The very ambitious aftermarket specialists at Carlsson their very first specifically built hill climbing racer. Carlsson’s new race car is based on the Mercedes-Benz SLK and is scheduled to premiere at the 2013 Geneva motor show in March.
The new Carlsson Mercedes SLK will compete in several events this year in the E1 category. The Carlsson SLK 340 JUDD was built from scratch by Carlsson on a body shell and weighs in at just 780 kg (1,719 lbs). In order to reach such a low weight, Carlsson built the body of their new SLK from carbon fiber. And in order to keep the carbon body planted, all the body parts have been tested in the wind tunnel to ensure maximum downforce. The car’s large rear wing and diffuser was also given special attention to give as much traction to the SLK as possible.
The Carlsson SLK 340 JUDD is powered by a 3.4-liter V8 engine that puts out 610 hp and 430 Nm of torque. The engine, which weighs 120 kg, is mated to a Hewland transmission with steering wheel mounted paddle shifters. The Carlsson Mercedes SLK rides on a 3-way adjustable KW competition suspension, BBS racing wheels and AVON tires. The car comes with Fibreworks racing seats and a full roll cage.
