Mercedes-Benz is the oldest automobile company in the world. The first car ever produced was the 1885 Benz Tri-Car. Between 1901 and 1926, Karl Benz’s company would compete with Gottlieb Daimler’s Mercedes car company until, in 1926, they merged to form Daimler-Benz (later DaimlerChrysler, then just Daimler), selling their cars under the name Mercedes-Benz.
Daimler has always been at the forefront of innovation in automotives, introducing many cutting edge features which have become standard in nearly every design today. Examples include anti-lock brakes (1978), traction control (1986), airbags (1988) and Electronic Stability Control (1995). Mercedes chooses not to horde these technologies, licensing them for use to anyone, and rarely trumpets their own brilliance, preferring to let their vehicles speak for themselves.
Mercedes was once a force in racing, until tragedy struck in 1955 and they withdrew from competition until 1989. Despite some hiccups Mercedes has returned to racing prominence in recent years, and Mercedes-McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton won the F1 Driver’s Championship in 2008.
A great variety of vehicles are produced by Mercedes-Benz - everything from the million dollar Maybach luxury sedans, to the supremely economic Smart fortwo, to fire engines and busses. Perhaps no company epitomizes their slogan the way Mercedes-Benz does; they truly are “Unlike Any Other”.