The Mercedes-Benz CLR was a set of racing cars developed for Mercedes-Benz through a collaboration with in-house tuning division Mercedes-AMG and motorsports specialists HWA GmbH. Designed to meet Le Mans Grand Touring Prototype (LMGTP) regulations, the CLRs were intended to compete in sports car events during 1999, most notably at the 24 Hours of Le Mans which Mercedes had last won in 1989. It was the third in a series of sports cars raced by Mercedes, following the CLK GTRs and CLK LMs that had debuted in 1997 and 1998 respectively. Like its predecessors the CLR retained elements of Mercedes-Benz's production cars, including a V8 engine loosely based on a design used in some models as well as bodywork based on the CLK and CL-Classes. The CLR's bodywork was lower in overall height than th