UPDATE: 2026/09/10 11:00 EST BY SEAN MCMANUS
Same Old Trick For A Bold New Era
We added a section to include the Concept AMG GT XX’s attempt at driving the Nardo Ring for a week straight.
Reliability is one of those qualities that’s easy to talk about and hard to prove — but few automakers have ever demonstrated it as dramatically as Mercedes-Benz did in the summer of 1983. Rather than wait for owners to rack up six-figure odometer readings, Mercedes-Benz took three brand-new 190 E 2.3-16 sedans to the Nardo test track in southern Italy and ran them flat-out, around the clock, for more than 31,000 miles. What they pulled off that August remains one of the most remarkable endurance feats in automotive history.
Over the course of eight days, the three “Baby Benz” Mercs circled the ring continuously, stopping only for essential maintenance and fuel. Eleven world records fell in the process, and the legend of the 190 E was cemented forever.
How The 190 E Did It And Why
Quick Facts About The 1983 190 E’s Nardo Run
- Occurred in August 1983
- Three 190E 2.3-16s were involved
- The 190 Es involved were only lightly modified
- A total of 11 records were broken in the process
The inspiration for Mercedes’ decision to send three 190 Es around the Nardo ring was, in essence, failure. In the early 1980s, Mercedes-Benz was hard at work developing a car for the World Rally Championship (WRC). But while that project was still taking shape, Audi shook the automotive world with the debut of the Quattro. The new Audi immediately began dominating the WRC, leaving Mercedes holding a half-baked, rear-wheel-drive 190 E — and the Benz bosses had no interest in competing in a series they couldn’t win.
So, Mercedes motorsport chief Erich Waxenberger hatched a plan for the Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.3-16. The car was already equipped with a Cosworth-designed 2.3-liter inline-four engine producing 185 horsepower, giving it solid bones for a performance mission. Waxenberger wanted to prove to the world that the 190 E 2.3-16 was genuinely bulletproof, so a plan was drawn up to drive three examples flat-out around the Nardo ring for 50,000 kilometers — roughly 31,000 miles.
On August 13, 1983, the record-breaking run commenced. The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) permitted only a handful of modifications to the three 190 Es. Each car was allowed only as many spare parts as could fit inside its interior, and the flat-faced wheel openings were faired in to reduce aerodynamic drag. A larger endurance fuel tank was fitted, along with a slight change to each car’s final-drive gearing to raise the top speed. The three cars were identified on track by green, white, and red markings.
The Details Of The 1983 190 E 2.3-16
mercedes 190 e 2.3 engine hood up showing stock timing coverMercedes-Benz
Before we continue with the story, it’s worth taking a closer look at the 1983 190 E’s powerplant. As mentioned, its engine was developed with help from Cosworth, the England-based engineering firm also responsible for the legendary DFV V8. The DFV was ahead of its time in every respect, competing in Formula One and other racing series for more than two decades. In short, Cosworth knew exactly what they were doing. Below is a detailed look at the 1983 Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.3-16’s specifications:
Displacement
2.3-Liter DOHC Inline-Four 16-Valve
Horsepower
185 hp @ 6,200 rpm
Torque
173 lb-ft @ 4,500 rpm
Bore x Stroke
95.5 mm x 80.25 mm
Compression Ratio
10.5:1
0-60 MPH Time
7.4 Seconds
1/4-Mile @ MPH
15.8 Seconds @ 88 mph
Top Speed (Stock)
143 mph
The 190 E 2.3-16 wasn’t always meant for the road. Originally conceived as a WRC competitor — and intended to be turbocharged — it lost that purpose once Audi’s Quattro made the rally program untenable. Mercedes then pivoted to the German Touring Car Championship (DTM), which required competitors to offer a road-legal version of their race cars. The result was the Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.3-16, released with a de-tuned version of the Cosworth motor.
Beyond its Cosworth-bred engine, the 190 E 2.3-16 received several meaningful upgrades over the standard 190 E. It wore an aerodynamic body kit that brought its drag coefficient down to 0.32 — reportedly among the best figures achieved by a mass-market sedan at the time. Steering response was sharpened, the fuel tank was enlarged to 70 liters, and a mechanical limited-slip differential was fitted as standard equipment.
1984 Mercedes-Benz 190E Champagne Front Angled ViewMercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz paired the road-going 190 E 2.3-16 with a five-speed Getrag manual transmission featuring a dog-leg first gear, meaning first was left and down in the shift pattern rather than left and up. This placed second and third gears in the positions most drivers would expect from first and second — a genuine advantage in motorsport, where first gear is rarely used once rolling. Inside, the cabin balanced performance intent with genuine luxury: bolstered seats front and rear, supplementary gauges for oil temperature, voltage, and a stopwatch, plus leather trim, wood accents, and air conditioning.
How Our Three Heroes Got On Around Nardo
From the moment the record run started, the three 190 E 2.3-16s swept up to the uppermost lane of the banked Nardo ring and settled into their approximate top speed of 154 mph. Officials from both Mercedes-Benz and the FIA monitored proceedings closely, verifying that the attempts were unfolding cleanly and within the rules.
Over the course of the 8.5-day run, only one unplanned failure occurred. The green car suffered a broken distributor arm — the component that routes spark to each of the engine’s four ignition wires. Because the part was considered so unlikely to fail, it hadn’t been included among the permitted spares, so some creative improvisation was needed to get the car back up to speed. The green car also struck a fox at some point during the run, yet pressed on without missing a beat.
On August 21, 1983, the green Mercedes crossed the proverbial finish line first, having completed 50,000 kilometers at an average speed of 247 km/h (153.5 mph). The entire run took 201 hours, 39 minutes, and 43 seconds. All three cars broke the 25,000 km and 50,000 km endurance records, and another nine class-specific records fell along the way.
What’s So Special About The Nardo Ring?
For one thing, it’s enormous. Built by Fiat in 1975 and originally called the Pista di prova di Nardò della Fiat, the circuit has hosted record attempts across virtually every vehicle segment and class. The ringed track spans 7.8 miles in total and is perfectly circular, with a continuously banked surface. Its scale is so vast that the Nardo Ring is visible from space. At sufficient speed, the banking generates enough lateral force that drivers can release the steering wheel entirely and the car will hold its line unaided.
The ring has been so central to automotive development that Volkswagen named one of their W12 prototypes after it, having conducted extensive top-speed testing there. Koenigsegg brought their debut supercar, the CCR, to Nardo for its top-speed run, where it reached 241 mph. Bugatti has also used the track, most famously when a Veyron prototype crashed at 247 mph — driver Loris Bicocchi walked away with only minor injuries. Since 2012, the ring has been owned by Porsche, which acquired it from the engineering firm Prototipo SPa.
Same Old Trick For A Bold New Era
Press image of Mercedes-Benz breaking EV Endurance record with Concept AMG GT XXMercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is full of new tricks, like how Karl Benz invented the automobile to begin with. However, sometimes an old trick is just as entertaining and impressive. While developing a new all-electric concept, the Concept AMG GT XX, Mercedes floored it around the Nardo Ring just like they did in 1983. On August 25th, 2025, after driving for 7 days, 13 hours, and 24 minutes, the electric concept finally slowed down after traveling 24,901 miles.
Drivers maintained a constant speed at 300 km/h (~186 mph), only stopping to recharge before getting right back on the track again. It took 3,177 laps, each measuring 7.87 miles to reach their goal. That meant driving 3,293 miles per day for just over a week straight in one of the most brutal endurance tests to date.
Sources: Mercedes-Benz.com, MotorTrend.com, Porsche
