P&S –Do you know or not - How did the name Mercedes come to be chosen for the car?
April 21st, 2011 | by admin |Mercedes Benz is a world famous brand of luxury cars. It was Emil Jellinek, the Austro-Hungarian consul and one of the earliest buyers of the model, who persuaded Gottlieb Daimler, the manufacturer, to rename the model after his daughter, Mercedes Jellinek, figuring that this non-German sounding name would be more popular with the French buying public.
Karl Benz built an automobile in 1886, during a time when the "invention" of the automobile was widely pursued on both sides of the ocean. The Benz car of 1886 was subsequent to the de Dion car in France in 1884, submission of the Selden patent in the US in 1879, and the Siegfried Marcus car, developed in Austria in 1870. It’s convenient for modern advertising purposes to call Benz the inventor of the automobile, although it’s not really the case.
However, Benz was certainly an early pioneer. He produced prototype vehicles for the next ten years, and by the mid 1890’s was producing cars on a more or less commercial basis.
Gottlieb Daimler was a German engineer who also produced his first car in 1886. He and engineer Wilhelm Maybach formed a rival company to Benz, called DMG. One of the early distributors of DMG cars was Emil Jellinek, a well to do Austrian diplomat living in France. Jellinek was an avid enthusiast, and began peppering Daimler with requests for modifications. Some of these were followed by the factory, because Jellinek was so effective at selling cars.
By 1900, Jellinek was operating a successful dealership in Nice, and was in a position to demand something really special from Daimler. He requested a car with a long wheelbase, more horsepower, lower center of gravity, and electric ignition. He offered a large sum of money to Daimler not only to produce the car, but to give him an exclusive dealership covering most of western Europe and the US. He reserved the right to name the car, and called it Mercedes, after his daughter.The new Mercedes car was an instant success, winning race after race. Success on the track led to success on the showroom floor, and the brand flourished.
During the post-WWI depression, the Benz and DMG companies were forced to merge. This occured in 1926. The resulting company was called Daimler Benz. Their automobiles, capitalizing on the strength of both brands, became known as Mercedes Benz’s, which is how we know them today.
5 Responses to “P&S –Do you know or not - How did the name Mercedes come to be chosen for the car?”
By ⇠Totally Wacko™⇢ on Apr 22, 2011 | Reply
Karl Benz built an automobile in 1886, during a time when the "invention" of the automobile was widely pursued on both sides of the ocean. The Benz car of 1886 was subsequent to the de Dion car in France in 1884, submission of the Selden patent in the US in 1879, and the Siegfried Marcus car, developed in Austria in 1870. It’s convenient for modern advertising purposes to call Benz the inventor of the automobile, although it’s not really the case.
However, Benz was certainly an early pioneer. He produced prototype vehicles for the next ten years, and by the mid 1890’s was producing cars on a more or less commercial basis.
Gottlieb Daimler was a German engineer who also produced his first car in 1886. He and engineer Wilhelm Maybach formed a rival company to Benz, called DMG. One of the early distributors of DMG cars was Emil Jellinek, a well to do Austrian diplomat living in France. Jellinek was an avid enthusiast, and began peppering Daimler with requests for modifications. Some of these were followed by the factory, because Jellinek was so effective at selling cars.
By 1900, Jellinek was operating a successful dealership in Nice, and was in a position to demand something really special from Daimler. He requested a car with a long wheelbase, more horsepower, lower center of gravity, and electric ignition. He offered a large sum of money to Daimler not only to produce the car, but to give him an exclusive dealership covering most of western Europe and the US. He reserved the right to name the car, and called it Mercedes, after his daughter.The new Mercedes car was an instant success, winning race after race. Success on the track led to success on the showroom floor, and the brand flourished.
During the post-WWI depression, the Benz and DMG companies were forced to merge. This occured in 1926. The resulting company was called Daimler Benz. Their automobiles, capitalizing on the strength of both brands, became known as Mercedes Benz’s, which is how we know them today.
References :
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070722171201AAXxxLS
By Ɲαρσℓєση ßℓσωηᗩραят on Apr 22, 2011 | Reply
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By Always Good on Apr 22, 2011 | Reply
Interesting question.
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By Jack Bisson on Apr 22, 2011 | Reply
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By Jumping Sun on Apr 22, 2011 | Reply
I did not know it. Thanks for sharing the knowledge.
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