Eugen Böhringer
Böhringer, who was born in Rotenberg near Stuttgart, gained his first competitive experience in the mid-1950s at automotive skill tournaments, followed by hill climbs and reliability races from 1957 onwards, which he contested in a Mercedes-Benz "Ponton" saloon, among other cars. His successes caught the attention of the sports department, and by the early 1960s Böhringer had established himself as one of the fastest Mercedes-Benz works drivers in both touring car racing on the circuit and on rally tracks.
In 1960, for example, he and his co-driver Walter Socher took second place in the Monte Carlo Rally in a 220 SE "tail fin" and finished fourth in the Coupe des Alpes, also in a 220 SE. The following year, he achieved even more good results, such as victory in the Rally Poland and second place in the Rally Germany, both with Rauno Aaltonen in the co-driver's seat, as well as three fourth places in the Tulip Rally, the Acropolis Rally and the Liège - Sofia - Liège long-distance race. At the end of the season, he secured the runner-up title in the European Rally Championship.
in 1962, Böhringer's string of successes continued seamlessly. Together with his new co-driver Peter Lang, son of the successful Grand Prix driver Hermann Lang, he dominated the European Rally Championship in the 220 SE and took victories in the Acropolis Rally and again in the Rally Poland. In addition, he won – this time with Hermann Eger at his side – the Liège - Sofia - Liège long-distance race and took second place in both the Rally Monte-Carlo and the Baden-Baden Germany Rally. He and Peter Lang also took seventh place in the Tulip Rally and fifth in the Midnight Rally in Sweden. All in all, these results added up to the European Championship title for the team of Böhringer/Lang.
In the following season in 1963, the Rotenberg native, whose birthplace had been a district of Stuttgart since 1931, competed in the powerful 300 SE from the second round onwards, the Acropolis Rally, and promptly took victory in the material-killing round in Greece. He did the same at the Rally Germany and again at the long-distance race Spa - Sofia - Liège, but this time driving a Mercedes-Benz 230 SL for the first time. A highlight outside the European Rally Championship was his victory in the Touring Grand Prix of Argentina, which he achieved at the end of the year in his eye-catching, blue-painted 300 SE. The 4600 km event was more of a marathon road race than a rally.
In 1964, the new competition from small, more nimble service vehicles à la Saab 96 or Morris Cooper became increasingly evident on the rally scene. Nevertheless, Böhringer, this time in a team with Klaus Kaiser, managed an eighth place in the heavy 300 SE at the Rally Monte-Carlo and fourth place at the Portugal Rally. At the end of the season, he repeated his previous year's triumph at the Argentinian Touring Grand Prix, which he celebrated together with Klaus Kaiser in the robust saloon.
In 1963 and 1964, Böhringer also competed increasingly in touring car races, where the 300 SE's inferior handling hardly played a role. Especially in the second of the two years, he achieved considerable success in the European Touring Car Championship, winning the Grand Prix of the Touring Cars at the Nürburgring and finishing second in the mountain test on Mont Ventoux. At the Brands Hatch 6-hour race and at the Coupe de Terlaemen in Zolder, Belgium, he finished third in the 300 SE. He also took victory in the Macau Grand Prix for touring cars in the Portuguese enclave near Hong Kong.
In the course of the 1965 season, Böhringer considerably reduced his motorsport activities and spent more time looking after the family-run hotel in Stuttgart. His last countable result was a second place in the Rally Monte-Carlo, which he achieved with Rolf Wütherich in a Porsche 904 Carrera GTS.
Eugen Böhringer died in Stuttgart on 19 June 2013 at the age of 91.