The elusive road-legal version of the Mercedes CLK racer sells for ridiculous amounts nowadays ($8-10 million) and is out of reach for most car collectors, let alone common enthusiasts. It is therefore unsurprising that Johan Ackermann, from South Africa, resolved to build one of his own.
He started with an unassuming Mercedes-Benz E-Class (W210) that got its roof and pillars chopped and two doors removed to come closer to the CLK proportions. He then put the original CLK C208 top onto the car, essentially turning it from a sedan into a coupe.
He did a decent job imitating the ventilated engine bay behind the seats and borrowed the seats along with the door panels and the dashboard from an SLK Roadster. As for the stock headlights and taillights, he reasoned that they looked fine as is.
Ackermann never revealed how much exactly the project cost him, but said it turned out even more challenging than he expected. His next plans include finalizing this replica before the end of the year and proceeding to the next one, which he expects to be much closer to the original and even pack an AMG V12 engine.
