Mercedes unveil their new safety car for the 2022 season

Sam Cooper
New Official FIA Safety Car and Medical Car from Mercedes-AMG for Formula 1. March 2022

Mercedes have revealed their new Safety Car that will be at the front of the grid for the upcoming 2022 season.

The German manufacturer has a long history of supplying safety and medical cars and since 2019, they have supplied the Mercedes-AMG GT R as the Safety Car.

That will now be replaced by the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series for half the races as Mercedes continue to share Safety Car duties with Aston Martin, just as they did last year.

In addition, the AMG GT 63 S 4MATIC+ will be used as the medical car for the season.

CEO of Mercedes-AMG GmbH, Philipp Schiemer, said the there was “no question” they would extend their 25-year partnership with F1.

“Recent years have seen Mercedes-AMG celebrate a huge number of amazing successes in the FIA Formula One World Championship. Eight constructors’ titles and seven drivers’ titles in the last eight years speak emphatically for themselves,” he said in a statement.

“Added to that is the extensive and widespread transfer of technology and image from this greatest of all motorsport stages and our series-production vehicles.

“Motorsport means so much to us, as does the best possible level of safety. There was absolutely no question that, after more than 25 years, we would extend our commitment as the provider of the safety car and medical car – with two absolutely outstanding vehicles from our line-up.”

The Safety Car will be driven by Bernd Maylander who has driven it since 2000 and the 50-year-old said he was “so happy” to be back behind the wheel once more.

“I’m so happy that I will once again be at the wheel of the Formula 1 safety car for the 2022 season,” he said.

“And I’m especially pleased that this year it’s a Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series. I’ve already had the chance to test this amazing vehicle many times and I’m simply blown away by how close it is to a thoroughbred race car.

“It really is a major step compared to last year’s GT R – which was already at an extremely high level. To have a workplace like this in the name of safety is a dream come true.”

 

The cars themselves are much like the base models available to customers but have been customised to fit the needs of F1.

At the front, three small orange light modules and one large green module are positioned on each side of the AMG logo, level with the sun visors which will be used in various points throughout a race. The rear number plate can also be illuminated in either orange or green in synch with the safety lights.

Inside, the car has been fitted with a roll cage made from bolted tubular titanium.

Mercedes

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