The Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart chronicles the automobile’s development, from its 1886 invention to future technologies. 160 vehicles and more than 1,500 exhibits can be seen on nine exhibition levels, showcasing the motor vehicle’s impact on society and innovation. We shared photos of the various levels of the museum in Part 1. In this second part, we will look at a few specific vehicles.
We can’t resist proposing this classic by The Cars.
Mercedes-Benz Museum
The museum Proposes two visitor itineraries.
- The first itinerary delves into a historical examination of the brand’s evolution (see Part 1).
- The second itinerary, which is the focus of this section, explores the utilities of MB’s vehicles.
This latter itinerary encompasses five distinct galleries, each showcasing a collection that highlights the breadth and diversity of MB’s offerings over the years.
Upon exiting the reception area, we entered an elevator that transported us directly to the eighth floor. This particular elevator, with its retro-futuristic aesthetic is reminiscent of technology depicted in a 1930s Fritz Lang film.
The first gallery is the Gallery of Voyagers which includes not just passenger cars but also buses. The world’s first motorised bus was built in Germany by Karl Benz in 1895. With a British partner Milnes, Daimler developed a double-decker in 1902 and then provided it for the first motorized bus service in the United Kingdom.
The 1920s saw a boom in motorized tourism, with bus travel becoming a popular choice for excursions and vacations. This trend continued after World War II, as more people enjoyed leisure travel. MB modified its vehicles to meet the needs of mass tourism. Buses and coaches have continually improved, prioritizing comfort, safety, and environmental impact.
< Mercedes-Benz O 3500 Allwetter-Reiseomnibus – a diesel-powered touring coach with soft top and roof-edge glazing. It was manufactured between 1949 and 1955 – the first luxury motor coach designed after the war.
The Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3 was produced in 1968-1972 as top-of-the-line model of the W108/109 (chassis code) luxury series, predecessors of today’s S-Class. It was a nearly 2-ton sports sedan with muscle car performance. At the time, it was one of the world’s fastest four-door cars. It was also an extremely luxurious vehicle for its era. Standard features included air-suspension, ventilated 4-wheel power disc brakes, power window, central locking and power steering.
The Mercedes-Benz W123 (chassis code) supported a range of executive cars produced from 1975 to 1986 which surpassed their predecessor, the W114 as the most successful Mercedes. Because of its reliability, many German taxi companies chose it. And after retiring, many were shipped to third world countries where the roads were bad while the car needed minimal maintenance.
< Mercedes-Benz 240D based on W123
In the Gallery of Carriers, we saw MB’s trucks and vans. Down another level, in the Gallery of Helpers, we saw MB’s adapting to the needs of ambulances and police cars, where rescuing and recovering is often a race against time.
The Mercedes-Benz O 10000 mobiles Postamt built in 1938 served the Austrian Postal Service as a parcel truck after World War II, and later as a mobile post office until the 1970s. It was the largest bus/truck produced at the time. To read more about this unique specialized truck, click here.
MB also makes hearses for carrying bodies. It was a surprise in 2022 when the body of Queen Elizabeth II was carried by a Binz-modified Mercedes-Benz W212 model, and not by a British vehicle. In the museum’s collection as shown below is a Mercedes-Benz 200D Bestattungswagen built in 1975.
The final collection is in the Gallery of Celebrities. The very first buyer of a vehicle in 1892 from Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft was a member of the elite – the Sultan of Morocco. The brand has always reflected the owner’s status and image.
On this floor was a Mercedes-Benz 230G „Papamobil“ – a Pope Mobile built in 1980 for the visit of John Paul II to Germany, which after an assassination attempt in May 1981, was furnished with bulletproof glazing.
We saw also a Mercedes-Benz SL500 (R129 chassis code) in metallic red owned by Princess Diana in 1981, the first member of the British royal house to drive a foreign car privately (instead of the green Jaguar XJ-SC V12 she was given). In response to criticisms from the government and trade unions, she reluctantly returned this car in 1982. The SL models based on R129 was a successor to the very successful R107 series, which was produced from early 1970’s to 1989.
Brand icons
We show below a few iconic MB cars. First, Mercedes-Benz 500 K Spezial-Roadster – the W29 built in 1934-1936, the brand’s most elegant and luxurious show-piece. K stands for Kompressor – a supercharger engine. Click the image to see a bigger version of it.
Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Coupé – the Gullwing (W198) produced between 1957-1963. SL or “super-leicht,” meaning “super-light,” is a reference to the car’s weight designed for racing. Due to the construction of the lightweight frame, the side member was quite high between the wheels, therefore prohibiting the attachment of standard doors. The gullwing door (or papillion door) was not invented by MB as it was introduced 14 years earlier by Bugatti.
Mercedes-Benz Vision EQ Silver Arrow shown in 2018 is an electric one-seater concept vehicle with retro styling, an homage to the record-breaking W125 car from 1937.
Mercedes-Benz EQC 400 – The new EQC is the first MB vehicle produced under the all-electric product and technology brand “EQ” which is now common on the roads in 2024. These vehicles feature all-new compact electric drivetrains at each axle.
Mercedes-Benz has a wide range of vehicles, each with its own unique characteristics and features. The brand categorizes its vehicles into different classes, each with its own focus and purpose. For example. categories with outstanding leisure and travel potential followed, among them, the V-Class (1996), the M-Class (1997), the B-Class (2005), the R-Class (2005) and finally the GL-Class (2006).
With a new naming convention, the core models are currently A, B, C, E and S classes. Prefixes provide further information on the type of cars, i.e., CL-Class are 4-door coupes, GL-Class are SUVs, SL-Class are roadsters and EQ-Class are all-electric vehicles. For more information on chassis codes and models for US MB cars, go to this site.
This is a must-see museum for the slightly-curious traveler, even if you are not a car enthusiast. Alternatively, you can use the museum’s web site which offers a very informative virtual tour here.
If you are into cars, check out our post on the National Automobile Museum (MAUTO) in Turin, Italy (the town where Fiat was manufactured).