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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  Bittersweet - 1995 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class
  By MBS - February 23 - 10:46 am

  Although I loved this car, we have since parted ways. I could not have been more dissapponted with my SL experience. For the 3 years I owned the car I found that there is a huge cost of ownership that comes with maintaining this car. Service costs were more than the payments. I was always told that these cars would run very high mileage, but that mileage comes at a heafty cost. I would not buy another unless it was under the Starmark warrantee.

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  Beautiful Styling, Great Safety Features, Moderate Performance - 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class
  By filmdog - February 20 - 3:39 am

  My wife and I have owned many cars. This is the best looking of the entire lot. We opted for just about every safety and appearance feature, and we got terrific safety, and head-turning style. The engine, however, is the standard 208 horse turbo four, and thats where things get less spectacular. Rated acceleration is good on paper, but you can feel the tiny powerplant revving hard to yield reasonably brisk results. Compared to a 350E that I drove recently, the CLA feels like an underpowered toy. No surprise given the price difference. Handling is good. The feel is "light", but nonetheless stable and precise. A tiny gas tank requires frequent refills.Mileage is fair--with Econ mode OFF.

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  MERCEDES IS OVER RATED - 2013 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
  By TM - February 17 - 1:38 am

  Owned and driven a ML-550 for 4 years / 75000 Smooth ride on the highway. Sound level is acceptable. Expect to do repairs...truck hatch 2 times, titl steering, side window, drivers seat controls, night vision, cooling system hose, MB has quirky system deficiencies and erroneous caveats, including the remote garage door control, outside air intake to cab located on front engine hood will block easily from leaves or snow, bad odour will result must leave AC on all times, if your MB is damaged in an accident accelerated depreciation occurs like no other, This SUV is very heavy and reminds me of 1970 Oldsmobile where the weight does not match up to the braking and suspension system properly and the vehicle would sway and rock while maneuvering. Have asked MB to change the software controlling the transmission shifts to reduce the chunky down shifts that cause passengers to fall forwards in their seats. Acceleration is great. (405HP) Sport mode simply increase the idle and rpm for quicker responses to accelration. Turbo lags in normal drive and causes the vehicle to stall during quick turn arounds such as a u turn. Do not trust the vehicles sensory system to brake when in bumper to bumper traffic. Has no glass breaking sensor included with security so any thief can steal all your contents including spare key fob in glove box. Key fob comes from Munich so you pay $500 to replace..ya ya. Carry windshield glass insurance as these cost over 3k to replace. Frequency and Cost of repairs are often and very high so DO NOT OWN A MERCEDES WITHOUT WARRANTY or you will be nickeled and dimed - allow $5000/year to operate this vehicle over 6 years. MB only offers a factory 60000 kms warranty! Brake job at 30000 kms cost $3200. Tires are also 2500 at 50000kms... I beleive Mercedes is now a seriously over rated auto manufacturer. Going back to luxury GM products with 6 year 100000 warranty and $100 key fobs and $1000 brake jobs.. if your ego allows do the right thing and dont buy a Mercedes. $$$$$ in CAD.

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  Hi-maintainance beauty - 1999 Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class
  By mango77 - January 26 - 10:00 am

  In a nutshell, this cars very attractive, but a real lemon. Ive taken it in to the dealership 8 times in a little over a year. Engine was torn down and rebuilt, amongst other obnoxious and ridiculous episodes. MD- DC dealership and MBUSA have completely turned a blind eye to me and I am considering legal action.

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  2002 ML 500 - great to drive awful to maintain - 2002 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
  By jleneveu - January 14 - 1:52 pm

  Safety, performance (fun to drive), all weather drving capability - wonderful vehicle. Maintenance costs on the other hand are unacceptable for a vehicle of the this class. Problems, you bet - 4 rear main engine seals in 96,000 miles at $1,300 per repair, front lower ball joints at 25,000 miles, engine oil leaks, interior plastic trim pieces breaking, $775 for brakes every 22,000-25,000 miles, three door panels repainted - rust problems, $1100 to repair ventilation system, and many more.

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  What a Turkey.... - 2002 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By SP - January 12 - 10:00 am

  This car looks lovely, but is an absolute piece of junk. First, the purge valve was so noisy that it could be heard above the stereo. It took 4 visits to 2 dealerships to get it fixed. The ABS has failed twice in the past 3 weeks, and just today, the climate control system as well as the automatic mirror adjustments have stopped working. The car, as well as MB service are stuff that nightmares are made of.

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  Nowhere to rest drivers elbows! - 2001 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
  By SUVLOVER - January 12 - 2:00 am

  Theres excellent & smooth V8 power, & the most carlike handling of any SUV that has a low range transfer case, but the power steering is WAY overboosted & there is NO where to rest your elbows when you are holding the steering wheel, if you are average or tall sized. VERY fatiguing! Dont buy one based on a short test drive, but imagine how tired your arms will get on a longer drive while youre forced to hold them out in front of you the whole trip.

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  Whats with the rust? - 2001 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
  By bissavi - January 9 - 2:50 pm

  Buyer beware! Buy something else, anything but this car! When I bought the car it had a couple of spots where the paint had bubbled up. Since then the car has been rusting worst than a tin can even though Ive been keeping it in the garage. Mercedes refused to address problem (5yr/50,000 mile nonsense). $3,000 body work. Also, paid $350 to replace airbag sensor in front passenger seat. Dealer claims it happened because a heavy person sat in the car (whats up with that?) Spent $150 on rear window actuator. Dealer said because I dont open that window very often the glass got stuck to the rim!!!??? Oh, yeah one of the catalytic converters was replaced too!

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  Electrical Trouble never goes away - 2002 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
  By Annabell - January 3 - 10:00 am

  Have put 18,000 miles on this car. It has been in the shop over 14 times in the first 6 months. Everything from the headrest motor to the fuel pump to the crankshaft has been replaced. Car is very slow on the start. Dont think of jumping out into traffic!

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  2006 ML350 - 2006 Mercedes-Benz M-Class
  By rika01 - December 29 - 4:26 pm

  I bought the car in May 05 and returned it within a week due to transmission problems at low speed. When in traffic there is a loud bang when upshifting or downshifting between first and second gears. I received the following comments from the dealer: 1. The vehicle is operating within normal limits 2. The vehicle has to adapt to the driving pattern of the particular driver and has a "memory" that can only be reset if the car is driven from 80mph to 0mph without braking and coming to a complete stop. 3. The vehicle needs software updates. After the 6th return I made a huge stink and they replaced the transmission. So far everything seems to be ok but I no longer have confidence in MB.