Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren

The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren was jointly developed by Mercedes-Benz and McLaren Automotive and was sold from 2003 to 2009. It was classified as a grand tourer and was inspired by the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut coupe and race car of 1955.

Ormiston was approached to help provide an additional safety element to protect occupants. The requirement was to manufacture a restraint for the engine block so that it would not shift into the driver/passenger compartment in the event of an accident involving a major impact.

This was an unusual challenge for us, requiring a special and innovative solution. The client specification called for Zylon lanyards. Zylon is a high-tensile synthetic polymer material which was invented and developed by SRI International in the 1980s. It is currently manufactured by the Toyobo Corporation. Having sourced the material, we prepared a prototype assembly using stainless steel rounded ferrules. These elements were then tested to destruction, easily exceeding the required specification tolerances.

The special engine restraint assembly proved successful and we continued to supply these components until production of the model ceased in 2009.