| Dec. 7 2003 Review |
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 Click Here To Buy This Car Now Bauer Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing T-Jet By Clark Howell ("Strat" from NYCONN) Click here to have Genie read this review out loud to you in Microsoft Agent AUDIO!    The Mercedes factory was destroyed by Allied bombers in WWII, but by 1952 had been rebuilt when the 300SL was introduced to the world. The press was stunned by the elegant lines and the high-tech gull wing doors, the epitome of form following function. Even though the car was immediately pressed into racing service, the buying public had to wait until 1954 to get their hands on the production model, which featured a revised front grille and a more streamlined appearance. Only 1,400 of the sportscars were built in the years between 1954 and 1957, guaranteeing the 300SL its place among the most desirable collector’s cars ever built.       After a string of victories in 1954 at LeMans, The German Grand Prix, and the Carrera Panamericana, the popular “Gullwing” looked primed to dominate the racing scene for years to come, but alas this was not to be. In 1955 a 300SL launched into the crowd and caused six fatalities during the running of the 24 hours of LeMans, and the directors at Mercedes promptly halted their involvement in motorsports, a decision that kept Mercedes cars out of competition for thirty years.  Right out of the package the 300SL is a sure fire Concours winner. Many collectors will leave the 300SL inside the display case.To mark the Silver Anniversary of the 1954 300SL, Bauer has crafted the “Gullwing” in all of its glory as an HO scale slot car. Bauer cars, like the classic Mercedes-Benz, are limited production models highly regarded for their elegance, attention to detail, and functionality. The Bauer 300SL sits on a flawless NOS T-jet chassis (with all brass gears and a precision-balanced red wire armature), and comes complete, ready to race or collect.  Balanced arm & brass gears.Opening the Package: The handsome, historically accurate red 300SL tested in this review arrived via overnight shipping from Rad Trax, and as always was lovingly packed with an abundance of styrofoam curly-thingies, guaranteeing that no damage occurred in transit. The makers at Bauer know that slotcar enthusiasts love to collect their cars, and to this end, the Mercedes is packaged inside a convenient clear plastic display box. The car sits atop an attractive yellow stand with a cobblestone motif, and is otherwise devoid of gaudy stickers or promotional blurbs. In fact, there is nothing anywhere in the packaging to read, other than the simple description, “MB 300SL Gullwing weinrot,” and the Bauer logo. Many collectors will immediately put this car into storage as is, and never even proceed from here. Just like the limited production Mercedes that inspired it, the value of this fine piece will only increase with time.  Three quarter view Side view.Ah, but what a splendid joy they will be missing! Sliding the car out of the box, one only has to loosen the two chassis screws with a small Phillips head screwdriver to free the car from the display case. A close inspection reveals the meticulous attention to detail that went into this slot car. Exterior trim pieces like the windshield wiper, door handles, side louvers, front bumper and rear hood latch are flawlessly hand painted. The chrome bumpers are perfectly fitted, and show no trace of excess flash. The windshield assembly is pristine clean. Turning the body over reveals that the interior section of windshield has been perfectly fit and sanded flush with the body, with not a millimeter of material protruding into the cabin.  Detailed view of front grill. Fine craftsmanship.The detail and trim is so fine that it takes a magnifying glass to appreciate all the subtle touches. The Mercedes-Benz insignia is emblazoned on the side, just below the edge of the gull wing door. The accurately reproduced wheel hubs bear the Mercedes factory logo, and the silicone tires are carved with treads and the brand name, “Continental.”  The custom designed hubs are accurate for the 1954 era Mercedes.Bauer did their homework and got the scaling correct- the body looks right at home on the short-wheelbase T-jet chassis. Far too often HO enthusiasts have been stuck with poorly executed blobs that bear only a passing resemblance to the machinery that they attempt to reproduce. For quality this accurate, one would normally have to move up to a 1:32 or 1:24 scale model, and yet here we have a car in true 1:72 that looks just as authentic as its big scale brothers. The proportions of the original 300SL have been accurately preserved, right down to the subtle curves of the hood scoops and fender flares. A look under the hood: With the worldwide supply of original factory Aurora T-jets dwindling, many current manufacturers have elected to cut costs by producing their own chassis with cheaper plastic parts. Not so here- what a curious sight to remove the body of this German treasure and find the distinctive label, “U.S. Pat[ent],” pressed into the pancake. The NOS chassis on the test model is stamped with the factory designation “3”, and the armature pancake bears the number “9”. The magnets are of the red and green variety, and have been hand matched. All gears are meticulously polished brass, with no sign of chipping, burring, or oxidation. The armature itself is trued and balanced, and the pancake assembly sits snugly into the chassis. The pickup shoes and the brass chassis clip showed a slight amount of oxidation, but this was easily remedied with a light touch of the dremel and a shoe cleaner attachment. The entire chassis is clean and begs to be driven. I know that I am about to commit collector blasphemy by putting a car this drop-dead gorgeous onto the track, but so be it!  The immaculate NOS chassis features all brass appointments.On the track: After reattaching the body, it was time to put the Bauer Mercedes through its paces. Here a minor hiccup occurred- the car did not run at first. Power was clearly reaching the armature, but the car barely moved. A closer inspection revealed the problem- a small amount of excess plastic on the inside of the front wheel housing was preventing the pickup shoes from traveling properly. A few quick swirls with the rotary sander tool on a dremel quickly cleared that up (an exacto knife also would have done the trick), and soon the Mercedes was hot lapping the local raceway. Although easy to fix, this minor flaw was somewhat of a letdown for such a high-end car.  Underside of the body: (A) shows the excess plastic before sanding, and (B) shows the flush factory installation of the window glass. The wheel area after rotary sanding tool is applied to free up pickup shoes.After adding a dab of oil, and a toothpick tip of gear compound, the 300SL quickly became my favorite T-jet to race. Sitting low and light, the body is perfect for stock-class racing. The included silicones provide an adequate amount of grip, and are a huge improvement over skinny Aurora tires. To extract the maximum performance, it is worth swapping the Continentals for a good set of non-ribbed Super Tires, which have a wider stance yet still fit the Bauer hubs. Once equipped with Super Tires, the 300SL quickly knocked two tenths off my best time with any of my other stock-bodied T-jets. Perhaps the balanced arm and matched magnets play into the equation, but the largest difference seems to come from the way the body is fitted to the chassis. The Bauer is compact and has a low center of gravity… even lower than the celebrated (and wildly inaccurate) Aurora Ford GT.  Hanging out the tail just looks so right with this car. Blasting down the Autobahn on a cold winter night.As I ran lap after lap on this exquisite machine, a huge grin spread over my face. I experienced indescribable joy watching the sleek red Mercedes-Benz as it pitched sideways through the turns, and blasted down the straight. The 300SL chassis has excellent and predictable handling, which is a definite plus. But somehow the Bauer car transcends even this, and launches the owner into a sense of time warp. The real 1954 Mercedes cars were meant to be driven hard, and were meant to slide sideways through the turns at the limit of adhesion. As much as they are valued today for their rarity, beauty and contribution to history, their true spirit of the Mercedes 300SL is that of a fearsome warrior on the racetrack.  From the front you can see how much more compact and elegantly proportioned the Bauer car is. The 300SL has a decided advantage in production class racing. The sleek body rides lower than the competition, without the need to shave the guidepin shaft.The Bauer 300SL fits this bill to a “T”, and it wasn’t long before I succumbed to the temptation to apply some vintage racing “meatball” decals to the hood and sides. I know, I know, all the collectors out there are going to scream bloody murder about that, but hey, now there’s one less factory original Bauer out there, isn’t there? Now your collector car will be worth even more money some day. Adding racing meatballs gives a vintage flavor. Racing decals applied, the 300SL blasts through the timing gantry on its way to a record-setting lap. Top view after decals are applied. Side view after decals are applied. Collectors, eat your hearts out, I like my car this way.
The final verdict: At $60 each, the Bauer Mercedes-Benz 300SL “Gullwing” is one T-jet that delivers incredible and lasting value. In order to equip a bare resin-cast model or a budget-priced model with the level of detail that rolls straight out of the Bauer package, you would have to pay $12 for the chassis, $10 for a balanced armature, $10 for the body, $12 for the custom factory wheel hubs, $8 for the windshield, $6 for the custom silicone tires, $8 for the chrome bumpers, and $2 for the guide pin and set screws. Then you would have to spend another five or six hours (or more!) attempting to paint the trim with the exquisite precision that the Bauer factory does. Add another $2 for the display case, and factor in the resale value (a Bauer will appreciate with age, while your homemade special will not), and you can see why these cars are so highly prized throughout the slot car world. Bauer has magically captured both the element of collector car, and marquee racer that is the “Gullwing,” just in time for the holidays. The only trouble is that you will be torn between whether to race it, or whether to put it straight into the display case. Perhaps the best choice is to buy two? 
Video will take about a minute to download on a 56k modem. Click Here To Download BAUER Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Video(COMING SOON) Clark Howell ("Strat" from NYCONN) NYCONN2004@aol.com |
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