Mercedes-Benz Classic Notes 5/2022

GCF · Sep 30, 2022

Mercedes-Benz, the world’s oldest luxury car manufacturer, has been reinventing the automobile over and over since 1886. As it does so, the brand continually sets new standards while also keeping pace with social change. The history of the company is correspondingly rich in events and stories. Here we have a brief summary of some important anniversaries and milestones from its history.

1 October 1992 – 30 years ago
European premiere of the Mercedes-Benz 400 E of the 124 model series

V8 sophistication in the inconspicuous dress of the upper mid-size class
Particularly successful in North America
Adaptation of bodyshell structure, suspension, brakes and exhaust system

As a high performer in the inconspicuous attire of the upper mid-size class, the Mercedes-Benz 400 E made its debut in Europe 30 years ago, on 1 October 1992. The performance of the 205 kW (279 hp) saloon with the 4.2-litre V8 M 119 engine, familiar from the S-Class 140 model series, is admittedly somewhat lower than that of the legendary E 500. Unlike that particular vehicle, however, the 400 E has exactly the same body as the other models in the 124 series. This makes the outwardly inconspicuous V8 saloon a real wolf in sheep’s clothing that can only be distinguished from the rest of the model range by its badge. Underneath the body, however, there are various differences. For example, Mercedes-Benz modified the bodyshell structure due to the higher space requirements of the engine and also adopted parts of the suspension and brake system from the SL sports cars of the 129 model series. The exhaust system with exhaust gas recirculation, secondary air injection and large-volume catalytic converter corresponds to that of the 500 E. The 400 E was produced for export to the United States of America and Japan from 1991 onwards. From May 1991 to June 1995, 22,802 customers bought this model, which was listed as the E 420 following the restructuring of the vehicle nomenclature in 1993. It was particularly successful in North America, with 15,440 vehicles delivered to the United States alone.
2 October 1992 – 30 years ago
Large-scale electric vehicle project on the island of Rügen

Field test for electric mobility with passenger cars and vans
201 model series saloons are given different battery-motor combinations
Reliable operation with annual mileages of up to 100,000 kilometres

Today, the Mercedes-EQ brand stands for a fascinating new age of electric mobility. Mercedes-Benz took an important step towards this era 30 years ago on the Baltic Sea island of Rügen: a large-scale project to research electric mobility began there on 2 October 1992, involving ten Mercedes-Benz 201 model series saloons and ten MB 100 vans fitted with a variety of electric drive concepts. Until 1996, the vehicles would go on to prove their worth in the field trial, which the German government funded to the tune of about DM 60 million. The aim was to test electric vehicles and their energy systems, including batteries, in everyday use. The ten saloons in the 201 model series were fitted with the electric drive components by hand in Sindelfingen, with Mercedes-Benz selecting different electric motor-battery combinations. During the field test, charging also took place at filling stations equipped with photovoltaic systems, for it was already clear back in 1992 just how important electricity from renewable sources is for CO₂-neutral mobility.
7 October 1992 – 30 years ago
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class of the 140 model series became “World Car 1992”

The award ceremony took place at the Paris Motor Show
The 300 SE 2.8 and the 300 SD rounded off the model range
Since 2021, well-maintained early units of the 140 model series have been considered historical cultural assets

Environmental compatibility, safety and comfort – these are the areas in which the Mercedes-Benz S-Class 140 model series will shape the future. That was the vote of an international jury of automotive journalists 30 years ago. The result: on 7 October 1992, on the eve of the Paris Motor Show (8 to 18 October 1992), it was named “World Car 1992”. But that is not all: the brand also presented the 300 SE 2.8 and the 300 SD at the show. For the first time, an S-Class was also offered in Europe with a diesel engine. By the time production of the 140 model series ended in 1998, a total of 406,532 vehicles had been built – in seven years of production. Since 2021, well-maintained early units of this S-Class have been able to receive the coveted H registration plate as a recognised classic car. Thus, some three decades later, the “World Car 1992” is classified as a historical cultural asset.
11 October 1992 – 30 years ago
Klaus Ludwig became German Touring Car Champion 1992

First title and triple success in the drivers’ championship for Mercedes-Benz
Klaus Ludwig won in five races with the 190 E “Evo II”
Second title in a row for Mercedes-Benz as constructors’ champion

The 1992 season of the German Touring Car Championship (DTM) became a successful year for the brand with the star: Klaus Ludwig won the DTM drivers’ championship with the AMG Team’s 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II racing touring car (model series 201) ahead of his brand colleagues Kurt Thiim and Bernd Schneider. The result was determined on 11 October 1992 in the last race of the season at the Hockenheimring: Klaus Ludwig secured the championship with 228 points and a clear lead while Thiim (192 points) and Schneider (191 points) fought it out between themselves for the second and third places. Mercedes-Benz thus won the second DTM constructors’ championship in a row. Klaus Ludwig won five races in that season, and in total the brand’s record shows 16 wins, 17 second places and 13 third places over twelve days of racing with 24 races. The 1992 DTM year marked the first high point in the collaboration between Mercedes-Benz and AMG: AMG had been competing in the DTM with racing tourers based on the 201 model series since 1986. 1988 saw the start of the direct cooperation between the automotive manufacturer and its partner. The 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II racing touring car was introduced in the 1990 season. As was the case with the first Evolution model, 502 high-performance saloons under the same name were produced for homologation purposes in a small series at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Bremen. Today, the “Evo II” is a much sought-after and coveted collector’s item.
3 November 1897 – 125 years ago
Maiden voyage of the world’s first all-metal airship with Daimler engine

Anniversaries for aircraft engines built by the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft and Benz & Cie.
First rigid airship in history takes off from Berlin
Klemm-Daimler L 20 light aircraft in the Mercedes-Benz Museum

Mobility on land, on water and in the air: more than 100 years ago, the successful uses of Carl Benz’s and Gottlieb Daimler’s combustion engines also included aircraft. Thus, 125 years ago on 3 November 1897, an all-metal airship designed by Hungarian inventor David Schwarz set off on its maiden voyage in Berlin, equipped with an 8.8 kW (12 hp) Daimler engine. Although the world’s first rigid airship was destroyed on landing, aviation remained a field of application for combustion engines. Ten years later and thus 115 years ago, in 1907, the experimental airship of the Prussian Airship Battalion, built according to a semi-rigid system, set off on its first voyage. The airship, powered by a 22.1 kW (30 hp) four-cylinder engine from the Süddeutsche Automobilfabrik Gaggenau, achieved an endurance flight record of 3 hours and 27 minutes in the same year. 100 years ago, Hanns Klemm, head of body design at the Sindelfingen plant of Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG), published the memorandum “The Light Aircraft as a General Means of Sport and Transport”. With this, he initiates the development and production of light aircraft at DMG. In the Mercedes-Benz Museum today, a Klemm-Daimler L 20 light aircraft commemorates the legendary round-the-world flight by pilot Friedrich Karl von Koenig-Warthausen in this type of aircraft in 1928 and 1929.
Mercedes-Benz Classic Magazine 2/2022
The fascination of Mercedes-Benz inspires generations

The brand’s vehicles captivate young and old alike
Detailed stories offer a colourful bouquet of the best reading material
Available by subscription or as single issue at
mercedes-benz.com/en/exclusive/classic-magazine/subscription as well as in the shops of the Mercedes-Benz Museum and the factories

Mercedes-Benz vehicles have been fascinating and inspiring entire generations for many decades. All of them – classics, youngtimers and new cars as classics of the future – captivate young and old. Several stories in the next issue of Mercedes-Benz Classic Magazine, which will be published on 25 November 2022, are dedicated to this fascination that spans the generations. For “Le Mans Classic”, champions and automotive gems from the brand’s motorsport history through various eras were displayed in an elaborate show in the middle of the night. The magazine also looked at enthusiasts of the three-pointed star over in the far west, in North and South America, spending three days on the road with the Mercedes-Benz Club Colombia. In the USA, blues legends and two S-Classes of the 126 model series met magically and almost by chance. A special surprise meeting was also recorded for AMG’s 55th birthday – between founding father Hans Werner Aufrecht and DTM idol Bernd Schneider.
Media representatives can view and download the latest Mercedes-Benz Classic Magazine at media.mercedes-benz.com/magazine.
Birthdays

80 years ago – Jutta Benz, born on 1 October 1942. The great-granddaughter of Bertha and Carl Benz is a Brand Ambassador for Mercedes-Benz. She is the last bearer of the Benz family name, which goes back in direct line to the automobile pioneer and his wife.
70 years ago – Norbert Haug, born on 24 November 1952. The motorsport boss was responsible for the company’s activities in Formula 1, DTM, Group C and Formula 3 from 1990 until 2013. He brought Mercedes-Benz back to the top of international racing.