GRAND MERCEDES

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30235, 13 September 1963, Page 11

GRAND MERCEDES

FURTHER details of the new Mercedes luxury model the Grand Mercedes, have now become available.

The car is powered by a 300 b.h.p. 6.3 litre V 8 engine giving a top speed of about 127 miles an hour. It costs about £9OOO and weighs more than three tons. Two versions are available, a sixseater 18ft 6in long, or a Pullman model 20ft 6in long and seating eight persons. The suspension system is pneumatic, and like the Citroen, is self-levelling and the ground clearance can be altered to suit different conditions.

The suspension is all-in-dependent, and the brakes are discs all round. The front discs have two calipers on each disc, worked by separate master cylinders. If one system fails the remaining system will still provide braking on the front wheels. The car has a very wide range of push-button and power controls, so many in fact that only 250 b.h.p. of the 300 b.h.p. produced by

the engine is left to drive the car. Besides the normal controls there is push-button operation of seats, chauffeur division and windows, the sliding roof, tile boot lid, heater, air-conditioner and fresh air system. Locking the driver's door with a special key automatically locks the other doors, the boot and the petrol filler. The steering and brakes are power assisted, and an automatic transmission is standard equipment. The engine has overhead camshafts and petrol injection.

Two alternators are fitted to provide power for the many electrical devices — there are 13 interior lights alone. The doors are hydraulically assisted so they can be opened or closed with the minimum of effort. A bar is fitted in the rear compartment, as are separate heaters. The wing mirrors can be adjusted from inside the car.