Blitzen-Benz

The "Blitzen-Benz" is a Benz & Cie. Racing car built in 1909 . With its 200  PS (147  kW ) engine and 21.5 liter displacement, it broke the 200 km / h mark for the first time. This made it faster than any airplane and train at the time, and in 1911 it set a record for land vehicles at 228.1 km / h , which was not surpassed for eight years - until 1919.

Benz 200 PS or "Blitzen-Benz" - record hunters with a displacement of 21.5 liters

Blitzen-Benz

The first Benz 200 hp

Origin of the car

At the beginning of 1909, the board of directors gave the order to design an automobile that would effortlessly exceed the magic mark of 200 km / h at the time. The basis was the engine of the Grand Prix vehicle with 150 hp (110 kW). In order to increase the capacity was enlarged to 21.5 liters. In the first version, the engine developed 184 hp (135 kW) at a speed of 1500 rpm, which was finally increased to 200 hp (147 kW) at 1600 rpm through fine work. The weight of the engine was 407 kg.

The engine with the number 5100 was initially used in the chassis and under the body of the Benz Grand Prix car, and was internally - following the usual naming logic - the name Benz 200 PS . Fritz Erle , designer at Benz and later head of the testing and racing departments, took part in the kilometer race in Frankfurt am Main on August 22, 1909 and won with a top score: after a flying start, he covered the distance in 22.6 seconds at an average speed of 159.3 km / h and received the Grand Duchess of Hesse's prize.

Factory driver Victor Héméry used the car for the first time on October 17th in a sprint race in Brussels ( Belgium ) and outclassed the competition. On November 8, 1909, he presented the car in England on the recently opened Brooklands racetrack and set a new land speed record : with a flying start, it reached an average speed of 202.7 km / h over a kilometer and over half a mile at 205.7 km / h. He also achieved other best values, such as the kilometer with a standing start in 31.326 seconds and the mile with 41.268 seconds, which set the existing record held by Darracq until then .

Blitzen-Benz in the race

During these early races, the technicians in Mannheim worked on a new, aerodynamic body for the record-breaking car. It was finished at the end of 1909 and gave the Benz its new look: Erle and Héméry built it as tightly as possible so that the airstream only had a small area to attack. That is why the levers for gear shifting and handbrake as well as the exhaust system were placed outside the body and only bulges in the bonnet gave the exhaust rocker arms the necessary space. The tall, narrow core of the radiator was in a brass mask, the top of which was formed by a water tank that was drawn to the front. At the rear, the body was pointed. The driver and front passenger - who operated the petrol hand pump - sat very close together.

Records

The first record drives of the modified Benz 200 hp already showed that the car would push the limits known up until then. One of them: none of the European race tracks were suitable for the speeds targeted by the car. You had to go to the USA .

The newly bodied car was shipped to America in January 1910 after a few test drives around Mannheim . It was planned that George Robertson would compete with the car against Ralph DePalma , who held records on many American racetracks.

Event manager Ernie Moross learned of the arrival of the vehicle at Benz importer Jesse Froehlich in New York and negotiated an exchange deal with him: he traded in his 150 hp Grand Prix Benz, added $ 6,000 and became the owner of the Blitzen -Benz. The businessman immediately came up with an effective advertising name: Because the car seemed to be as fast as lightning (English: Lightning), he called it "Lightning Benz". This name was also painted on.

His driver Barney Oldfield entered the record attempt on March 17, 1910 on the beach in Daytona ( Florida ) without any special preparation and reached a new top mark of 211.97 km / h. But the AIACR ( Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus ), the highest supervisory body of automobile sport and the predecessor organization of today's Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), did not recognize the record because the Benz did not - as stipulated in the competition regulations - also not recognize the distance went through in the opposite direction and the mean from both runs could be determined. In contrast, the American Automobile Association officially recognized the record and the letter from Baron R. de Vrière (President of the Sports Commission) published on July 25, 1910 confirms its existence.

Then Moross organized numerous shows with the "Lightning Benz" in a kind of traveling circus. But the name was soon no longer distinctive enough for him, and he changed it to "Blitzen-Benz" . In addition, a small imperial eagle was painted on the right side of the bonnet .

Land route record: 228.1 km / h

In late 1910, the American Automobile Association (AAA) banned Barney Oldfield from all racing activities. On his last trips he had battered the Blitzen-Benz so badly that Moross had to have it repaired. For the next season he signed the former Buick factory driver Bob Burman . Burman competed in Daytona Beach on April 23, 1911; the wide and long beach was ideal for quick trips. He used the potential of the vehicle and achieved an average speed of 225.65 km / h on the flying mile and 228.1 km / h on the flying mile - a new land speed record that remained unbeaten until 1919. This made the Benz twice as fast as an airplane of the time. The rail vehicle record (1903: 210 km / h) was also exceeded.

Blitzen-Benz

A huge imperial eagle and broad decorative lines were painted on the Blitzen-Benz for the rest of the season . In addition, a speedometer had been installed whose transmission shaft led past the vehicle to the right front wheel.

The Blitzen-Benz toured the USA and was the attraction on four wheels. But a change in the regulations in 1913 ended the commitment: the displacement was limited to 7.4 liters. The Blitzen-Benz I became the property of Stoughton Fletcher , who had it converted by Burman in the course of 1914. In October 1915, Fletcher sold the car to Harry Harkness .

On November 2, 1915, the vehicle reappeared in public: As a “Burman Special” it was at the start in Sheepshead Bay / New York to compete against Ralph DePalma on Sunbeam in a comparison race. The car had been changed. Among other things, it had other wire-spoke wheels with a closer spoke sequence, scissor dampers instead of spring band shock absorbers, staggered seats, a bulge in the cockpit as a wind deflector and a much longer and rounder tail that was inclined backwards and downwards.

In 1916 Burman had a fatal accident in a Peugeot . Then the Blitzen-Benz came back to Europe , possibly via Mannheim to England. Here it appeared in Brooklands at Easter 1922 , was painted white, had a modified engine cover and a new radiator. The driver was Count Louis Zborowski . He did not achieve success with the Blitzen-Benz . In 1923 he dismantled the car to use drive parts for a new project, the Higham Special .

The second Benz 200 hp

Shortly after the first record-breaking car was shipped to America in January 1910, another 21.5-liter engine (No. 6257) was installed in a chassis at the Mannheim plant , which was given a Grand Prix structure. The triangular add-on tank at the rear was striking. Fritz Erle started the sprint race in Gaillon (France) on October 2, 1910 with this car , won the race car class with an average speed of 156.5 km / h and set a new record at the same time. Immediately after returning, Erle had improvements made to the car: For example, the body of the cockpit was raised to better protect the driver, spoked wheels with central locking were mounted, the frame extensions were clad and the two seats were arranged in parallel.

For the car, there was a second, more aerodynamically favorable body in the style of the first Blitzen-Benz ; it could optionally be mounted on the chassis. Erle used the car in various races in 1911 and 1912. Sometimes with one body, sometimes with the other, but he wasn't convinced of the expected difference in effect.

This second Benz 200 hp also made it to America - although it is unclear when the vehicle set off. What is certain is that Bob Burman took part in a race with him on September 7, 1912 on Brooklyn Brighton Beach , where he improved the course record of the Blitzen-Benz I.

The third Benz 200 hp

The third Benz 200 PS was completed in 1912. Fritz Erle started with him again on October 6th in the hill climb in Gaillon / France and improved his record: the average speed was 163.63 km / h. He also won the hill climb in Limonest near Lyon / France on May 25, 1913 in record time. After that, the engine (No. 9141) was given a circulating lubrication instead of splash lubrication in the Mannheim factory.

LG “Cupid” Hornsted , the Benz representative in England, wanted to inquire about a more powerful vehicle there after success with an older Benz racing car. The management approved the sale of the 200 hp car to him. Hornsted had changes made to the vehicle. Among other things, the car received a different radiator grille and an attached wind deflector as well as numerous technical modifications. In November 1913, the blue painted car first appeared on the Brooklands circuit. In December Hornsted surpassed Héméry's record and set a new record at 118.4 km / h over the standing kilometer. On January 14, 1914, he set seven new records. He achieved the highest average of the return trip over half a mile with a flying start. Here the car reached 199.3 km / h. A week earlier he had to prove all his driving skills when a tire burst at around 190 km / h. Only after a few twists did he regain control of the Benz 200 hp .

The car was then returned to the Mannheim plant and spent the First World War in the testing department. After the end of the war, the mechanics set about assembling usable 200 hp cars from the available material. Two vehicles were completed: One was based on the chassis of the Hornsted car and had a structure that was modeled on the Blitzen-Benz II . The wire-spoke wheels were completely covered, the car had a pointed tail and the seats were staggered. In 1922 the vehicle was brought to Brooklands, where it was driven by Horace V. Barlow as a works car and immediately won the first race in August 1922. At another run during the same event, Graf Zborowski was there in the Blitzen-Benz II . In the “100 MPH” short-distance handicap race on September 30, 1922, Captain John Duff at the wheel of car no. 3 reached 184.21 km / h on his fastest lap. He had problems with the brakes - the car went over the top of the banked curve and crashed, almost completely destroying the car. The wreck came back to Mannheim.

The fourth Benz 200 hp

The fourth Benz 200 PS (engine number 9143) was built around 1912. It had a wide radiator, wooden spoke wheels and the interchangeable body of the car driven by Erle in 1910/11. Until the outbreak of World War I , he took part in several races, including with Franz Hörner at the steering wheel, a young driver sponsored by Héméry and Erle. The wooden spoke wheels were retained after the war. This ancient look earned him the nickname "grandmother" when performing. It was used successfully throughout the 1920s. Then began a second career as an advertising medium for the Benz brand. In addition, the car was given a special exhaust system: by means of a flap, the exhaust gas could either be directed to the outside with a deafening noise through pipe stubs or through the noise-reducing regular exhaust system.

Further successors

The Benz representative Treumann, Madrid , sold the car no. 5 (engine number 9145) to a Mr. J. Ratis in Barcelona . It was delivered on February 20, 1913. The further history is unknown.

The Benz agency in Antwerp sold the Blitzen-Benz No. 6 to a Mr. M. Heje in Ghent , who received the vehicle on December 24, 1913. The car was the only lightning bolt (engine number 13280) to have an extended chassis (3200 instead of 2800 millimeters) and a four-seater touring body. This lightning bolt also frequently drove to record drives in Brooklands. The vehicle stayed in England for a long time before it was bought by an American collector around 2002.

In 1935 another 200 hp Benz was created from the parts that were still in existence . Some parts came from the predecessor, others, for example the hub locks and probably the radiator and the central body part, from the Hornsted lightning bolt that had crashed. To make the vehicle look sleeker, the wooden spoke wheels were provided with aluminum covers. At that time, the engine cover, the rear section and the cover of the exhaust stub were newly made. The vehicle is now owned by the Mercedes-Benz Museum .

In 2004, an American collector decided to have another vehicle built. As a model for the private project, the Mercedes-Benz Museum made his own Blitzen-Benz available to him for a year . In order for the replica to be as true to the original as possible, it received the parts of the Hornsted car that were in the Mercedes magazine, including engine no. 9141 and some ancillary units. Parts of an original body still existed in the USA .

In the 1990s, Mercedes sold the naming rights to the Japanese manufacturer Subaru , which has since produced several sporty special models of its Legacy. The name is a myth in Japan, which is why the Legacy Blitzen models enjoy cult status.

Technical data of the Benz 200 PS

Blitzen-Benz engine

General data

Wheelbase:	2800 mm (vehicle no.6: 3200 mm)
Front / rear track:	1330/1320 mm
Dimensions L × W × H:	4820 × 1600 × 1280 mm
Car weight:	1450 kg
Motor weight:	407 kg
Top speed:	228.1 km / h

engine

Benz:	Racing car engine
Working method:	Four-stroke Otto
Cylinder:	4 / row
Displacement:	21,504 cc
Bore × stroke:	185 × 200 mm
Power:	200 hp at 1600 rpm
Torque:	over 875 Nm
Compression ratio:	1: 5.8
Maximum speed:	1650 rpm
Valves:	hanging, 2 per cylinder, side camshaft, drive via gear wheels
Mixture preparation:	1 horizontal round slide carburetor
Fuel delivery:	Compressed air hand pump operated by the passenger
Lubrication:	Initially splash lubrication, later pressure circulation lubrication via gear pump and fresh oil addition
Starter:	Starting crank, buzzer ignition
Ignition:	High voltage magneto ignition, 2 Bosch D4 magneto igniters
Ignition advance:	by hand using the lever on the steering wheel
Fuel tank:	73 l

Power transmission

Drive:	Via intermediate shaft and chain drive on the rear wheels
Coupling:	Cone coupling
Transmission:	4-speed manual transmission
Circuit:	Link circuit, outside right

landing gear

Profile frame
Axes:	front / rear rigid axles with semi-elliptical springs
Brakes:	front none; rear inner shoe brakes on the rear wheels and outer band brakes on the intermediate shaft; Handbrake acting on the rear wheels
Steering:	Screw steering
Bikes:	Wire spoke wheels or wooden spoke wheels
Tires:	820 × 120 balloon Continental

Web links

Commons : Blitzen-Benz  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• The Blitzen-Benz in the Mercedes-Benz Museum Stuttgart under the M7 myth, 1909
• Ralf Klee and Broder-Jürgen Trede: "Record hunt in a full-throttle Kettcar" In: one day - contemporary stories on Spiegel-Online from November 3, 2009

Notes and individual references

1. ↑ Benz with 205 km / h world record on the Brooklands automobile race track in England on November 9, 1909 , an advertisement for the Austrian company. Benz-Motoren-Gesellschaft in the Allgemeine Automobil-Zeitung of January 2, 1910, ÖNB
2. ↑ "Benz still holds the official AAA recognized world record of 212 km an hour." , an advertisement for Öster. Benz-Motoren-Gesellschaft in the Allgemeine Automobil-Zeitung from August 28, 1910 (ÖNB).