Before the carbon fiber crash structure, the six-point safety harness and crash-worthy helmet, each Grand Prix lap was literally a life or death gamble for a racing driver. Armed with nothing more than guts and determination, these men risked their lives for a sport they truly loved. Some did it for the rush of adrenaline, excitement or a feeling of bliss, but for Karl Kling, it was a way of life.
Born in the town of Gießen in 1910, Kling’s fascination for vehicle engineering and motor sport began at an early age. It was his foreman’s training in motor vehicle mechanics at his local Daimler-Benz agency that brought his first contact with the Stuttgart-based company. Having completed his degree in engineering in 1936, Kling started to work for the company as a customer service engineer.
Besides the predominantly deskbound job, Kling enjoyed being Daimler-Benz’s representative in highly popular touring car events of the time. After World War II, he was crowned German Sports Car champion twice, writing a significant chapter in post-war German racing history. He formally joined Daimler-Benz’s racing team in 1950, winning the ADAC’s six-hour race at the Nürburgring behind the wheel of a Mercedes-Benz 170 S. A year later he became part of the legendary trio alongside Juan Manuel Fangio and Hermann Lang.
Driving refitted supercharged V12 racers from 1939, the team entered two Grand Prix events. A sixth and second place finish were sufficient to guarantee the 40-year-old “newcomer” further race outings. Kling’s golden period began in 1952, where he enjoyed great success with the 300SL Gullwing prototype.
He won the Bern Grand Prix, took overall victory in the notoriously demanding Carrera Panamericana in Mexico, proved his skills with a second place in the tortuous Mille Miglia in Italy and finished runner-up in the Anniversary Race for sports cars on the Nürburgring.
When Daimler-Benz returned to Grand Prix racing in 1954 with their new W 196 Formula One car, Karl Kling was once again in on the act – first lining up alongside teammates Juan Manuel Fangio, Hermann Lang and Hans Herrmann, and later with such top drivers as the Englishman Stirling Moss and Piero Taruffi.
On the unveiling of the new Silver Arrows at the French Grand Prix in Reims in 1954, Karl Kling finished runner-up to Fangio. He subsequently achieved a number of high-placed finishes on just about every major Grand Prix circuit – his victories in the 1954 Berlin Grand Prix held on the famous AVUS racetrack and in the 1955 Swedish Grand Prix being particularly worthy of note.
When Daimler-Benz withdrew from motor racing at the end of the 1955 season, Karl Kling took over from his mentor Alfred Neubauer as head of the motor sports department. Yet, he also continued to take an active part in racing – notably in long-distance races.
In 1959 he won the Méditerranée – Le Cap Rally in a Mercedes-Benz 190 Diesel and drove a Mercedes-Benz 220 SE to victory in the Algiers – Cape Town Rally in 1961.
Since the death of his wife, Karl Kling led a quiet life in his house on Lake Constance, where he continued to follow with great critical interest the fortunes of Daimler’s sporting involvement.
Karl Kling passed away in 2003, and with his death, the closing chapter of one of the greatest racing drivers completed. However, his accomplishments live on, as shown by Mercedes-Benz’s triumphant return into the motor sport arena. Kling’s triumphant and colorful career wasn’t fueled by paychecks or endorsements, but rather, by pure unadulterated passion. And it all began in a little Daimler-Benz agency in the town of Gießen.
By Ulysses Ang | Photos Courtesy of Mercedes-Benz AG
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