Brabus

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Brabus
Type Private
Founded 1977
Headquarters Bottrop, Germany
Industry Automotive
Products Automobiles
Website Brabus.de

Brabus, founded 1977 in Bottrop (Ruhr Area), Germany by Klaus Brackmann and Bodo Buschmann, is a high-performance aftermarket tuning company which specializes in Mercedes-Benz, Smart and Maybach vehicles.

Owned by Bodo Buschmann, Brabus has since become the largest Mercedes tuner, other than Mercedes-AMG who became a DaimlerChrysler affiliate in the 1990s. Its competitors include Lorinser, Carlsson, Kleemann, and Renntech.

Brabus's primary focus is to achieve maximum engine performance through the increase of both horsepower and torque. Customers can either buy cars straight from Brabus or send in their Mercedes to be customized and/or overhauled. If a customer orders a car from Brabus, Brabus buys the particular car from Mercedes and then modifies it in-house according to the customer's requests. Brabus is known for providing very expensive tuning and custom solutions, making an "if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it" scenario.

Brabus offers simple upgrades such as low profile spoilers, bodykits, carbon fiber splitters, and multi-piece alloy wheels. More serious upgrades include racing LSDs, open racing exhaust systems, twelve-piston disc brakes, and engine remapping. However, most customers pay for complete engine overhauls for which Brabus has become famous. The company typically orders crate engines from AMG and completely redesigns them.

Brabus engines range from small 200 horsepower (150 kW) K4 blocks for SLK roadsters and CLK-Class to 730 horsepower (540 kW) twin-turbo blocks for the CL-Class, CLS-Class, G-Class [1] and S-Class. The company also provides improvements to the interior from custom upholstery, gauges, shiftknobs, pedals, and trim to various electronics such as wider LCD screens for the Maybach.

The BRABUS K8 performance kit for the top-of-the-line SL model (SL55) comprises modifications to the supercharger drive in the form of a custom vibration damper and a new pulley for improved belt- drive geometry, high-performance metal catalysts, and an auxiliary circulation pump with opposing radiator. The power developed by the modified supercharged engine, like the five-speed automatic transmission and the rear differential lubricated exclusively with ARAL high-performance lubricants, is nothing short of exceptional: Instead of standard 476 hp (355 kW) the engine now develops 550 hp (410 kW) at 6,200 rpm. Even more gigantic is the maximum torque of 780 N·m (580 lb·ft) torque at just 3,000 rpm. After the power treatment the roadster races to 60 mph (97 km/h) just 4.1 seconds, passes 120 mph (190 km/h) after exactly 13.6 seconds and reaches an electronically limited top speed 186 mph (299 km/h) with the limiter removed top speed would be well over 200 mph (320 km/h).

Contents

[edit] BRABUS SuperCars

The company has also built limited editions of Mercedes-Benz, Maybach, and Smart vehicles.

[edit] Mercedes-Benz C-Class

  • BRABUS BULLIT (C-Class)6.3 TWIN TURBO V12

[edit] Mercedes-Benz CL-Class

  • BRABUS SV12 S Coupé (CL 600)
  • BRABUS T 13 Coupé (CL 600)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class

  • BRABUS ROCKET (CLS-class)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz E-Class

  • BRABUS E V12S (E-class)
  • BRABUS BLACK BARON (E-class)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz G-Class

  • BRABUS G V12 (G-class)
  • BRABUS G V12 S (G-class)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz GLK-Class

  • BRABUS GLK V8 (GLK-Class)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz ML-Class

  • BRABUS ML 63 Biturbo (ML 63)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz S-Class

  • BRABUS SV12 S Limousine (S 600 L)
  • BRABUS T 13 Limousine (S 600)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz SL-Class

  • BRABUS SV12 S Roadster (SL 600)
  • BRABUS T 13 Roadster (SL 600)
  • BRABUS SL 55 K8 Roadster (SL 55)

[edit] Mercedes-Benz Viano

  • BRABUS 6.1 (Viano 3.2 long)

[edit] Maybach

  • BRABUS SV12 S (Maybach 57(S) / 62(S))

[edit] smart fortwo

  • BRABUS Ultimate 112 (smart fortwo convertible)

[edit] Records

Brabus had held several world records.

  • In 1996 Brabus E V12 achieved world speed record for street-legal sedan at 330 km/h (205.1 mph).
  • In 2003 Brabus E V12 Biturbo made a new record for street-legal sedan at 350.2 km/h (217.6 mph).
  • In 2006 Brabus Rocket clocked in new record for street-legal sedan at 362.4 km/h (225.2 mph). The Rocket was based on a modified Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class W219 model.
  • In October 2006 Brabus made another record (for a sedan) with this car at 365.7 km/h (227.2 mph). The price of the car is 348,000 euros.[2]
  • A world-record speed of 330.6 km/h (205.2 mph) set on the high-speed test track in Nardo, Italy; Brabus added to its extensive collection of automotive records with a Maybach 57 powered by a 730-hp (720 hp SAE net) / 537-kW Brabus SV12 S Biturbo engine.

[edit] Competing Mercedes-Benz performance specialists

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Geneva Motor Show Preview: The BRABUS G V12 S Biturbo Mercedes-Benz G-Class | eMercedesBenz - The Unofficial Mercedes-Benz Weblog". eMercedesBenz. 2009-02-19. http://www.emercedesbenz.com/Feb09/19_001596_Geneva_Motor_Show_With_Preview_The_BRABUS_G_V12_S_Biturbo_Mercedes_Benz_G_Class.html. Retrieved 2009-04-29. 
  2. ^ Brabus Rockets to 366km/h World Record

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brabus"