Andy Warhol

Mercedes-Benz Formel-Rennwagen W 125 (1937), 1986

The Mercedes-Benz W 125 was Daimler-Benz AG’s Grand Prix racing car for the year 1937. After conducting a number of tests on the Nürburgring track, engineer Rudolf Uhlenhaut chose a revolutionary vehicle design: Uhlenhaut reversed the previous balance of hard suspension and minimal damping. The racing car that pulled up to the starting line had soft suspension, but was firmly damped. Because rules were brought in in 1938 to restrict cubic capacity, the W 125, with its 600 horsepower, remained the most high‑output and impressive car ever to start in a Grand Prix race until the early 1980s. In the Grand Prix of 1937, the W 125 achieved six first places, nine second places and six third places.