8 engine or an automatic transmission.
- This number 4 example took second place in the rally car’s first race and helped Björn Waldegard win the WRC title in 1979.
- It is for sale at RM Sotheby’s in Monaco and is expected to fetch up to $1.1 million.
Although we think of Group B as the golden age of rallying, the era before it was pretty good too. This Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC 5.0 from 1979 is proof of the experimental spirit of that time.
One of the four cars the automaker entered in the 1979 Bandama Rally in Ivory Coast, this particular #4 450 SLC finished the race in second place, with Björn Waldegard and Hans Thorszelius in the cockpit. Although it was not the car that took the important first victory, it secured Waldegard the World Rally Championship drivers’ title that year by a single point.
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The winning car, driven by Hannu Mikkola, was the first rally car to ever win a WRC race with a V8 engine under the hood or an automatic transmission for the gears.
The V8 under the hood was new at the time, made of aluminum for a significantly lower weight. A specially developed automatic transmission as well as an aluminum hood and trunk and thinner steel doors made the 450 SLC a serious competitor.
As one of only 19 cars built for international rallying and one of only seven examples officially designated as the 450 SLC 5.0, this example is a very special rally car. After its momentous first racing season, it was sent straight back into the thick of things.
In 1980 it took part in the Marlboro Safari Rally in Kenya, where it finished third, and later that year it was used as a training car in Argentina. In 1982 it was sold to Serge Beankens (aka Serge Power), who decided to remove the aluminum engine, replace it with a more reliable steel version and use it for endurance racing.
The car took part in the 1982 Spa 24 Hours, driven by Claude Bourgoingnie, Alain Lierneux and someone whose name you may recognize from another high-performance product, John Cooper, and finished eighth.
In 1984, Serge Beankens decided to reinstall the aluminum engine and send it to Dr. Peter Lorenz, who decided to restore it to 1979 standards. Today it wears the same livery as in 1979 at the Bandama Rally Cote d’Ivoire.
The car is a unique piece of Mercedes history and is now being auctioned and sold with extensive documentation. This 1979 Mercedes 450 SLC 5.0 “Rally Car” is expected to sell for between $850,000 and $1.1 million at the RM Sotheby’s Monaco auction, taking place May 10-11.