You drive our cars: BMW 8-series

Readers try the editor’s M850i

1952 300 SL

All supercars need ludicrous doors, and for that we can thank the original 300 SL, which marked Mercedes’ return to competition after the war. Its super-light tubular frame couldn’t support proper doors, hence flimsy roof-mounted hatches. Its eventual road-car spin-o kept the gullwings, turning entry and egress into a crowd-pleasing kerbside performance.

Mark Walton

1969 300 SEL 6.3 ‘Red Pig’ The Red Pig marks the beginning of AMG. When Merc crammed the 600 limo’s V8 into the W109 S-class, it created the 300 SEL 6.3, the world’s fastest four-door. Even more startling was AMG racing one at the 1971 Spa 24 Hours, where it came second. The Red Pig was so fast, so heavy, that Matra bought it to test plane tyres. Fate unknown, the example AMG shows is a replica. Ben Barry

1954 Blue Wonder

Merc’s ’50s racers weren’t just fastest on track – they were fastest there and back, too. The Blue Wonder transporter featured a 240bhp straight six from the 300 SL and a low, forward-control cab that helped it reach 105mph. It was scrapped when Merc quit racing after the ’55 Le Mans disaster. Decades later, Mercedes spent seven years and 6000 man hours building a replica.

Chris Chilton

2006 C-Class DTM

I had a one-lap passenger ride in the C-Class DTM at Brands Hatch. This was the Indy circuit, so my lap was less than a minute. And it was a C-Class in name only – under that bloated skin was a 4.0-litre V8 making 476bhp, driving the rear wheels through a six-speed – bang! – sequential transmission, weighing less than 1000kg, with super-wide tyres for unearthly grip. I so nearly puked. Colin Overland