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Silver Arrows (German:Silberpfeile) is a nickname typically given to silver racing cars with a significant connection to a German car manufacturer. Although the term was coined in 1932,[1][2] it came into popular usage regarding Germany's dominantMercedes-Benz andAuto UnionGrand Prix motor racing cars between 1934 and 1939. The name was later applied to theMercedes-Benz Formula One and sports cars in 1954 and 1955, then to theSauber Group C prototype racing sports cars that raced at Le Mans in the late 1980s as well as theMcLaren-Mercedes Formula One cars of the late 1990s and 2000s, and is currently applied to theMercedes-AMG Petronas F1 cars from 2010 to present.
For decades until the introduction of sponsorship liveries, each country had itstraditional colour in automobile racing. German race cars for theirSilver Arrows silver, Italian for theirRosso corsa red, British ones wereBritish racing green green, FrenchBleu de France blue, etc.
German cars like theBlitzen Benz were white, as were the threeMercedes that won the1914 French Grand Prix 1–2–3. On the other hand, Mercedes won the ItalianTarga Florio with cars painted red in 1922 (Giulio Masetti) and 1924 (Christian Werner), blending in with the local competitors. The big supercharged 200 hpMercedes-Benz SSKL with whichRudolf Caracciola won the 1931Mille Miglia was called theWhite Elephant.
In 1958,Alfred Neubauer described the origin of theSilver Arrows as being accidental. In 1934 the international governing body of motor sport prescribed a maximum weight limit of 750 kg (1,653 lb) for Grand Prix racing cars, excluding tyres and fuel. Neubauer said that when in spring 1934, the Mercedes-Benz team placed its newMercedes-Benz W25 on the scrutineering scales prior to theEifelrennen at theNürburgring, it allegedly recorded 751 kg (1,656 lb). Racing manager Alfred Neubauer and his driverManfred von Brauchitsch, who both later published their memoirs, claimed that they had the idea of removing all the white lead-based paint from the bodywork. The story continues that the next day the shining silver aluminium beneath was exposed and scrutineering was passed. After the 350 hp (260 kW) car of Von Brauchitsch won the race, the nicknameSilver Arrow was born, according to this version.
There is however, controversy and doubt regarding this story. It did not appear until 1958, and no reference to it has been found in contemporary sources. It has since been established that von Brauchitsch had raced a streamlined silver SSKL on theAVUS in 1932, which was called aSilver Arrow in live radio coverage. Also, in 1934, both Mercedes and Auto Union had entered the Avusrennen with silver cars. The next big event was the 1934 Eifelrennen, but as few cars complying to the new rules were ready, it was held for Formule Libre, so weight was still not a race-critical issue at that time.[3] By the 1930s, modern stressed-skin aircraftfuselage construction was already using polished and unpainted aluminium panels for streamlining and to save weight. Neubauer's 1958 autobiography has been shown to include several embellished stories and dubious claims, including a fabricated hoax surrounding the 1933 Tripoli Grand Prix, where he falsely accused several drivers of "fixing" the race.[4]
A historical connection to the Neubauer's story appeared in 2023 with the introduction of theMercedes-AMG F1 W14 E Performance Formula One car. At the launch, held on 15 February 2023, the W14 was revealed to have a black livery, much like its predecessors, theMercedes F1 W11 of 2020 and theW12 of 2021, but unlike those aforementioned cars, the black livery on the car is not being primarily used to promote diversity, but to save weight after the team admitted to struggling with excess weight with its 2022 car, theW13, which had a traditional silver-painted livery. The black colour was created by leaving most of the parts as unpainted raw carbon whilst some others (mainly the top of the nose and the engine cover) are painted with matte black paint.[5]
By 1937, the supercharged engine of aMercedes-Benz W125 attained an output of 646 hp (475 kW),[citation needed] a figure not greatly exceeded in Grand Prix Racing until the early 1980s,[citation needed] when turbo-charged engines were common inFormula One – although it was at least matched as early as the late 1940s by conventionally fuelled Grand Prix engines like theBRM V16, despite the rules restricting later engines to half the cylinder capacity.
The Silver Arrows of Mercedes and Auto Union cars reached speeds of well over 300 kilometres per hour (186 mph) in 1937,[citation needed] and well over 400 km/h (249 mph) during land speed record runs.[citation needed]
The superiority of these vehicles in international motor racing established the term "Silver Arrow" as a legend, for example by usually winning the first race in which they were entered.[citation needed] The namesRudolf Caracciola,Bernd Rosemeyer,Hermann Lang, and laterStirling Moss andJuan Manuel Fangio, will always be associated with the eras of these racing cars.
Mercedes-Benz recalled its great past in the 1970s with rally cars, and in the 1980s with theSauber sportscars andDTM touring cars. As well as the 2010 return toF1 racing ofAMG-Petronas cars, dominant there since 2014.
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Now a traditional colour for road-cars in reference to theSilver Arrows, most German car companies have a shade of silver in their catalogues conforming toSilberpfeil-Grau, orSilver Arrow Grey.
However,Audi andMercedes-Benz are not the only German car companies who paint their cars in a silver colour.Porsche has also inherited the tradition of silver arrows. However,BMW still paints its cars in the traditional white colour.
At the1999Le Mans 24 Hours, a total of seven "Silver Arrows" were entered in theLe Mans Prototype class:
Mercedes-Benz returned to Formula One Grand Prix racing in1994 as an engine manufacturer, initially partnering theSauber team before switching toMcLaren in 1995.[6] AfterMarlboro's sponsorship of McLaren ended at the conclusion of 1996, the team began using a silver livery and thus the McLaren-Mercedes cars were often referred to as "Silver Arrows".[7][8][9][10][11][12]
In2010, after purchasing theBrawn GP outfit and rebranding it asMercedes GP Petronas F1 Team, Mercedes-Benz became a constructor again. Mercedes' cars have been nicknamed "Silver Arrows" by the press and by the team itself.[13] The modern cars race with the majority of their bodies painted in a traditional silver shade, trimmed inPetronas green.
For the2019 German Grand Prix atHockenheim the cars raced in a special livery honouring the origins of their silver colour and to also celebrate the team's 200th start in F1. The cars were painted in such a way to pay homage to the story of the white paint being peeled away, exposing the shiny silver underneath.[14]
For the2020 season, while originally going to use a silver livery as usual with a newIneos sponsored engine intake, Mercedes decided to switch to anall-black livery, following the growing worldwide support for theBlack Lives Matter movement, and the postponement of the season. Hamilton prompted the livery change, saying he wanted the team to show its support for the cause through more than just social media posts, which led to the idea to adopt a new livery and launch a drive to improve diversity within the team.[15] The team would continue to use a black livery going into2021, reverting to a silver livery in2022.The2023 car, theMercedes W14, sported a black livery once again, this time to save weight after struggling with excess weight on the W13.[16] The2024 car, theMercedes W15, sported a livery with the famous silver returning to complement the iconic black of recent seasons.[17] The2025 car, theMercedes W16, sported a livery similar with theMercedes W15 except with a silver engine intake instead of the usualIneos coloured engine intake featured since theMercedes W11.
Mercedes' official debut inFormula E under the name ofMercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team in the 2019–20 season. Mercedes' first contender, dubbed theMercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01, was unveiled in March 2019. It featured a 'teaser' black livery, resembling the HWA car already in competition. The car went on to appear at various events, in promotion of Mercedes' Formula E entry, including the89th Geneva International Motor Show.[18] In September 2019, the team announced it had signed Danish wind power companyVestas as a principal partner.[19] On 11 September, Mercedes revealed the definitive look of their car (now incorporating metallic silver), along with their new team principal and drivers.
In July 2020, prior the season resuming after theCOVID-19 pandemic, Mercedes brought back and updated the pre-season black livery to unify it with the design used on theF1 W11 EQ Performance car.[20] The drivers also wore black racing overalls.
On 29 October 2020, Mercedes revealed the newSilver Arrow 02 car, which returned to the traditional silver livery. In 2021, the team underwent a slight rebrand, now going by the nameMercedes-EQ Formula E Team.[21] The livery would remain Silver until team was taken over byMcLaren and returning under new ownership from the2022–23 season.[22]
NB: For sources specifically aboutAuto Union Silver Arrows, seeAuto Union racing cars. For sources specifically aboutMercedes-Benz Silver Arrows, seeMercedes-Benz in motorsport.
