Ex-Mika Hakkinen Mercedes-AMG DTM Is Looking for a New Owner, Can't Be Cheap

And it was a good year for Mercedes-Benz as well, as the company won 8 out of a total of 11 races that year, with Audi winning the other three ones. Gary Paffett claimed the title that year, with Mattias Ekström in second and Tom Kristensen in third. Bernd Schneider was fourth, and Mika Hakkinen was not far behind, in fifth. In 2005 I was still intensely watching both Formula 1 and DTM, as this was a time before I got sucked into the drifting scene.

So to see this 2005 Mercedes-AMG DTM car offered up for sale feels quite emotional, especially because I was a big Mika Hakkinen fan back in the day. I've always admired Finnish drivers for their commitment and presence, and it's hard to forget how big of a challenge Hakkinen was to Schumacher back when he was still racing in F1. Even though he didn't perform all that amazing in DTM, he was never too far away from the podium.

The car sold here is chassis number RS 05-12, which proved to be quite competitive in 2005. Mika took 3rd at Round 2 in Lausitzring, and then he won the race in Spa! After that would follow a series of mediocre results, except for a P4 at the Nürburgring and a P2 in Istanbul. This car is powered by a 4.0-liter, 90-degree V8 engine that has four valves per cylinder, with a total output of around 475 horsepower (with the restrictor still in place).

Mika managed to put in a 2 minute 13 second-lap at Spa while driving this car, which is quite fast even by today's standards. Last year at Spa, an Audi RS5 Turbo DTM driven by Rene Rast got P1 in qualifying with a time of 2 minutes 4 seconds. That means last year's DTM machines were faster by less than 10 seconds than this 2005 model, after 15 years of developments.

Everything on this car is pretty solid to withstand the intense abuse during a race weekend. The transmission is secured via a carbon-fiber driveshaft, a triple-disc carbon clutch, and a six-speed sequential gearbox. These cars did not have any kind of traction control or ABS for that matter, but at least they had carbon brakes tucked away under those 18-inch wheels.

This car has been deposited away at the Mercedes-Benz Motorsport Department up until seven years ago. It was then sold to a race team owner originating from the United Kingdom, and it's still in the country as we speak. There's room for just one person inside the car, and I can only hope that whoever buys this will continue to race it at select events. Price is available upon request, and I honestly wouldn't be shocked if it's made up of 7 digits.