Overview & Reviews

"Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes-Benz?" That's the opening line of "Mercedes-Benz," a song most famously recorded by singer Janis Joplin in the early 1970s. The tune gently poked fun at materialism and our desire for the finer things in life. It's fitting that the renowned German marque figures prominently in the lyric. Mercedes-Benz has long been known for crafting vehicles that emphasize luxury and refinement. For many, its vehicles are sleek symbols of status, success and good taste.

In January of 1886, Karl Benz unveiled the world's first automobile, a three-wheeled vehicle dubbed the Benz Patent Motor Car. A few months later, Gottlieb Daimler and his chief engineer Wilhelm Maybach rolled out a four-wheeled vehicle powered by his Daimler engine. The first Mercedes was crafted in 1901, shortly after Daimler's death. Built by Maybach, the car was commissioned by Emil Jellinek, one of Daimler's primary distributors, and was ultimately named after Jellinek's daughter, Mercedes.

In 1926, the companies founded by Daimler and Benz merged to form Daimler-Benz AG, and the Mercedes-Benz brand was born. The company's insignia was a three-pointed star wreathed in a laurel; the star was dreamed up by Daimler years earlier, and its three points signified the fact that his engines were used in vehicles that traveled land, air and sea.

Right from the start, the Mercedes-Benz name was synonymous with automotive excellence. One of the automaker's earliest vehicles, the 1931 Mercedes-Benz 170, distinguished itself as the world's first production car to offer a technology that was nothing short of extraordinary for the day: four-wheel independent suspension. The '30s and '40s saw Mercedes establishing itself as the brand of choice for car buyers seeking the ultimate in luxury, thanks to coveted cruisers like the 380 and 540K.

The 1950s witnessed the introduction of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL "Gullwing," a sports car that has been described as being the world's first supercar. With its dramatic styling and race-bred technology, the 300 SL reigns today as a classic coveted by collectors worldwide. The decade also saw Daimler-Benz making strides in the area of safety technology. The company's Mercedes-Benz 220 sedans were the first vehicles to incorporate its patented "crumple zone" body design, created to absorb impact in the event of a crash.

In 1963, the company cemented its reputation as the home of automotive luxury with the launch of the Mercedes-Benz 600. The elegant, luxurious sedan was also available as a limousine and featured an ahead-of-its-time air suspension system and a V8 engine that boasted 300 horsepower. The decade also saw the launch of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3. This full-size sedan went from zero to 60 in under seven seconds, distinguishing itself as the quickest luxury car is its day.

The 1970s saw the birth of the brand's storied S-Class line of vehicles, opulent sedans and coupes that coddled passengers with powerful engines and a long list of luxury features. The decade also saw Mercedes continuing on the cutting edge of safety technology, by being the first to offer antilock brakes in its vehicles.

Daimler-Benz's safety advancements continued in the 1980s. Its cars were the first to offer airbags and traction control. The manufacturer also raised the bar in terms of ride comfort and handling when it introduced multilink rear suspension. The technology debuted on the compact Mercedes-Benz 190 E, and it remains a vital component of the company's chassis engineering to this day.

Mercedes-Benz vehicles got an extra dose of power and performance in the 1990s, thanks to the manufacturer's partnership with AMG, a performance and tuning shop that was eventually purchased by the company to help produce ultra-high-performance versions of some of its vehicles. The first AMG model offered in the U.S. was the sporty C36 AMG in 1995; since then, Mercedes has gone on to offer an AMG-tuned version of almost all of its vehicles.

The company's current lineup is the most comprehensive in its history. With a variety of sedans, coupes, SUVs and roadsters filling Mercedes showrooms, it seems like the only thing missing is a pickup truck. Surely, the fact that Janis Joplin's song holds as much relevance today as it did four decades ago is a strong indicator that the brand's premier status is still very much intact.

User Reviews:

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  So much hope - 2001 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By Already re-sold it - September 7 - 11:10 am

  Loved driving the car, great handling! Made me look forward to the drive to/from work. Fun on the weekends too! However, having an alternator go out at 52,000 miles is ridiculous. We bought this car used, 44,000 miles, in May of 2005. After the alternator was fixed at the dealer yesterday afternoon, drove the car straight to be sold. We felt like this car was ready to become a money pit. We had MANY bulb failures, and a "thumping" that the dealer couldnt ever figure out nor fix. We had researched the Lexus and intended to buy one, but, found this car on the lot and fell in love. Reliability is very important to us, and we (I) made the wrong decision.

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  Wifes tiger - 2001 Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class
  By bruceb - September 7 - 10:00 am

  This is actually a review of my wifes 2002 430CLK. IT was the 1st red 2002 imported into the US. She loves it and gets great compliments from her girl friends. She too has had the window problem; apparently this is very common. Dealer replaced both sensors and no more problems. Only real negative - road noise is terrible but tolerable. Not like a Lexus or E430. Gas mileage is also poor - not as good as sticker. Otherwise, great car!

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  my 280 - 1999 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By ROGER - September 7 - 10:00 am

  Not a single problem or adjustment since purchase. On trips the car averages over 26mpg.

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  ML320 - 2002 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
  By ML320MB - September 7 - 10:00 am

  Poor dealer service. Dealrs dont treat this vehicle/ customers the same as they do for their cars.

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  The Best - 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class
  By Driver23 - September 7 - 10:00 am

  Best Car in the Market

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  I Love It - 2006 Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class
  By Elaine Kiernan - September 6 - 3:06 am

  Ive had my CLK for almost 3 years now and absolutely still love it. It is so much fun to drive and so reliable, I could not imagine having any other type of car. Its the first car Ive had that causes so many people to come by and comment on how much they like it! Great way to meet people!

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  An awesome hi-tech rocket - 2007 Mercedes-Benz S-Class
  By Charles Sutnick - September 5 - 2:40 am

  The new interior is awesome. Little clutter. Wonderful adjustable mood lighting all aroud the dash and four doors. Acceleration is like a rocket. There are tri-dundant ways to operate various systems like audio, navigation and telephone. The LCD navigation display is crystal clear. Entering addresses for some destinations can be difficult if you dont know the zipcode. The quality of the built-in Bluetooth phone inferface is excellent. I actually get 26.6 mpg on the highway with the cruise control set at 70 mph. Thats 2.4 mpg better than the window sticker predicts.

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  Probably not worth the investment - 2008 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
  By spicoli2 - September 4 - 10:23 am

  I bought this car new in October 2007. I have general dislikes about this vehicle and the cost of ownership. First, the SUV has 37k miles on it and I am on my 3rd set of tires at $1100 per set (including mounting and balancing). MBUSA says its due to the weight of the vehicle and that the tires available are soft (whatever you do DO NOT buy Continental 4X4 contacts for this car). Second, there are many, many little things that for a MB are un acceptable like, front defroster only has one setting, which is high, then you need to play the on/off game with it when the windows fog up, the radio does not display the song or artist, the alarm makes no audio sound to indicate it is alarmed, ect

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  Just bought new car in 3/04 - in shop - 2004 Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class
  By girl327 - September 4 - 10:00 am

  We just got the MB clk 500 and it has been in the shop 2x in 30 days. Today day 30 - the transmission gave. Love the style hate the quality. beware!

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  fuel injectors and pulling to right - 2003 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
  By Dr. David - September 4 - 10:00 am

  My wife drives this car and seldom notices any variation in performance or handling of the vehicle. When I finally drove the car, i noticed rough idling and it pulled to the right. The net result was replacement of all the fuel injectors, injector rail, and spark plugs were replaced . A bolt kit and alignment took care of the pulling to the right. Thank goodness for warranty services.