Inspired by the Gullwing Mercedes 300 SL and the
Mercedes-Benz C111 experimental cars, and with a drag coefficient cw of 0.311, the CW311 concept was built by the
bb company of
Rainer Buchmann. They used the big but heavy 6.9 litre
Mercedes-Benz M100 engine and other Mercedes parts. Use of the Mercedes star was allowed by the factory due to a tricky press campaign that stole the limelight of the new
BMW M1. The one-off car starred in the 1980 comedy
"Car-napping". Implementing a
fiberglass body upon a tubular steel
spaceframe, the Isdera Imperator 108i was comparable to the exotic sports cars of its day. Little was changed from the original Mercedes-Benz show car with the most noticeable changes being the replacement of the pop-up headlights with two fixed units and more conventional tail lights sourced from Mercedes-Benz. The original Imperator 108i featured a
Mercedes-Benz M117 V8 engine which gave the vehicle a top speed of and a acceleration time of 5.0 seconds. As Mercedes-Benz developed more powerful V8 engines, they were used in the Imperator 108i. Later engines included a
Mercedes-Benz M117 V8, a
AMG V8 and a
AMG V8 which saw an eventual increase of power from to , with both AMG engines featuring advanced 32-valve cylinder heads. Unusually, the Imperator 108i featured a rear-view
periscope in place of conventional rear view mirrors which gave the driver the rear view, creating a bulge on the roof. It also featured
gullwing doors. Inside, the car featured a luxurious interior and sourced many interior components from the
Porsche 928. == Production ==