Carbon fibre is a life-saving material. This was demonstrated most recently in dramatic fashion at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal on June 10 of this year, when one of the drivers suffered a horrific accident. Despite hurtling into a solid concrete wall at over 250 km/h, the driver survived the crash in his race car made from carbon-fibre composites virtually unscathed. Mercedes-Benz harnesses the safety benefits offered by carbon-fibre materials for the body of the new SLR McLaren Roadster, and builds its open-top super-sports car almost entirely from this exotic material as standard. Consequently, the new high-performance roadster not only serves up an exclusive open-air feast for the senses, it also offers a standard of safety that is unparalleled in this segment.