Mercedes this week took the wraps off a new DTM race car for the 2007 season, based on the new C-Class sedan. The previous model is regarded as one of the most successful DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters) cars of all time. The new iteration features an improved version of the race-oriented 4.0L V8, delivering 476 hp at 7500 rpm and 500Nm of torque.

Like the road car, the 2007 AMG-Mercedes C-Class also represents the third generation of this model. With 54 victories out of 106 races in which it has been entered until the end of 2006 (in 1994 and 1995 and since 2004 in the DTM and also in the 1996 ITC which had been derived from the DTM), the C-Class is not only the most successful Mercedes-Benz in the championship, but the most successful car in the history of the DTM.

Development, design and construction began in March 2006 when the technicians and engineers headed by Gerhard Ungar, technical director of HWA, received the CAD data for the new model. About ten months later – on January 24, 2007 – the new C-Class for the DTM made its debut on the race track. At the roll-out and initial testing in Estoril, Portugal, Bernd Schneider and Bruno Spengler took turns behind the wheel; the two drivers who had finished the 2006 championship in first and second positions respectively.

Ungar and his colleagues started with a 1:2 scale wind tunnel model, because aerodynamic development played an important role. Parts such as doors, front screen and bonnet had to be designed and manufactured completely new to match the car’s new silhouette. The V8 engine with a cylinder angle of 90 degrees, a capacity of four litres and four valves per cylinder has been further optimised, particularly with respect to driveability. Equipped with two air restrictors, each with a diameter of 28 millimetres, as stipulated in the regulations, the engine now develops 350 kW/approx. 476 hp at 7500 rpm and delivers a peak torque of 500 Nm. The engineers also worked on the suspension where the toe-in and camber angles offer great scope for further improving both handling and driving dynamics.

In the 2007 season, Bernd Schneider, Mika Häkkinen, Bruno Spengler and Jamie Green will race the new AMG-Mercedes C-Class. Schneider (42) has been a member of the Mercedes-Benz DTM team since 1991. He achieved 41 race wins, and clinched the DTM Championship titles in 1995, 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2006. Häkkinen (38) was the 1998 and 1999 Formula One World Champion with Team McLaren Mercedes. In 2001, the Finn retired from Formula One after 161 Grands Prix and 20 wins. Four years later, he came back in the DTM winning only his third race in the AMG-Mercedes C-Class at Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium. Bruno Spengler (23) is the youngest HWA driver. For the French-Canadian, 2007 is the third year in the DTM. In his first year as a works driver in 2006, he won four races and ended the season as runner-up behind Schneider. Green (24) was the 2004 Formula 3 Euro Series Champion with a Dallara Mercedes. In the DTM, the Englishman collected six pole positions and five podium finishes until now.

With 66 wins secured in the 127 races it contested up to and including the 2008 season (1994/1995 and since 2004 in DTM as well as in the DTM successor ITC, International Touring Car Championship, in 1996), the C-Class is the most successful car to ever have raced in the meanwhile 25-year-old history of the DTM. More than 45 percent of the 146 race wins Mercedes-Benz could celebrate in the 311 races contested have been secured by the C-Class which, since 1994, has been entered in the totally three generations built. 30 wins were clinched with the CLK (from 2000 to 2003) and 50 with the 190 (1988 to 1993). From 1997 to 1999, DTM and ITC respectively weren’t held.

Mercedes-Benz chose the IAA International Motor Show in Frankfurt to present the new 2012 DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé. The new car is the successor to the AMG Mercedes C-Class, which scored 84 victories in 156 races to become the most successful vehicle in the 27-year history of the DTM. HWA AG began development, design and construction of the DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé in June 2010. The first chassis was assembled in June 2011, with the first vehicle completed in August.

The DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé was designed to meet the new and improved safety concept for 2012, which includes a state-of-the-art carbon fibre monocoque and a roll cage made of high strength steel. In order to improve driver protection in the event of an accident, all safety-related components such as the fire extinguishing system and fuel tank have been incorporated into the monocoque. Furthermore, each vehicle is equipped with six crash structures to give the driver additional protection to the front, rear and sides. These carbon fibre crash structures are designed to gradually absorb impact energy, so that the driver is not exposed to high deceleration forces.

The new safety concept was developed jointly by rights holder and promoter ITR e.V., the DMSB and the three manufacturers – Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. In order to verify the performance of the DTM safety concept, the DMSB developed a test programme, which was carried out and analyzed by DEKRA, the independent testing organization. All tests were completed without any problems.

The new DTM AMG Mercedes C-Coupé is based on the latest Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupé, which celebrated its world premiere in summer 2011. The C-Class Coupé rounds off Mercedes-Benz best-selling range and is offered with a choice of five engines – two diesel and three petrol units – developing from 115 kW (156 hp) to 225 kW (306 hp). The C-Class Coupé is manufactured at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Bremen. It’s the fourth model to be built on a single production line alongside the saloon and estate versions, plus GLK – a new production method for Daimler.

Mercedes-AMG is set to unleash on the market a new generation of its C63 Coupe early next year, and it’s been confirmed that the muscular two-door will also form the basis of the Mercedes-AMG DTM Team’s new race car for the 2016 season of the popular Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters touring car series. These are official teasers for the new race car that will be competing against rivals based on the Audi A5 and BMW 4-Series.

Though teams rely on similar specifications including ‘control’ chassis, the C-Class has proven quite successful in DTM having secured 85 victories in 159 races. For 2016, the chassis is a carbon fiber monocoque with an integrated steel roll cage. The engine is a 4.0-liter V-8 restricted to 500 horsepower, and drive is sent to the rear wheels only, via a six-speed sequential gearbox.

“I’m already looking forward to seeing the new Mercedes-AMG C63 DTM compete in 2016,” Mercedes-AMG DTM Team chief Ulrich Fritz said in a statement. “Our aim with this vehicle is, of course, to continue the Mercedes-Benz success story in the DTM.”

Currently leading the 2015 season is Pascal Wehrlein driving the outgoing Mercedes-AMG C63 DTM for Team Gooix/Original-Teile Mercedes-AMG. There are three more races to go this season.

Looking forward, the upcoming 2016 season will be the last where the DTM is completely independent. Starting from 2017, the regulations will be harmonized with Japanese touring car series Super GT under a new Class One category. Both categories already have similar chassis and aerodynamic specs, and from 2017 all cars in DTM will run turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engines like those already used in Super GT.

Crucially, IMSA will also adopt many of the regulations, which should open up the possibility for teams to compete with little change in cars in IMSA-sanctioned events here in the United States such as the United SportsCar Championship. There’s even talk of a standalone DTM America series.